Oxygen
Oxygen can improve combustion through increased heat transfer, higher flame temperatures, and reduced volume of fuel gases in metals production operations.
Melting for Non-ferrous Metals Production
Innovative technologies for low-cost, high-efficiency melting
Air Products' range of oxy-fuel technologies allow non-ferrous melting operations to use less fuel, achieve higher production rates, and reduce flue gas and particulate carry over. By completely or partially replacing combustion air with oxygen, the nitrogen in air can be reduced or eliminated from the process, keeping it from carrying valuable heat up the stack and making more heat available to melt your non-ferrous materials.
Many different types of furnaces are used in non-ferrous melting operations, including tower furnaces, rockers, induction, rotaries, and reverbs. Each of these furnaces requires a different approach to oxy-fuel burner design to meet its design consideration and heat input needs.
Leveraging Experience and Innovative Technology to Optimize a Wide Range of Melting Operations
By customizing an oxy-fuel solution for your specific operation, we can match the heat input, flame shape and length, and heat release profile to the needs of the furnace to which it is being applied and help you reach the operational goals of that furnace. Production rate increases of 25-40% are common, with increased fuel efficiency and reduced flue gas volumes of 50% or more. This allows for much less downstream handling and lower flue gas temperatures.
Air Products can supply the custom designed burners as well as the flow controls, data acquisition, and smart analytics to optimize and track furnace performance. For production increases, very short pay backs of less than 6 months are often achieved.
The Transient Heating Oxy-fuel Burner, featuring Process Intelligence
Learn how Air Products' Transient Heating burner can help increase your overall heat transfer efficiency, achieve more uniform heating throughout your furnace, eliminate cold zones, and maximize melt rates to improve your bottom line.
Helping Aluminum Producers Optimize Production and Economics
Light Metal Age’s Ann Marie Fellom sat down with Air Products’ Russell Hewertson at the ALUMINIUM USA trade show in Detroit, Michigan, as part of the magazine’s interview series with notable members of the aluminum industry. In his interview, the Americas Commercial Technology Manager at Air Products discussed the importance of close collaboration with aluminum producers to help them optimize their operation through our expertise, gases and technologies.
Check out our brief video excerpts from the full interview that answer some frequently asked questions.
Case Studies
- Relationship generates 25% more product for regenerative reverberatory furnace
- High yields achieved for forward thinking secondary aluminum producer
- Hotter and cleaner process for aluminum RSI producer
- Increasing yield and production in a successful secondary aluminum plant
- Maximizing precious metal productivity
- Continuous cast copper rod manufacturer increases amount of scrap use
- Secondary aluminum processor sees company-wide improvement after thorough review
Gas Supply Options
Air Products can help you determine the most economical supply option for your particular application and geographic location. Industrial gases are typically provided in gaseous and liquid form through a variety of supply systems.
Hydrogen
Valued for its reactive and protective properties, and used by many industries such as electronics, foods, glass, chemicals, refining and more can benefit from its unique properties to improve quality, optimize performance and reduce costs.
Count on Air Products' expertise…
Discuss your operational challenges with our experienced application engineers and let us customize a solution to help your operation achieve its goals.
Advocacy. Standards. Insight.
The Aluminum Association is the industry’s leading voice in Washington, DC. It provides global standards, industry statistics and expert knowledge to member companies and policy makers nationwide. Highly engaged in public policy and technical forums, the Association is committed to advancing aluminum as the sustainable metal of choice around the world.
Resource Center
Technical Articles
- Low Carbon-Intensity Hydrogen Production Pathways, Distribution, and Use in Secondary Aluminum Melting
- Customized Combustion Solution Yields Productivity Improvement for Aluminum Extruder
- Effective Use of Oxy-fuel Combustion in Aluminum Reverberatory Furnaces, Light Metal Age
- Combustion Technologies Improve Melting Furnace Productivity, Industrial Heating
- Oxy-Fuel Technologies and Strategies for Secondary Aluminum Melting Operations, Light Metal Age
- Can hydrogen and the latest burners reduce carbon emissions?
- Digital Twin Methodology Improves Performance and Yield in an Aluminum Tilt Rotary Furnace
- Harnessing Industry 4.0 to Optimize Performance in the Aluminum Industry