Earlier this year Bradken’s ferrous foundry in Mont-Joli, Quebec, started operating a new, custom-designed electric heat-treating oven, a project that resulted from more than two years of testing and research. The foundry specializes in casting wear parts for mining equipment, one of the core markets for the Bradken organization. Heat treating is an important step for various alloy steel castings produced there.
The need to update the two propane-fired heat-treating ovens led Bradken to conclude that a customized electric furnace was a better alternative than a rebuilt gas oven: Hydroelectric power is an available fuel source in Quebec, and the furnace shells were suitable for reuse.
Bradken’s on-site organized the conversion in collaboration with Combustol, a Brazilian furnace engineering specialist.
As reported by Bradken, the rebuilt oven’s performance has been impressive. It consumes less energy than the previous model – conserving more than 2,000 kWh per cycle – and has higher temperature homogeneity.
Equally important, the heat-treatment cycle is two hours faster than with the gas-powered process, in part due to the installation of convection fans that circulate heat evenly and help to maintain the treatment temperature.
“The rebuild wasn’t easy, but I knew we could do it with the great team we’ve got at site,” stated Bradken project manager Eric Plante. “Early testing has shown good results in emission reduction while maintaining quality.”
The furnace redesign and the new performance results have been documented for reference by other Bradken foundries, the group reported. The converted unit is now being seen as a positive step for Bradken to reach its carbon-neutrality goals, and for Mont-Joli to achieve emissions-free status.
Another step toward that will be the conversion of the second propane-fired heat-treating furnace at Mont-Joli to electric power, another improvement project that is already in progress there.
About the Author
Robert Brooks
Content Director
Robert Brooks has been a business-to-business reporter, writer, editor, and columnist for more than 20 years, specializing in the primary metal and basic manufacturing industries. His work has covered a wide range of topics, including process technology, resource development, material selection, product design, workforce development, and industrial market strategies, among others.