Electrically heated batch ovens
By Staff | April 2008
Wisconsin Oven (E. Troy, Wis.) has introduced an electrically heated batch oven for low- to medium-temperature composites curing. The oven is made from 4-inch/102-mm thick tongue-and-groove panels, 12-gauge aluminized floors, and 20-gauge aluminized steel interiors and ductwork. Its work chamber is 8-ft wide by 24-ft long by 8-ft high (2.4m by 7.3m by 2.4m). The heating system features incoloy-sheathed heating elements that produce a total of 192 kW. The recirculation system consists of three 7,000-cfm, 7.5-hp blowers and uses combination airflow to maximize heating rates and temperature uniformity. Four interior vacuum stubs are provided on the side of the oven, along with a 12-position J-type thermocouple jack panel that enables the user to monitor part temperature. According to the company, tests have shown oven temperature uniformity of +8.2°F/-5.7°F at 375°F (+4.5°C/-3.1°C at 191°C). The maximum operating temperature is 500ºF/260°C. Temperature is con-trolled by a Honeywell DCP100 programmable temperature controller. Temperature protection is provided by a Barber-Colman 7SL high-limit controller.
