Products
- Induction heating
- Induction furnace
- Induction Brazing
- Induction Forging
Services
- Quotes
- Shipment
- Installation
- Support
- Cooling system
Applications
- Heating
- Brazing
- Forging
- Melting
- Coil design
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Products
Information about KEXIN's catalog of induction heating systems.
Induction heating
How does induction heating work?
Induction heating works by using a high-frequency alternating current (AC) passing through a coil to generate a rapidly reversing magnetic field. When a conductive metal object is placed in this field, the magnetic field induces localized electrical currents, known as eddy currents, inside the metal, producing rapid internal heat through resistance.
What is the difference between induction heating and electric heating?
Induction cooktops heat your cookware directly using electromagnetic energy, which means very little heat is lost between the cooktop surface and your food. In contrast, traditional electric cooktops rely on radiant heat from an element beneath the surface.
Do induction heaters use a lot of electricity?
No, induction heaters are energy-efficient and generally consume less electricity than conventional heating methods. They generate heat directly within the material, minimizing energy waste. However, electricity usage depends on the power level and duration of heating required for each application.
What is induction heating used for?
Induction heating is often used in the heat treatment of metal items. The most common applications are induction hardening of steel parts, induction soldering/brazing as a means of joining metal components, and induction annealing to selectively soften an area of a steel part.
What metals can be heated by induction?
Materials such as Steel, Copper, Brass, Graphite, Gold, Silver, Aluminum, and Carbide can be heated for a range of applications, which include various heat treating applications such as hardening, annealing, tempering, brazing, soldering, shrink fitting, heat staking, bonding, curing, melting and many more.
Does induction heating use AC or DC?
In induction heating, an alternating current (AC) source is used to supply current to an induction heating coil. As a result, the coil generates an alternating magnetic field.
Why is induction heating better?
Unlike traditional torches that can pollute the environment by burning fossil fuels, induction heating is free of hazardous emissions. It reduces and often removes the need for harmful solvents. Additionally, induction heating tools are more energy efficient.
Induction furnace
What is the induction furnace?
An induction furnace consists of a nonconductive crucible holding the charge of metal to be melted, surrounded by a coil of copper wire. A powerful alternating current flows through the wire. The coil creates a rapidly reversing magnetic field that penetrates the metal.
What is the difference between electric furnace and induction furnace?
The electric arc furnace uses power frequency electricity; the induction furnace uses intermediate frequency electricity. The thermal efficiency of the electric arc furnace is low, the productivity is low, the operation is cumbersome, and the energy consumption is high.
Is an induction furnace AC or DC?
Induction heating requires an alternating changing voltage, by definition. You may be able to get induction heaters that are externally powered by either AC or DC, because in either case the supply will be rectified and converted to high-frequency (~100 kHz) AC with a switchmode converter.
On which principle does an induction furnace work?
The principle of induction furnace is the Induction heating: Induction heating is a form of non-contact heating for conductive materials. The principle of induction heating is mainly based on the well-known physical phenomena: Electromagnetic induction.
Where are induction furnaces used?
Induction furnaces are used in foundries to melt iron, steel, copper, aluminum, and precious metals to name a few. Once melted, the metal is poured from the induction furnace into a mold.
Is an induction furnace the same as an electric arc furnace?
The primary difference between induction furnace and electric arc furnace is in their heating principle i.e., an induction furnace generates heat through electromagnetic induction, whereas an electric arc furnace produces heat by creating an electric arc between two electrodes.
Induction Brazing
What is induction brazing?
Induction brazing is a process in which two or more materials are joined together by a filler metal that has a lower melting point than the base materials using induction heating. Usually ferrous materials are heated rapidly from an electromagnetic field that is created by the alternating current from a coil.
What is the difference between brazing and induction welding?
Choose welding over brazing or soldering when the application requires a permanent bond that can withstand high stresses and temperatures. Welding fuses the base metals, creating a stronger joint than brazing or soldering, which only bond the surfaces.
What metals cannot be brazed?
Heating metals, like silver or gold, to such high heat requires a lot of precision. It’s more common for these metals to be soldered rather than brazed. Gold and silver can handle the lower heat better, and soldering can still give a good bond, even if it’s not as strong.
What materials are used in induction brazing?
Common Metal Combinations for Induction Brazing
- Copper to Copper.
- Aluminum to Aluminum
- Steel to Steel.
- Copper Meets Steel.
- Aluminum Joins Copper.
- Titanium Bonds with Stainless Steel.
What is the difference between induction brazing and furnace brazing?
Furnace brazing requires the entire part assembly to be brought up to brazing temperature while brazing with induction requires only the joint interface to be heated, allowing the braze alloy to flow and capillary into the joint interface.
Induction Forging
What is an induction forge?
Induction forging refers to the use of an induction heater to pre-heat metals prior to deformation using a press or hammer. Typically metals are heated to between 1,100 and 1,200 °C (2,010 and 2,190 °F) to increase their malleability and aid flow in the forging die.
What materials can be forged by induction?
Induction forging is widely used in the metal and foundry industries to heat billets, bars and bar ends. Metals commonly forged with KEXIN systems include aluminum, brass, copper, steel and stainless steel.
Can induction forging be automated?
Induction forging allows for the heating of a billet’s while providing reduced scale, faster start-up, and is much easier to automate than other methods of heating.
What are the advantages of induction hardening?
Hard, Wear-Resistant Surface: Increases surface durability while improving fatigue strength through residual compressive stresses. Minimized Distortion: Only the surface is heated and quenched, reducing overall heat treatment distortion.
What metals can be induction forged?
Induction forging primarily uses carbon and alloy steels to enhance surface hardness and strength. Key points include: Medium-carbon steels, such as 1045, are frequently utilized due to their balanced properties. These steels have sufficient carbon content to achieve the desired hardness levels.
Services
Matters concerned with service of KEXIN systems.
Quotes
How can I get a quote for a KEXIN system?
To request a quote, begin by providing some information to help us understand your process and your needs. One of our induction heating experts will follow-up with you to take the next steps.
Shipment
How can I get a KXIN equipment after order it?
Before shipment, engineers will measure and test the equipment multiple times to ensure it meets export standards. Afterwards, we will arrange air or sea freight according to customer requirements.
Installation
Do you have any working videos for your equipment?
Yes, we have a growing library of working videos for our induction heating systems.
How do I set up induction heating equipment?
KEXIN provides detailed user manual and connection drawings for installation.
How do I control the START/STOP signal for the rear of my induction heater?
Your induction heater can be controlled from the front or rear panels. For more details, please check with the manual instruction.
What electrical service is required?
Your induction heater accepts 3 phase line-voltages from 380V. Theinternal fuse selections anticipate the corresponding current levels for your equipment.
See your operator’s manual for more information.
Can our electricians service the system?
Only trained or guided service persons are authorized. Portions inside the supply remain energized and hazardous after the AC Power Switch is off. Always turn off the customer-supplied fused disconnect before attempting any service.
Support
Is your induction heating system covered by warranty?
We provide a one-year warranty for all KEXIN-manufactured equipment.
How can I get an induction heater calibrated?
KEXIN’s induction heating systems are calibrated prior to shipment; after-sale service is available.
There may be circumstance in which you need to have your induction heater re-calibrated. Our service professionals can help you with this.
Cooling system
Is a cooling system required?
Our induction heating systems use circulating water to cool the internal components. In the process of heating your work-piece, the current flowing in the system and work head tank circuit heats the components, too. It is necessary to dispose of this excess heat to prevent damage to the components of the induction heating system.
What if cooling water is cut off?
The induction heater will immediately issue a “water shortage” alarm. Then you must stop working and check out the cooling water. Make sure that cooling water is sufficient then to start to work.
What kind of preventive maintenance should we do on induction heaters?
Maintaining the water quality is number one. Then you want to look at your process and make sure the induction heating coil is not getting bumped around and is not getting excessive flux build up if you’re in the brazing type environment. And just common sense maintenance is required. If you already own our systems, refer to your manual for more detailed instructions.
Are workheads water-cooled?
The components generating the electromagnetic field at your workpiece require cooling.
Each workhead provides a means of directing fresh water into and through the components, enabling the water to pick-up the excess heat and transfer it, either to drain or to cooling to be recycled back to the equipment.
Applications
Answers about how induction heating is used in various process heating applications.
Heating
What is induction heating used for?
Induction heating is often used in the heat treatment of metal items. The most common applications are induction hardening of steel parts, induction soldering/brazing as a means of joining metal components, and induction annealing to selectively soften an area of a steel part.
Can we use induction as a heater?
Induction heating is a flame-free, fast, clean, energy-efficient, and non-polluting form of heating that can be used to heat metals or change the properties of conductive material.
What can induction heating cannot be used for?
Given the options and the fundamental principle of induction heating, the most definitive limitation is its inability to efficiently heat non-conductive materials like plastics.
Is possible to heat an electrically non-conductive material like glass?
Electrically non-conductive materials do not heat directly with induction. However, these materials can be heated by conduction, convection or radiation using a conductive material between the induction coil and the non-conductive material.
Can a painted steel part be heated?
Usually induction heating is not affected by painted steel parts, anodized aluminum parts or thin metallized coatings. Some metallic coatings, if thicker may sometimes get affected by induction.
Is it ok to put our workpiece as close to the coil as possible?
Theoretically the closer the metal workpiece to the coil, the faster is the heating rate in the part. However, in production environments reasonable air gaps are used to overcome the design tolerances in workpieces, coils and the handling fixtures used to hold the parts.
Must coils be custom fitted to workpieces?
A coil used to heat a 30in workpiece can certainly be used to heat a 10 in workpiece given the following two criteria. First there should be enough spare capability in the power supply to overcome the coupling loss to the 10 in workpiece in the larger coil. Second, the time to heat the smaller workpiece may be much longer given the poor coupling to the part.
Brazing
What is brazing?
The brazing process does not melt the base metals being joined yet produces strong robust joints. Brazing offers distinct advantages over other joining techniques:
- Similar and dissimilar metals can be brazed
- Brazing uses lower temperatures, resulting in less part distortion and joint stress
- Dimensional integrity of the finished product is easier to control
- Brazing produces strong low stress joints.
Why Use Induction for Brazing?
Induction overcomes the challenges of torch and furnace brazing by eliminating the need for a highly skilled operator. It also reduces energy costs and minimizes the equipment footprint, all while implementing a lean manufacturing process to produce superior quality parts.
Why Use Brazing to Join Your Parts?
Unlike soldering or tin soldering, brazing does not require melting the base materials to be joined. It uses a filler metal called a brazing alloy, which has a lower melting point than the base material. When heated, the brazing alloy melts and flows into the tiny gaps between the base materials, forming a strong and durable joint.
The brazing process offers excellent temperature control because the base material remains solid throughout the joining process. This prevents parts from warping or deforming, ensuring the final assembly retains its original shape and dimensions.
Brazing is versatile. It can be used to join a wide variety of materials, including dissimilar metals that are difficult to weld. This enables innovative designs and the manufacture of complex components.
Can induction improve my brazing process?
- Throughput: induction generates heat only in the portion of the part needed for brazing
- Better efficiency
- Better quality with less part distortion
- Repeatability: after the coil and heating process are defined, you can count on a precise, consistent quality braze every time
- Easy integration: into a lean manufacturing process
- Safety: no open flame or hot furnace
- Small footprint: Frees up valuable factory floor space
Is induction recommended to braze steel?
Carbon and stainless steel have high resistivity – they couple well to induction energy and heat easily. However, they have poor thermal conductivity so the induction brazing of steel parts should not be rushed. With steel, it is important the heat is given time to soak through to the joint surface for proper flow and wetting out of the braze material.
Can induction be used for brazing aluminum?
Torch brazing is the most common form of brazing today, but requires a skilled operator. Furnace brazing is another widely used brazing technique.
Induction brazing addresses the issues of torch and furnace brazing by removing the requirement for a skilled operator, by reducing energy costs and by decreasing the equipment footprint while implementing a lean manufacturing process for higher quality parts.
What's the Purpose of Braze Filler or Flux?
The purpose of using braze filler material is to create a strong and durable bond between the surfaces of the materials being joined together. There are various types of braze alloys available, each specifically designed to melt, flow, and effectively bond the materials during the joining process. These alloys ensure proper wetting and bonding, resulting in a successful joint formation.
Forging
What is hot forging?
Hot forging involves heating a part to a temperature above its material recrystallization point, usually around 1100 °C (2012°F), before the actual forging process takes place. This technique allows the part to be shaped with less force, resulting in finished parts that have lower levels of residual stress. As a result, these forged parts are easier to machine or subject to heat treatment processes.
Is forging a shaping process?
Forging is a manufacturing process involving the shaping of a metal through hammering, pressing, or rolling. These compressive forces are delivered with a hammer or die. Forging is often categorized according to the temperature at which it is performed—cold, warm, or hot forging. A wide range of metals can be forged.
Where should hot forging be used instead of forging?
Hot forging offers significant benefits for applications where material failure occurs due to cracking. In addition, it also helps to reduce press forces, making the process even more advantageous.
I forge steel parts. What is that frequency range?
Forging applications typically require a combination of low frequency and adequate soak time for optimal performance. Frequencies in the 1-10 kHz range are typically used for forging applications.
What are the benefits of induction forging over a furnace?
Some advantages of induction forging include maintaining a consistent rate of production, increasing process efficiency, and minimizing the formation of scale.
What is the best material for forging?
Forging is a process that accepts a wide variety of materials, but the most common are: carbon steel, alloy steel, stainless steel, duplex and aluminum alloys, titanium, nickel, copper and brass.
Melting
What is the process of induction melting?
Induction heating allows heating up or melting of an object without physical contact. The process uses high-frequency alternating currents to heat an electrically conductive material.
Can induction heating melt metal?
With induction, heat is generated directly in the metal, so there is no heat loss to the surrounding environment. It’s also a versatile way to heat metal, useful in melting a wide variety of materials, including ferrous and non-ferrous metals.
What metals can be melted by induction?
Induction equipment can melt/heat virtually all metals and materials including, gray and ductile iron, steel, copper and copper-based alloys, aluminum, zinc, reactive metals, precious metals, silicon and graphite.
Can you melt aluminum with induction?
Induction is practical across all aluminum melting applications and offers measurable advantages in efficiency, metal quality, operational flexibility, and workplace conditions.
Can you melt steel with induction?
Induction furnaces are an excellent option for melting stainless steel because they can reach high temperatures quickly, making the melting process faster and more efficient. They are also energy-efficient, which makes them an environmentally friendly option.
What is the temperature of a melting furnace?
Induction Melting Furnace, Max Temperature: 1500-2000 degree Celsius.
Coil design
How to design an induction coil?
Start with understanding where the heat needs to be generated in the part to perform the process, and then design the coil to achieve the heating effect. Similarly, frequency selection will depend on the induction heating application you’ll be using for your part.
What is the principle of induction coil design?
Induction heating works on the principle of electromagnetic induction, where an alternating current (AC) flows through a coil, creating a rapidly alternating magnetic field. When a conductive material, such as a metal workpiece, is placed within this magnetic field, eddy currents are induced within it.
How to calculate the distance between the coil and workpiece?
The shorter the distance, the more efficient the process will be. If you can have a gap of ten thousands of an inch, you will heat the parts very, very efficiently. It’s not practical in many environments to have that type of a tolerance though. So the question is what tolerance you have to maintain in your process and optimize accordingly.
How critical are the coil turns, diameter and spacing...
The short answer is both the diameter and the spacing are extremely critical, especially if you’re trying to get good temperature signatures. There are a lot of processes where we actually don’t want the heating to be uniform. We want the heating to be more concentrated in one area than the other. So that’s where we play with the:
- diameter of the copper coils
- geometry of the copper coil
- spacing between the copper turns
- the diameter of the coil
This means the copper tubing is determined based on the power dissipation through that copper coil. If you have to dissipate a lot of power, obviously you’re going to go with a larger diameter copper tube because you have to run more water.
Can I heat a very long workpiece with induction?
Yes, but when the length of the coil exceeds 4x to 8x its diameter, uniform heating at high power densities becomes difficult. In these instances, single-turn or multiple-turn coils that scan the length of the workpiece are often preferable.
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How Does Induction Heating Compare to Other Heating Sources?
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What Are Some of The Other Advantages to Using Induction Heating?
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What is induction heating
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What does a typical induction heating system consist of?
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What is an induction heating coil (inductor)?
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How can my process benefit from induction heating?
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What are some of the other advantages to using Induction Heating?
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How does induction heating equipment compare to other heating sources?
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