EXPERIENCE IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF LABORATORY EQUIPMENT FOR STEEL WIRE THERMAL DIFFUSION TREATMENT

Abstract

The method of diffusion saturation of steel wire by directly passing an electric current through the product in the thermal cycling mode makes it possible to produce a material for the subsequent formation of a protective coating. A laboratory installation to implement the method has previously been proposed. In the course of subsequent operation, shortcomings that necessitated its modernization have been identified.

When improving laboratory equipment, the order of wire feeding into the processing zone, the design of elements providing voltage supply to the processed wire, the design of the control pulse generator, and the method for implementing the thermal cycling mode have been determined. The upgraded equipment allows processing with continuous and stepwise feeding of wire with a diameter of less than 1 mm. Heat treatment is possible. Replacing the thyristor–comparator pair with a solid-state relay has made it possible to abandon the analog signal in favor of a digital one.   Controlling voltage is selected from the range of 3 – 32 V at a maximum current of 100 A, pulse duration and pause of 0.01 – 999 seconds.