Coil Coating Oven and Thermal Oxidizer for Laminated Aluminum Sheet Curing Line
The Challenge
A leading developer of laminated aluminum sheet required continuous cure oven system for their new laminated aluminum sheet line, that would not only cure the applied coatings, but also heat treat the aluminum in the process. Producing these materials at affordable prices requires large scale coil laminating production lines. Insuring a consistent and uniform cure of the polymer mastic is critical to product performance. It required heat treating expertise to develop a custom and innovative continuous oven systems to deliver a solution that achieves Peak Metal Temperatures (PMT) uniformity within +/- 0.5% of target across the 5-foot-wide multilayered laminated sheet traveling at speeds of approximately 270 feet per minute.
The Solution
Utilizing an energy efficient zone control, highly specialized temperature control modules were key to delivering the high velocity and high flow heat required to achieve the outstanding PMT uniformity seen in production. Each energy efficiency zone’s control module includes tandem Variable Frequency Drive(VFD) controlled recirculation fans directed to dedicated top and bottom recirculation plenums, incorporating a custom proprietary nozzle design specifically for this application.
This particular project required that the oven systems for coil coating large aluminum sheets, had VOC emissions controls integrated into the overall design. The integrated air pollution control system is optimized with the heat treating system via primary and secondary heat recovery methods to ensure maximum fuel efficiency. For example this the three-zone continuous oven system recovers heat from the custom integrated air pollution control system engineered to direct hot clean air from the oxidizer exhaust to the various zone controllers.
The Results
A major advantage to coil coating in general is the energy savings. Not only does the process utilize high-speed material processing, but also allows for the thermal recycling of the majority of the painted coil’s VOCs back into the curing ovens, where they are re-used as fuel. This approach facilitates the highest energy recovery with the smallest overall package footprint.