MRF, Inc furnace accessories

Furnace Accessories

If you wish to expand or update the capabilities of your current furnace, consider adding the option you want and integrate it into your existing system. A number of options can be added effortless, will enhance your systems functionality, and don't require the investment associated with a new system.

Select the option of your interest for more information.

Data Acquisition systems

With the fairly recent penetration of PC's into the industrial control market, many options have now become available to track, record and display furnace data. A number of software and hardware packages are specifically geared towards data acquisition. The benefit of adding a data acquisition system is that for most furnace readings, no old hardware has to be replaced, resulting in an easy and clean attachment of a PC to record and display data..

Data acquisition

Benefits of a data acquisition system:

no operator required to record data
no paper recorder with stacks of hard to read data
users can remotely monitor condition of the furnace
data can be accessed at any date and time
data can easely be analyzed and manipulated in any spreadsheet or database program
hard disk space is cheap & can be reused
previous run data can be used to fine tune a process
runs independant of actual furnace controls

All data acquisition systems come pre-programmed and configured, and consist of an easy and intuitive user interface. An up to date desktop PC or industrial PC will be supplied with all software installed and ready to use. A National Instruments hardware and software package is typically used for our Data acquisition systems, though we supply many different packages per customer request.

PC & PLC Control systems

With the growing power of Programmable Logic Controllers and the introduction of lower priced PC's and interface panels in the industrial control market, many customers prefer a PC operator interface to control their furnace over the classic way of using push buttons, switches, lights, and programming separate vacuum and temperature controllers. The dependability of PLC's in combination with their versatility and flexibility has made them a standard in the industrial control industry. While the PLC is used to control and interlock the actual devices on the furnace, the PC is loaded with an HMI ( Human Machine Interface) which allows the user to initiate runs, start the vacuum system, run a temperature profile, etc, while displaying and recording furnace data.

HMI sample

Advantages of a PC & PLC controlled system:

eliminates multiple controllers & switches & lights
Data acquisition built-in
data presented in a clear and easy to read fashion
flexibility: can easely be modified and customized
no limitations: recipe storage and data storage only limited by Hard disk space
if networked, furnace can be controlled and monitored remotely
alarms can automatically trigger shut down routines & notify personnel
security features can restrict or exclude access to unauthorized users
PLC runs independant of PC, PC can blow up and the furnace will continue to run
Automated runs can be programmed with variables stored in a recipe

All our control systems come pre-programmed and configured, and consist of an easy and intuitive user interface. An up to date desktop PC or industrial PC will be supplied with all software installed and ready to use. Though furnace controls can be complex, we strive to simplify the operation and maintenance of our furnaces without sacrificing functionality or flexibility. You can upgrade your old equipment with an up-to-date automated, easy to operate and reliable control system without the investment associated with new equipment. After we're through, you'll have an easy to operate, customized yet flexible, fully configured system that will give you repeatable results and reliable operation for years to come. We also provide you all programming code, configurations and software programs to give you full control of your furnace. Our standard control packages consist of an Allen-Bradley PLC and PC, with and RSView or Wonderware HMI, but we can substitute this with any other package out there that you prefer.

Vacuum systems

MRF supplies many pumping systems to meet today's new technology requirements. New processes often times require cleaner environments than before to succeed. If process requirements have changed and your current vacuum system is no longer adequate, it might be possible to install a different vacuum system that meets your specifications without needing to invest in a new furnace.For processes requiring ultra clean conditions, we also build "dry" vacuum systems, where no pumping oil vapors can back stream and contaminate the product.

Following is a list of our vacuum system options in function of the required vacuum levels.

Diffusion pumping system

6" Diffusion pumping system

1. Evacuation kit : ATM (760 Torr) to 1x10^-2 torr

This basic vacuum kit comes with a mechanical vacuum pump that can reach ultimate pressures in the 10^-3 torr range. It includes all the vacuum lines, vacuum valves, vacuum sensors and instruments needed for monitoring and operating the vacuum system. In systems where vacuum pump oil vapors can contaminate your work, (oil vapors always manage to "back-stream" into the vacuum chamber at lower pressures) we can supply a dry-pump where no pumping parts will ever see contact with the pumping oil and thus eliminate pumping oil vapors from back-streaming to the chamber.
In processes where high out-gassing loads are expected, we can also add a booster (acting much as a turbo on a car) to speed up pump down times and handle larger gas loads.

2. Diffusion pumping system: ATM to 10^-6 torr

Our diffusion pumping systems come in sizes from 1" to 35" and can pump up to 50,000 l/sec. Our diffusion pumping systems come standard with a cold trap (baffle). This cold trap comes with a no-maintenance, ozone friendly refrigeration unit to cool the baffle. Though the cold trap reduces the pumping speed, it offers the advantage of substantially reducing backstreaming of diffusion pump oil vapors in and also results in lower ultimate pumping pressures.
Our diffusion pumping systems also come with a sized mechanical pump, all the necessary vacuum sensors, vacuum lines and vacuum controls to seamlessly operate this system. Again, all our pumping systems can be built with the components of your choice.

3. Turbo-molecular pumping systems: ATM to 10^-8 torr

Our turbo systems are often found in applications where previously diffusion pumping systems were used and where cleanliness has become an issue. The turbo pumps offer the advantage of being oil-less, having high compression ratios with lower obtainable operating pressures, requiring no maintenance and taking up less space. Turbo pumps can also be operated in a horizontal orientation often eliminating large and expensive pumping elbows.
Our turbo pumping systems, as well as any of our other pumping systems, are equipped with a roughing pump, all vacuum lines, vacuum sensors and vacuum controls necessary for operation. Also available is our oil-free turbo-pumping system where the regular mechanical pump is replaced with a dry-pump for ultra clean applications.

4. Ion & Cryogenic pumping systems :ATM to 10^-11

For ultra high vacuum applications such as material research and analytical applications, the ion pumping system is ideal. Its components are simple yet effective for pumping molecules that can be ionized. Regenerative Cryogenic pumps are available as well operating on the principle of condensing molecules onto a cold surface.

Gas systems

Inert gas systems ( Argon, Nitrogen, Helium)
Flammable gas system ( Hydrogen, ammonium, Methane, etc)
Burn-off kits for flammable gasses
Gas bubblers to obtain wet gasses
Oxydizing gas kits

Hydrogen Burn off
H2 Burn off

MRF builds furnace zones for use in many atmospheres, which can often be combined. We supply gas kits built with selected quality components. Dry or wet Hydrogen gas kits for flammable or non flammable mixtures, Argon, Nitrogen, Helium, Air, etc.
MRF can also program your unit to automatically switch over to a different atmosphere at certain temperatures. We can provide you with our material compatibility chart to aid you in determining which atmospheres can be used with which materials at which temperatures.
Our gas systems come completely equipped with all the necessary controls to operate safely and efficiently. We can control gas flow, provide automatic purges and burn of hydrogen mixtures.
Chambers can be provided with pressure relief valves, pressure switches, solenoid valves and flow meters and operating controls.

Retractable TC's

In furnaces where the maximum temperature is above 2000C, optical pyrometers are often times used to read temperature. At lower temperatures a temperature thermocouple is typically used, while at higher temperatures, the pyrometer can accurately provide the furnace temperature. While both sensors overlap, a thermocouple can only withstand temperatures of 2300C maximum, depending on the material and the environment they operate in. Even at hese high temperatures, their useful life will be short. For these reasons, a thermocouple must be removed from the hot zone at elevated temperatures. In many cases manually removing the TC is undesirable due to inconvenience and risk of disrupting the furnace chamber atmosphere. An ideal solution to these problems are our retractable TC's, where the TC is automatically retracted based upon the furnace temperature or other conditions.

Retractable TC's

Retractable TC's automatically remove a thermocouple from the hot zone at a preset temperature or other condition.

Benefits:

protects TC's from burning out prematurely
retract TC's to facilitate loading and unloading, especially useful in top loading furnaces
no attendance needed to monitor or remove TC
high vacuum rated
limit switches for positive feedback
many different lengths and sizes available

Water Cooled Power Cables

Most high temperature furnaces rely on low voltage high current heaters, where 2000 amp conductors are not uncommon. To carry this current from the power supply to the heater in an efficient manner, we supply water cooled power cables, which allow a much smaller conductors to be used versus using air cooled conductors. This allows for larger distances between power supply and furnace. If your system is already equipped with water cooled power cables, we can also offer replacements for old cables that have become less efficient due to corrosion or water flow restrictions. We can supply cables of any length and current capacities of up to 4000 Amps for any high temperature furnace. For clean room application, we also supply power cable feed through flanges and other accessories.

power cable

Closed loop Cooling Systems

For customers with a small laboratory or remote location where the water flow requirements cannot easely be met, or for glove box systems where plant cannot mix with the furnace cooling water, MRF can supply closed loop water cooling systems. A chiller system will be sized to match the cooling requirements of the furnace and can be installed outdoors if required.

Air cooled Chiller

Advantages of a chiller system:

No plant water required
Can be placed outside or in another room
Ideal for glove box applications
Water temperature can easely be controlled
No pressure or flow fluctuations

Disadvatanges of a chiller:

Increased power use
Water needs occasional treatment
Heat output of air cooled models can be an inssue for smaller rooms

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