TPT July 2014

Technology News

One-stop-shop for induction

tube technologies SMS Elotherm is the full-line supplier of complete production plants for longitudinal products. Within the group, SMS Elotherm stands for benchmark induction technologies – welding, annealing and heat treatment of tubular products. EloWeld™ tube welding plants set standards in terms of the dimensional range, the wall thicknesses and the material variety and they are capable of processing steel and stainless steel, aluminum, brass, copper and zinc. Owing to an improved starting material and an increased weld seam quality, the properties of longitudinally welded and heat-treated tubes are comparable with those of seamless tubes and take their place in many areas. During longitudinal seam welding an endless strip is formed to a tube in a continuous rolling process. The opposite strip edges are heated via an inductor up to the melting point by means of a high-frequency alternating current and then joined by upsetting rolls. In this way, the high-quality weld generated does not need any additional material. EloSeam™ for induction seam annealing of longitudinally welded tubes reliably ensures a uniform structure in the area of the weld seam. The microstructure created in ferritic steels during welding is thus normalised. The result: high- quality tubes with homogeneous material properties. Thanks to the modular structure of EloSeam™, the annealing section can be designed and dimensioned exactly to the requirements of the tube plant. This ensures thorough heating. The induction TemperLine™ from Elotherm for quenching and tempering of tubes consist of an induction heating section with subsequent quenching facility followed by a tempering section for the setting of the desired hardening parameters. The quench and temper lines of Elotherm are above all convincing by their high efficiency, precision and flexibility compared to conventional furnaces. Within minutes the quench and temper lines can be adjusted to new dimensions, steel grades or special features such as tubes with upset ends. Even if lengths and diameters are different, the production rate (tons per hour) is significantly higher with induction technology than with conventional furnace technology. Thanks to the highly precise induction processes of Elotherm, a very high homogeneity is achieved with regard to the hardness, the mechanical properties and the microstructure when quenching and tempering is performed. After the induction heat treatment, for example, a tolerance range of ±1 HRC (Rockwell C) over the entire material length is available. SMS Elotherm equipment sets standards in sustainable energy efficiency due to innovative power sources for adapting to ever-changing production conditions.

HOT SIZING SOLUTIONS:  Heat Treated Seamless & ERW Pipe  API P110  Q125-A  Premium Pipe & Casing

A M E M B E R O F T H E

G R O U P

W W W . Y O D E R M F G . C O M S A L E S @ F O R M T E K G R O U P. C O M PH: +1 216-292-4460 | FAX: +1 216-292-2898

SMS Elotherm GmbH – Germany Email: a.zentner@sms-elotherm.com Website: www.sms-elotherm.com

48

www.read-tpt.com

J uly 2014