An air flotating dryer for the production of electrical sheets has been successfully installed and put into operation.
Münstermann has decades of know-how in heat treatment in the steel and aluminum sectors. Examples of this are systems for drying metal strips, blow-off stations, annealing furnaces for aluminum strips and heat treatment plants for solution annealing and hot aging of castings. A current project for thyssenkrupp Steel is a large floating dryer for the production of electrical sheet.
Air flotating dryers and ovens for up to 600 °C
Special applications require special drying methods. Thus, the combination of relatively lengthy drying processes and two-sided coatings of sheet material may make it impossible to guide and support the material by means of rollers, straps, or the like (eg, avoiding scratching). In such applications, dryers or ovens are used in which the material is guided "floating" through the process without contact, so-called air flotating dryers.
Construction of the current dryer
The individual zones of the dryer each have 2 fans, which supply laterally supplied nozzle boxes with heated air. This ensures a homogeneous air outlet over the entire outlet width and thus a bilateral and uniform heating of the strip material. The integrated control technology makes it possible to set the optimum belt running height and stability for different belt thicknesses and belt widths. The belt slack is continuously monitored and readjusted automatically. A specially developed safety concept ensures that the dryer is operated in accordance with EN 1539, area 1.
Many side maintenance flaps
Important for the customer is the accessibility of the dryer inside via maintenance flaps because of
- the accessibility to the dryer nozzles from both dryer sides with doors open for cleaning or repair or replacement,
- the easy control of the tape run in case of scratches and search for their cause and
- direct access to the tape feeder chains in case of malfunctions
The maintenance flaps also make it easy to clean the dryer interior from both sides of the dryer in the event of dirt and caking.
Narrow schedule and spatial conditions.
The tight time frame and the spatial conditions in the customer's production presented the employees with additional challenges when installing the dryer. Moreover, the necessary process and safety technology was very demanding. It is essential to mention the partnership with thyssenkrupp Steel in this context, so that the contract could be successfully carried out to the satisfaction of all those involved.