Solution and aging furnace for aluminum casting heat treatment

Abstract

The present application relates to the technical field of aluminum casting heat treatment, and proposes a solid solution aging furnace for aluminum casting heat treatment, which is provided with a partition door at the central position, and the aging furnace is divided into aging zone I and aging zone II by the partition door; the conveying part, the preheating part and the quenching part can slide to the lower side of the solid solution furnace; the solid solution furnace can drive the metal cage containing aluminum castings to move through hoisting; when the metal cage is placed on the conveying part, the conveying part can convey the metal cage into the aging furnace; after the door at the bottom of the solid solution furnace is opened, the preheating part can be connected with the bottom of the solid solution furnace, and the aluminum castings in the preheating part are preheated; the preheating part is provided with an elastic sealing assembly for sealing the connecting position of the preheating part and the door of the solid solution furnace; through the above technical scheme, the problem of poor process beat adaptability of the solid solution furnace and the aging furnace in the prior art is solved, which leads to waste of empty burning and low continuous processing efficiency.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of heat treatment technology for aluminum castings, specifically to a solution aging furnace for heat treatment of aluminum castings. Background Technology

[0002] Aluminum castings require solution treatment followed by aging to regulate their internal structure and enhance their properties, in order to meet the high requirements for strength, dimensions, and stability in fields such as automotive and aerospace. The solution treatment and aging process consists of solution treatment, quenching, and aging. In actual production, a solution treatment and aging separate furnace is commonly used. After heat treatment in the solution furnace, the aluminum castings are moved to a quenching tank for quenching, and then to an aging furnace for heat treatment. Since the temperature and time of heat treatment in the solution furnace and the aging furnace are different, production lines consisting of two separate furnaces are widely used.

[0003] Solution treatment typically lasts 2-4 hours at temperatures above 500 degrees Celsius, while aging treatment typically lasts 4-8 hours at temperatures of 100-150 degrees Celsius. The current model uses one aging furnace and one solution furnace. This means that after the aluminum castings undergo solution treatment, they enter the aging furnace, which then waits for a long time to fill its space. This waiting time consumes a lot of energy. Simply setting up two aging furnaces to match one solution furnace would require too much space and would make it difficult to match the output rhythm of the solution furnace and aging furnace according to the process. This could lead to heat consumption in both furnaces. In addition, some aluminum castings have a thin structure, and if they are directly placed into the high-temperature solution furnace, the instantaneous temperature difference will generate huge thermal stress, affecting the product's accuracy and yield. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This invention proposes a solution aging furnace for heat treatment of aluminum castings, which solves the problem of poor process cycle adaptability between solution furnaces and aging furnaces in the prior art, resulting in waste from dry burning and low continuous processing efficiency.

[0005] The technical solution of the present invention is as follows:

[0006] A solution aging furnace for heat treatment of aluminum castings includes a solution furnace, an aging furnace, and a rapid transfer mechanism. The rapid transfer mechanism is located below the solution furnace, which has a furnace opening. The solution furnace is positioned to the side of the aging furnace. The rapid transfer mechanism can move the aluminum castings between the solution furnace and the aging furnace. The aging furnace has material changing doors at both ends and a partition door at its center, dividing the interior of the aging furnace into aging zone one and aging zone two. The rapid transfer mechanism includes a conveying section, a preheating section, and a quenching section. The fire section, the conveying section, the preheating section, and the quenching section are all slidable to the bottom of the solution furnace via a platform. The solution furnace can be hoisted to move the metal cage containing the aluminum castings. When the metal cage is placed on the conveying section, the conveying section can transport the metal cage to the aging furnace. After the door at the bottom of the solution furnace is opened, the preheating section can be connected to the bottom of the solution furnace to preheat the aluminum castings in the preheating section. The preheating section is provided with an elastic sealing component to seal the connection position between the preheating section and the furnace door of the solution furnace.

[0007] The two material changing doors and the partition door in the aging furnace can be opened and closed independently, but only one of the two material changing doors and the partition door can be opened at a time. When feeding aluminum castings into or out of the aging furnace, only the corresponding material changing door needs to be opened. When moving aluminum castings between aging zone 1 and aging zone 2, only the partition door needs to be opened to move them inside the aging furnace, reducing heat loss due to heat diffusion.

[0008] The aging zone one and the aging zone two in the aging furnace can be turned on and off respectively. When the partition door is opened, the metal cage can move between the aging zone one and the aging zone two.

[0009] The preheating section also includes a lifting device, a preheating furnace, and an elastic sealing assembly. The lifting device is mounted on the platform; preferably, it is a scissor lift. The preheating furnace is fixedly mounted on the lifting device, and the elastic sealing assembly is located on top of the preheating furnace. When the metal cage is placed in the preheating furnace, the lifting device can push the preheating furnace to connect with the solution furnace, preheating the aluminum castings in the metal cage using the heat from the solution furnace. A heat circulation device is installed in the solution furnace. When the preheating furnace and the solution furnace are connected, they are internally connected. The heat circulation device drives the air in the preheating furnace to circulate, transferring heat from the solution furnace to the preheating furnace to preheat the aluminum castings in the metal cage.

[0010] The solution furnace can move the metal cage between the conveying section, the preheating section, and the quenching section by hoisting. It preheats the aluminum castings that need to be solution treated, quenches the aluminum castings that have completed the solution treatment, and then places the quenched aluminum castings in the conveying section to be sent to the aging furnace.

[0011] The elastic sealing assembly includes a sealing frame, sealing strips, and a spring cylinder. The sealing frame is fixedly connected to the preheating furnace and can extend into the furnace opening. Multiple sealing strips are arranged around the sealing frame and are slidably connected to the preheating furnace. A spring cylinder is provided between the sealing strips and the preheating furnace.

[0012] The sealing frame is surrounded by multiple layers of sealing strips. The edges of two adjacent sealing strips are in contact with each other and are inclined. When the sealing frame is inserted into the furnace opening, the sealing strips that are not in contact with the solution furnace can be inserted into the solution furnace. The solution furnace can push part of the sealing strips to slide towards the platform and compress the spring cylinder.

[0013] When only one of the aging zone one and the aging zone two is open, the other can be preheated. Heat is diffused through the partition doors, so that the temperature of the unopened part is higher than room temperature, which also reduces energy consumption when heating is carried out.

[0014] When aluminum castings are aged in both the first aging zone and the second aging zone, the preheating furnace can be connected to the solution furnace, and the aluminum castings in the preheating furnace can be preheated by the heat in the solution furnace.

[0015] The working principle and beneficial effects of this invention are as follows:

[0016] 1. In this invention, by setting a partition door, the interior of the aging furnace is divided into two zones, which can be used to age two metal cages separately. When only one zone is working, the working one can preheat the other. After the solution furnace completes the solution treatment of the aluminum casting, it is sent back to the aging furnace for further aging treatment. The aluminum casting sent in for the first time can be moved to the second aging zone to complete the aging treatment first, or it can be sent out through the material changing door on the second aging zone. By expanding the aging furnace, two sets of aluminum castings can be aged at the same time. Since the aging treatment time is approximately twice that of the solution treatment, the two sets of aluminum castings can move sequentially in the first and second aging zones, so that the solution furnace does not stop working and the dry burning time of the solution furnace is reduced.

[0017] 2. In this invention, by setting up a preheating section, when there are two sets of aluminum castings in the aging furnace, and the remaining aging time is greater than the solution treatment time, a traditional solution aging furnace can only perform dry firing at this time. In this application, the aluminum castings are placed in the preheating section, and the preheating section is connected to the furnace opening below the solution furnace. The heat generated during the dry firing of the solution furnace is used to preheat the aluminum castings. After preheating, the aluminum castings in the preheating section are moved to the solution furnace for solution treatment. When the solution treatment is completed, the aging zone two... After the aluminum castings have completed the aging process, space is available. When there is an empty space in the aging furnace, a short period of dry burning can be performed. Since the temperature in the aging furnace is much lower than that in the solution furnace, the energy consumption of dry burning in the aging furnace is also lower. By calculating the process time, the preheating, solution treatment and aging of the aluminum castings are carried out in staggered time, which greatly reduces the dry burning time in the solution furnace and aging furnace. In addition, the aluminum castings do not need to be directly put into the high temperature of the solution furnace. Preheating can avoid the rapid accumulation of thermal stress and deformation. Attached Figure Description

[0018] The present invention will now be described in further detail with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0019] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of the present invention;

[0020] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the overall structure from another perspective in this invention;

[0021] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the internal cross-sectional structure of the heat insulation cover in this invention;

[0022] Figure 4 This is a partial structural diagram of the solution furnace and metal cage in this invention.

[0023] Figure 5 This is a partial structural schematic diagram of the elastic sealing assembly in this invention;

[0024] Figure 6 This is a partial structural diagram of the cooperation between the sealing strip and the sealing frame in this invention;

[0025] Figure 7 This is a partial structural diagram of the sealing strip and sealing frame in this invention from another perspective.

[0026] In the diagram: 100, solution furnace; 101, aging furnace; 102, metal cage;

[0027] 200. Material changing door; 201. Partition door; 202. Aging zone 1; 203. Aging zone 2; 204. Insulation cover;

[0028] 300. Conveying section; 301. Preheating furnace; 302. Quenching section; 303. Lifting and lowering device;

[0029] 400. Sealing frame; 401. Sealing strip; 402. Spring cylinder. Detailed Implementation

[0030] The technical solutions of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0031] This embodiment proposes a solution aging furnace for heat treatment of aluminum castings, including a solution furnace 100, an aging furnace 101, and a rapid transfer mechanism. The rapid transfer mechanism is located below the solution furnace 100, and a furnace opening is provided below the solution furnace 100. The solution furnace 100 is located to the side of the aging furnace 101. Figures 1-4 As shown, the rapid transfer mechanism can move the aluminum casting between the solution furnace 100 and the aging furnace 101. The aging furnace 101 has material change doors 200 at both ends and a partition door 201 in the center, dividing the interior of the aging furnace 101 into aging zone one 202 and aging zone two 203. Figures 4-7 As shown, the rapid transfer mechanism includes a conveying section 300, a preheating section, and a quenching section 302. The conveying section 300, preheating section, and quenching section 302 all slide below the solution furnace 100 via a platform. The solution furnace 100 can be hoisted to move the metal cage 102 containing the aluminum castings. When the metal cage 102 is placed on the conveying section 300, the conveying section 300 can transport the metal cage 102 into the aging furnace 101. After the door at the bottom of the solution furnace 100 is opened, the preheating section can connect with the bottom of the solution furnace 100 to preheat the aluminum castings in the preheating section. The aluminum castings are then transferred between the three sections... The movement corresponds to the three stages of aluminum casting: quenching, preheating, and quenching. By coordinating the process rhythms of solution treatment and aging, the empty firing time of aging furnace 101 and solution furnace 100 can be reduced, thereby improving the heat treatment efficiency of aluminum castings. An elastic sealing component is provided on the preheating section to seal the connection between the preheating section and the furnace door of solution furnace 100. When the platform slides, there may be slight errors. At the same time, the preheating furnace 301 and solution furnace 100 will also expand slightly after heating. The elastic sealing component is set to improve the sealing performance when there are slight changes in the size of the furnace opening and the sealing frame 400.

[0032] The two material changing doors 200 and the partition door 201 in the aging furnace 101 can be opened and closed independently, such as Figures 1-3As shown, only one of the two material changing doors 200 and the partition door 201 can be opened at a time. When feeding or removing aluminum castings into or from the aging furnace 101, only the corresponding material changing door 200 needs to be opened. When moving aluminum castings between aging zone 1 202 and aging zone 203, only the partition door 201 needs to be opened to move them inside the aging furnace 101, reducing heat loss. Aluminum castings can enter through the material changing door 200 in aging zone 1 202 and exit through the material changing door 200 in aging zone 203. Aging zone 1 202 and aging zone 203 in the aging furnace 101 can be opened and closed separately. During heating, when the partition door 201 is opened, the metal cage 102 can move between aging zone 1 202 and aging zone 203. The aluminum castings first move to aging zone 203 for aging treatment, and the second group of aluminum castings enters aging zone 1 202 for treatment. After the aluminum castings in aging zone 203 have completed aging treatment, the aluminum castings in aging zone 1 202 move to aging zone 203, and the next group of aluminum castings can move to aging zone 1 202 for aging treatment. By calculating the process time, the dry-burning time of aging zone 1 202 and aging zone 203 can be greatly reduced.

[0033] like Figure 3 As shown, the aging furnace 101 is equipped with a heat insulation cover 204. After the partition door 201 is opened, the heat insulation cover 204 insulates the partition door 201 to prevent a large amount of heat from the partition door 201 from spreading to the outside.

[0034] The preheating section also includes a lifting device 303, a preheating furnace 301, and an elastic sealing assembly. The lifting device 303 is mounted on the platform, such as... Figures 4-5 As shown, the lifting device 303 in this application is preferably a scissor lift device. The preheating furnace 301 is fixedly mounted on the lifting device 303, and the elastic sealing component is mounted on the top of the preheating furnace 301. When the metal cage 102 is placed in the preheating furnace 301, the lifting device 303 can push the preheating furnace 301 to connect with the solution furnace 100. The heat in the solution furnace 100 preheats the aluminum castings in the metal cage 102. A heat circulation device is provided in the solution furnace 100. When the preheating furnace 301 is connected to the furnace opening of the solution furnace 100, the interior is connected. The heat circulation device drives the air in the preheating furnace 301 to circulate, transferring the heat in the solution furnace 100 to the preheating furnace 301 to preheat the aluminum castings in the metal cage 102. Traditional solution furnaces 100 often remain in an empty state while waiting for the aging furnace 101 to perform aging treatment. Figures 4-7 As shown, in this application, the aluminum casting can be preheated by aligning the preheating furnace 301 and the furnace opening, using the heat from the empty furnace. On the one hand, the aluminum casting does not need to be directly put into the solution furnace 100, and on the other hand, the heat from the empty furnace 100 will not be wasted.

[0035] like Figures 1-2 As shown, the solution treatment furnace 100 can move the metal cage 102 between the conveying section 300, the preheating section, and the quenching section 302 by hoisting. It preheats the aluminum castings that need to be solution treated, quenches the aluminum castings that have completed the solution treatment, and places the quenched aluminum castings in the conveying section 300 to be sent to the aging furnace 101. The conveying section 300 is composed of multiple conveying wheels, which can drive the metal cage 102 to move. When a new set of aluminum castings needs to be heat treated, they can be placed on the conveying section 300 first, and then hoisted into the preheating furnace 301 by the solution treatment furnace 100 to perform each process in sequence.

[0036] The resilient sealing assembly includes a sealing frame 400, a sealing strip 401, and a spring cylinder 402, such as Figures 6-7 As shown, the sealing frame 400 is fixedly connected to the preheating furnace 301. The sealing frame 400 can extend into the furnace opening. Multiple sealing strips 401 are arranged around the sealing frame 400. The sealing strips 401 are slidably connected to the preheating furnace 301. A spring cylinder 402 is provided between the sealing strips 401 and the preheating furnace 301. In this application, eight sealing strips 401 are provided, arranged in two circles around the sealing frame 400. When the lifting device 303 pushes the preheating furnace 301 upward, some of the sealing strips 401 come into contact with the furnace opening and are squeezed, compressing the spring cylinder 402. Some of the sealing strips 401 that do not come into contact with the furnace opening enter the furnace opening to enhance the sealing performance.

[0037] The sealing frame 400 is surrounded by multiple layers of sealing strips 401, such as Figure 7 As shown, the edges of two adjacent sealing strips 401 are in contact with each other, and the edges are set at an angle to avoid the edges of the sealing strips 401 contacting the furnace opening, making it difficult for the sealing strips 401 to enter the furnace opening. When the sealing frame 400 extends into the furnace opening, the sealing strips 401 that are not in contact with the solution furnace 100 can extend into the solution furnace 100. The solution furnace 100 can push part of the sealing strips 401 to slide towards the platform and compress the spring cylinder 402.

[0038] When only one of the time-limited zone 202 and time-limited zone 203 is open, the other can be preheated. The heat is diffused through the partition door 201, so that the temperature of the unopened part is higher than the room temperature, and energy consumption can be reduced when heating is carried out.

[0039] When aluminum castings are aged in both aging zone 202 and aging zone 203, the preheating furnace 301 can be connected to the solution furnace 100, and the aluminum castings in the preheating furnace 301 can be preheated by the heat in the solution furnace 100.

[0040] In this embodiment, the aluminum castings are placed on the conveyor 300 and moved below the solution furnace 100. The metal cage 102 is then hoisted into the solution furnace 100, and the furnace begins to heat up for solution treatment. As the solution treatment is about to complete, the aging zone 203 begins to heat up, simultaneously preheating the aging zone 202. After the solution treatment is completed, the metal cage 102 is lowered into the quenching section 302. After quenching, the metal cage 102 is placed on the conveyor 300 and sent into the aging zone 203. The next set of aluminum castings is moved on the conveyor 300 into the preheating furnace 301, and the lifting device 303 pushes it. The preheating furnace 301 moves upward, the sealing frame 400 extends into the furnace opening, and part of the sealing strip 401 extends into the furnace opening to strengthen the seal. The aluminum casting is preheated through the thermal circulation in the solution furnace 100. After preheating, the aluminum casting enters the solution furnace 100 for solution treatment, and then is quenched and sent to aging zone 1 202. The aluminum casting in aging zone 203 is sent out after aging treatment. The partition door 201 is opened, and the aluminum casting in aging zone 1 202 enters aging zone 203. The quenched aluminum casting is sent into aging zone 1 202. The above process is repeated for subsequent aluminum castings.

[0041] The above are merely preferred embodiments of the present invention and are not intended to limit the present invention. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A solution aging furnace for heat treatment of aluminum castings, comprising a solution furnace (100), an aging furnace (101), and a rapid transfer mechanism, wherein the rapid transfer mechanism is disposed below the solution furnace (100), a furnace opening is provided below the solution furnace (100), the solution furnace (100) is disposed to the side of the aging furnace (101), and the rapid transfer mechanism is capable of moving the aluminum casting between the solution furnace (100) and the aging furnace (101), characterized in that, The aging furnace (101) is provided with material changing doors (200) at both ends, and a partition door (201) is provided in the center of the aging furnace (101). The partition door (201) divides the interior of the aging furnace (101) into aging zone 1 (202) and aging zone 2 (203). The rapid transfer mechanism includes a conveying section (300), a preheating section, and a quenching section (302), all of which are slidably disposed below the solution furnace (100) via a platform. The solution furnace (100) can be moved by hoisting the metal cage (102) containing the aluminum castings; When the metal cage (102) is placed on the conveying unit (300), the conveying unit (300) can transport the metal cage (102) into the aging furnace (101); After the door at the bottom of the solution furnace (100) is opened, the preheating section can be connected to the bottom of the solution furnace (100) to preheat the aluminum castings in the preheating section. The preheating section is provided with an elastic sealing component for sealing the connection position between the preheating section and the furnace door of the solution furnace (100).

2. The solution aging furnace for heat treatment of aluminum castings according to claim 1, characterized in that, The two material changing doors (200) and the partition door (201) in the aging furnace (101) can be opened and closed independently, and only one of the two material changing doors (200) and the partition door (201) can be opened at the same time.

3. The solution aging furnace for heat treatment of aluminum castings according to claim 2, characterized in that, The aging zone 1 (202) and the aging zone 2 (203) in the aging furnace (101) can be turned on and off respectively. When the partition door (201) is opened, the metal cage (102) can move between the aging zone 1 (202) and the aging zone 2 (203).

4. A solution aging furnace for heat treatment of aluminum castings according to claim 3, characterized in that, The preheating section also includes: The lifting and lowering device (303) is installed on the platform; A preheating furnace (301) is fixedly installed on the lifting device (303). The elastic sealing assembly is installed on the top of the preheating furnace (301). When the metal cage (102) is placed in the preheating furnace (301), the lifting device (303) can push the preheating furnace (301) to connect with the solution furnace (100) and preheat the aluminum casting in the metal cage (102) by the heat in the solution furnace (100).

5. A solution aging furnace for heat treatment of aluminum castings according to claim 4, characterized in that, The resilient sealing assembly includes: A sealing frame (400) is fixedly connected to the preheating furnace (301), and the sealing frame (400) can extend into the furnace opening; Multiple sealing strips (401) are arranged around the sealing frame (400), the sealing strips (401) are slidably connected to the preheating furnace (301), and a spring cylinder (402) is provided between the sealing strips (401) and the preheating furnace (301).

6. A solution aging furnace for heat treatment of aluminum castings according to claim 5, characterized in that, The sealing frame (400) is surrounded by multiple layers of sealing strips (401). The edges of two adjacent sealing strips (401) are in contact with each other and the edges are set at an angle. When the sealing frame (400) is inserted into the furnace opening, the sealing strips (401) that are not in contact with the solution furnace (100) can be inserted into the solution furnace (100). The solution furnace (100) can push part of the sealing strips (401) to slide towards the platform and compress the spring cylinder (402).

7. A solution aging furnace for heat treatment of aluminum castings according to claim 3, characterized in that, When only one of the aging zone 1 (202) and the aging zone 2 (203) is turned on, the other can be preheated.

8. A solution aging furnace for heat treatment of aluminum castings according to claim 5, characterized in that, When aluminum castings are aged in both aging zone 1 (202) and aging zone 2 (203), the preheating furnace (301) can be connected to the solution furnace (100) to preheat the aluminum castings in the preheating furnace (301) using the heat in the solution furnace (100).

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