Curing Oil Filters for Agricultural Equipment

A client reached out to THE LAB at Ambrell because they needed to cure oil filters for agricultural equipment. THE LAB did testing and determined that an EASYHEAT^TM 10 kW, 150-400 kHz induction heating system equipped with a remote workhead would be optimal for this application. A custom-designed multiple turn dual position pancake coil was built to deliver the required heating for this curing application.

Initial tests were conducted to optimize the power delivered to the part. Once an optimal heat pattern was achieved in the time frame allowed, samples were run at multiple settings. Testing was conducted with the end caps 0.25” (6.35 mm) away from the copper surface. The heat time for all trials was 2.0 seconds, which was the client’s objective. The target temperature for the application was 200 °F (93 °C).

Induction was chosen BECAUSE

Speed

Induction met the client's targeted heating and cycle times. 

Precise, repeatable heating

Induction is highly repeatable and it heats only the portion of the part that requires it. Other processes tend to be less targeted. For example, with an oven, you're often forced to heat the entire part. With a torch, you're dependent on operator skill.

Floor space

An induction system is considerably smaller than an oven, and it's even more beneficial when you consider that the workhead can be placed away from the power supply. 

Energy Efficiency

Induction offers targeted heating (instant on/off) with no ramp up time. It also offers safety benefits because there's no open flame. 

Visit our website to see even more induction curing applications. If you have a heating application that might benefit from induction heating, contact the experts in THE LAB and take advantage of complimentary parts testing. Send in your parts, they'll record the process, send you a report, ensure it's feasible, and make a system recommendation based on your process requirements.