Metalworking/Automotive Metalworking The road from extracting metal mineral produced are supplied to this industry. Metalworking is a vast industry from rock to a finished product is very Not only is the automotive industry a covering a broad spectrum of process long and more or less every step needs large consumer of metal components, stages. These range from actually some sort of cooling and heating. it is also an industry with very high producing a metal to finishing an end- quality demands. This is an advantage product, such as a door handle on a When it comes to service fluids for for Alfa Laval, a company which fulfills car or a cold drink can. metalworking, Alfa Laval has extensive and leads all qualitative developments process know-how that will save within plate heat exchanger Correct temperature control of service customers money. manufacturing. fluids within the metalworking industry can have a huge impact on plant Automotive Alfa Laval also supplies temperature profitability. Service fluids are used in Metalworking is closely connected to control solutions to many processes the process of shaping the metal as the Automotive and Vehicle industry around the vehicle industry such as well as for cooling and lubricating and a large volume of the sheet metal dynamometers, wind tunnels and machinery used for shaping metal and cast and finished components engine testing. materials. Various steps of typical surface treatment and metalworking operations in a car plant. From mineral to material While Alfa Laval supplies heat transfer equipment to the first step of the steel making process, the company delivers far more industrial components to the second step where molten steel the process in red-hot solid slab form, becomes a component. This is also the and is then cut to the desired length. part where system builders around the world supply equipment for metal Hot strip rolling mill sheets (which are often coiled at the shaping. The majority of these systems Rolling is the main method used to end of the process). First the slabs and machines incorporate coolers and shape steel into different products. The from the caster are reheated in the heaters of various kinds. rolling process consists of passing the re-heat furnace. After this they are steel between two rolls revolving at the moved, one by one, on a conveyor to Caster same speed but in opposite directions. the hot rolling mill. Here the slabs are In the caster molten steel is turned into The gap between the rolls is smaller rolled as often as necessary to reach solid stabs of steel and themost than the steel being rolled, so that the the desired measures. After rolling, the common casting process is continuous steel is reduced in thickness and at the steel is normally pickled to remove casting. From the ladle the molten steel same time lengthened. Two rolls oxides from the surface. At this point, flows into the tundish of a caster from opposite to each other together are some products, such as steel plates, where it then flows into the caster’s called a “stand”. A rolling mill may may be ready for shipping, but most of water-cooled mould. As the steel consist of up to 10 or more stands. the products have to be further treated travels down the caster, it solidifies with by a cold working process. This is the help of water sprays. The steel Hot rolling is a hot working process. often called cold rolling, but for wire comes out of the caster at the end of Here a cast slab is converted into and tubes drawing is also is usual. Pickling line Products Pickling prepares the surface for further better thickness tolerances and less The final product from this industry can processes. Pickling removes oxides oxidation. As a final stage and between be a sheet, a bar (round or rectangular), from the surface by immersion in an cold rolling processes the steel may be a coil or a wire which will then be acid bath. After this the acid is rinsed annealed. further worked on in various industries. off and the steel is dried. As a final The majority of the products will also stage, the surface is oiled to protect Annealing be coated in one way or another. This further oxidation. After the cold rolling process the steel is described further below. is too hard and inflexible. Annealing Cold strip rolling mill makes the steel more suitable for Cold rolling is a cold rolling process in forming and bending. Annealing is a which the steel sheets are made heat or thermal treatment process. The thinner and formed into the desired steel is heated to a designated shape. The advantages of cold rolling temperature for a sufficient amount of compared to hot rolling are for example time and then cooled. Premium metal components Products from the metal making Machining various metals. In many metal working process are sold onward to companies The typical processes are cutting, processes the workpieces are heat which will add value to the product and turning, forming, pressing and drawing treated to relieve stresses or to provide sell it as a finished product. These of the product. These operations certain other desired surface companies normally perform one or require a lot of cooling and lubrication. properties. The process is normally more of the following operations: The service fluids can be e.g., water- divided into: based coolants, neat oils or pressing • Softening, which is normally achieved Alfa Laval supplies temperature emulsion and the functions of the fluids by heating and slow cooling control solutions for most of these include: (annealing, described earlier) processes, e.g.: • Hardening, which is normally • Cooling - Anodizing - Nickel plating achieved by heating and rapid - cool the tool (tear) - Chromium - Paint cooling (quenching, described plating - Passivating - cool the workpiece (measures) below) - Coolants - Phosphating - cool the chips (breaking) - Copper - Pickling • Lubricating The service fluids identified with these plating - Process water - Cutting oil - Quench oil - between the tool and material two processes are normally oil and - Degreasing - Rolling oil • Transportation of swarfs process water. - Honing oil - Sintering oil - prevent tearing of machine & tools - Hydraulic oil - Test bed oil • Corrosion prevention Induction heating - Lapping oil - Wash liquid Heating a metal in order to create the - Lubrication oil - Zinc plating Heat treatment correct properties can be done by In the metallurgical, metal working and electromagnetic induction. This requires mechanical industry, a wide array of cooling of the electric rectifier and of heat treatments is performed on the induction coil. Metalworking applications Machining Heat treatment Degreasing Surface treatment Automotive Cutting Quenching Washing Phosphating Test Bed Forming Annealing Degreasing Plating Dynameters Pressing Quench Oil Water Anodizing Wind tunnels Coolants Oil Process water Solvent Painting Oil Acids Water Paint Air Quenching During forging, the metal part is heated in the manufacturing process, batch or oil can cause steam explosions. to 800 - 900°C in a furnace. To cool continuous. A heat exchanger is Therefore the customer wants to be the metal, avoiding oxidation, the work- needed to control the temperature of absolutely sure that no leakage piece is quenched in a tank filled with the quenching bath. between the two fluids occurs. In these quench oil or water emulsion. Due cases a double-wall PHE is often the to environmental controls and fire Special attention has to be paid to the preferred solution. regulations, there is a trend in many clogging problem. Particularly when countries to use synthetic oils instead quenching steel pieces, large numbers Alfa Laval can supply all these types of of the traditional mineral oils. of steel flakes or particles form a heat exchangers and several others, suspension together with the oil. In this depending on the need within the The characteristics of the quenching case a PHE with a wide channel or a application. fluid and its desired temperature vary spiral heat exchanger may be chosen. according to the material and the type Spiral heat exchangers not only of workpieces that need to be overcome clogging but are also better quenched. Usually, baths are kept at a protected against erosion. In some temperature in the range of 40 - 70°C, installations, water mixing with quench Cooling of quench oil utilizing a PHE for cleaner applications and a spiral heat exchanger for applications which carry a lot of dirt and particles. Surface treatment Pickling Surface treatment is a process where there can be a pre-rinsing step before Pickling is a process where oxides are the surface of the metal parts is the washing process. removed from the surface of objects. cleaned in order to add paint or (thin) This operation produces a smoother metal layers for protection against wear The type of wash liquids used depends surface which will improve the results and corrosion as well as for decorative on the type of pollution and the of phosphating and painting. purposes. Almost all operations involve material of the workpiece. In general, fluids that need heating or cooling. water-based alkaline wash liquids are Many hot working processes and other suitable for removing particles, while processes that occur at high Due to the nature of metals, different solvent-based wash liquids are suitable temperatures leave a discolouring metals are treated and coated for removing fat and oil. oxide layer or scale on the surface. In differently, although all metals are first order to remove the scale the washed and degreased. The diagram • Water-based wash liquids (alkaline) workpiece is dipped into a tank of below provides a guideline for the - pH from neutral to 14 pickling liquid. various steps following degreasing: - Effective particle removal - Environmentally friendly The most commonly used acid is Washing/degreasing • Solvent-based wash liquids (acid) hydrochloric acid, however sulfuric acid The performance of the washing varies - pH 1 - 5.5 is also used.