Operations involving high-temperature or heat treat processes present significant safety and efficiency challenges. Exposure to intense heat, flying debris, and harmful fumes can lead to accidents, injuries, and equipment damage.
In this blog, we’ll discuss how wire mesh furnace curtains offer a practical and effective solution by creating a protective barrier to safeguard workers, optimize energy consumption, and enhance overall productivity.
Furnace Curtains For Heat Treat, Pipe, and Steel Industries
Many industries use ovens and furnaces and therefore require curtains that keep heat in and protect workers during production. These curtains minimize heat loss (saving energy consumption) and contain glare and spark for employee safety.
Many industries use ovens and furnaces and therefore require curtains that keep heat in during the production process and offer protection for workers. These curtains minimize heat loss, saving on energy consumption, as well as containing glare and sparks for employee safety.
Most notably, heat treat processes, pipe manufacturing, and the steel industry depend on heat curtains for safety, efficiency, and productivity. Below, we’ve broken down how furnaces and heat curtains are used in high-temperature industrial environments.
Heat Treat Processes
Heat treatment involves heating and cooling metals to change their crystalline structure and achieve specific properties. Techniques used in heat treat processes include annealing, case hardening, precipitation, strengthening, tempering, carburizing, normalizing, and quenching.
Furnace curtains provide many advantages for heat treat processes. Not only do they help contain heat within the furnace, but they also can work to define heating zones that offer workers precise control of the heat treat process. Additionally, these curtains protect workers and equipment from sparks, debris, and other hazards.
Pipe Manufacturing
Pipe fabrication is the process of cutting, beveling, and welding piping components like metallic pipes, tees, elbows, flanges, reducers, and more. Heat curtains can be used in various stages of pipe manufacturing.
For example, during welding operations, curtains help direct fumes toward extraction areas, offering improved air quality for workers. In forging and casting, heat curtains shield workers and equipment from radiant heat emitted by furnaces and forges.
Steel Industry
Furnace curtains are commonly used in the steelmaking processes as well. Rolling mills, a type of metal-forming machinery that processes various metals through one or more sets of rolls, use heat curtains to protect workers and equipment from radiant heat emitted by hot metal.
Electric arc furnaces (EAF), as its name suggests, use an electric arc to melt metals and ores at high temperatures. During this process, heat curtains contain fumes and dust generated during the steelmaking process and protect workers from intense heat.
Continuous casting, also known as strand casting, is a process where molten metal is solidified into a “semi-finished” billet, bloom, or slab. Heat curtains shield radiant heat from the molten steel and prevent workers from making accidental contact.
Wire-Mesh Products manufactures flexible, dense, herringbone weave metal furnace curtains for the steel, pipe, and heat treat industries. Talk to one of our experts about your needs today.
3 Benefits of Wire Mesh Curtains
Due to their design and material makeup, wire mesh heat curtains play a crucial role in providing a safe work environment, as well as improving efficiency and productivity in all industries. Continue reading to discover three unique benefits wire mesh curtains offer for workers, equipment, and processes.
1. Heat Resistance and Confinement
Proper heat retention is imperative for processes using ovens and furnaces. By minimizing heat loss, furnace curtains help maintain optimal temperatures within the furnace. This also increases energy efficiency and reduces operating costs.
Since they can be manufactured out of many grades of alloy wire, mesh curtains in particular can withstand extremely high temperatures and harsh furnace environments. The construction and design of wire mesh curtains ensure long-lasting performance even under constant exposure to heat and mechanical stress.
The tight weave of wire mesh minimizes the passage of heat, sparks, and fumes in furnace areas, while the metallic surface reflects radiant heat into the furnace. Both these elements help reduce heat loss and improve energy efficiency. Furthermore, it leads to a safer and more productive working environment.
Finally, mesh curtains can also create defined heating zones within the furnace, allowing workers to have precise control over the heat treat process and improve the overall quality of the final product.
2. Safety and Worker Protection
Wire mesh curtains require minimal maintenance to begin with, but when they do need to be cleaned, inspected, or repaired, they’re known for being easy to install and remove.
The use of ovens and furnaces comes with a unique set of safety risks other industries don’t have to worry about. Furnace curtains provide physical barriers between workers and hazardous areas by shielding them from intense heat, noise, and harmful fumes.
Designed to contain heat and radiant energy within the furnace area, wire mesh curtains minimize the risk of burns and other heat-related injuries to workers. In addition to heat containment, the fine mesh used in these curtains prevents sparks, debris, and molten metal from escaping the furnace. As a result, the risks of fires and other property damages are significantly decreased.
3. Flexibility and Adaptability
Wire mesh can be easily cut and shaped to fit various furnace openings and configurations. With the ability to conform to different furnace shapes and sizes, mesh curtains also provide a tight seal to prevent heat loss.
We understand that our customers require different needs and specifications for their operations. Wire mesh furnace curtains can be mounted on the charge or discharge end of a furnace as well as mounted in the furnace to separate zones. Our furnace curtains are available in any width, and various weights, all of which are effective with materials up to 2200 °F. With decades of experience, we have the ability to create custom solutions for heat curtains, regardless of project complexity or size.
Investing in high-quality wire mesh furnace curtains offers a versatile solution for prioritizing safety, increasing efficiency, and enhancing productivity in various industrial and manufacturing settings.
Ready to talk about your mesh curtain specifications? Get in touch with one of our experts to see how we can help today.
See how mesh can hang and move up and down easily by watching the video below.