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As we all know, leather can be roughly divided into two categories: raw leather and artificial leather. With the improvement of living standards, people are increasingly choosing leather products when buying leather shoes, belts, wallets, shoulder bags, handbags and other leather products. This has caused the current market demand for raw leather to increase year by year, and the quality requirements for raw leather are also getting higher and higher. It comes from the animal cortex, which is located under the epidermis, between the epidermis and the subcutaneous tissue. It is the main part of the raw leather, and its weight and thickness account for about 90% of the raw leather. The entire leather production process is very complicated, among which leather drying is a very important link.   Infrared heating and drying leather has the advantages of high efficiency and energy saving. Usually a drying tunnel composed of multiple infrared lamps is used, and the leather passes slowly in the tunnel. For leather with a larger area, the number of infrared lamps can be increased or the power can be increased.   Infrared heating principle Infrared is an electromagnetic wave with a wavelength range of 0.75 microns to 1 millimeter. When infrared rays are irradiated on leather, the molecules in the leather absorb the energy of infrared rays, intensifying the molecular movement, thereby generating heat and achieving the purpose of heating.   Infrared lamps have many applications in the leather industry, mainly including the following aspects: • Drying After the leather is processed by tanning, dyeing, etc., excess moisture needs to be removed. The infrared rays generated by infrared lamps can penetrate the leather to a certain depth, so that the moisture inside the leather quickly absorbs heat and converts into water vapor, accelerates the drying process, and dries evenly, which can effectively avoid cracking and deformation of the leather surface due to local overheating or drying too quickly.   • Color fixation After the leather is dyed, the use of infrared lamps for heating treatment can make the dye molecules better combine with the leather fibers, thereby improving the fastness and uniformity of the dyeing, making the color of the leather more vivid and lasting.   • Softening For some harder leathers, the heat of infrared lamps can intensify the movement of leather fiber molecules, making them softer, increasing the flexibility and plasticity of the leather, and facilitating subsequent processing, such as cutting and sewing.   • Sterilization and Disinfection The heat generated by infrared lamps can kill bacteria, mold and other microorganisms on the surface of leather to a certain extent, which helps to improve the hygienic quality of leather, prevent leather from getting moldy and deteriorating due to the growth of microorganisms during storage and use, and extend the service life of leather.   Infrared Heating Advantages Quartz infrared radiators have proven to be very effective for leather drying, offering several significant advantages over traditional methods. Here are the main features and advantages of using high-efficiency infrared heaters for leather drying:   1. Fast Drying Process Using high-efficiency infrared heaters can significantly speed up the drying process compared to traditional steam hot air convection and heat conduction dryers. The energy of the infrared radiator is transmitted directly to the leather surface without the need for an intermediate medium. Some radiators can penetrate the leather pores, with a penetration depth of 0.1 mm to 2.0 mm. The radiator in the pores is almost completely absorbed after multiple reflections by the pore walls, resulting in extremely high heat transfer efficiency. For the same leather, drying with infrared radiators can significantly shorten the drying time.   2. High-quality drying Quartz infrared radiators have excellent drying quality. Because the surface and inner layers of the leather absorb the far-infrared radiator at the same time, the drying process is uniform, thereby improving the physical properties and color of the leather after drying. For example, in the manufacture of leather products, maintaining uniform drying is essential to ensure the quality and aesthetics of the final product.     3. Energy saving Compared with other radiators and electric heating drying methods, quartz infrared radiator drying is more energy-efficient. It can save more than 50% of conventional energy consumption. In addition, the infrared radiation elements in these dryers have a simple structure, which reduces the size of the equipment, makes operation easier and safer.   Precautions • Infrared heating equipment should be regularly maintained and calibrated to ensure uniformity and stability of heating. • Accurately control the heating temperature, time and distance according to the type, thickness and process requirements of the leather to avoid damage to the leather due to excessive heating. • When using infrared heating equipment, operators need to wear protective glasses to prevent infrared rays from causing damage to the eyes.  

The application of infrared heating tubes in 3D printing has improved industry processes and further promoted the rapid development of 3D printing. At present, material extrusion is the most widely used technology in polymer additive manufacturing or 3D printing. This process is commonly referred to as melt deposition modeling or melt wire manufacturing, and has been mainly used for 3D printing of thermoplastic materials, polymer blends, and composite materials. But this manufacturing process also has its drawbacks, which are that the functional use of these components may be limited by mechanical anisotropy, where the strength of the printed components across continuous layers in the construction direction (z-direction) may be significantly lower than the corresponding in-plane strength (x-y direction). This is mainly due to the poor adhesion between printing layers, and the reason for this result is that the lower layer has a lower temperature than the glass transition temperature before depositing the next layer. The glass transition temperature can be understood as a melting point similar to metals, but for plastics, this is a range. Using infrared heating to increase the surface temperature of the printed layer just before depositing new materials can improve the interlayer strength of the component. Preheating the powder bed using an infrared radiator is a critical step. Thermoplastic polymer powder needs to be preheated before laser sintering.

Beverage bottle production line ● Background of the case: A large beverage production enterprise has multiple beverage bottle blowing production lines. In the past, traditional heating methods were used, which had problems such as uneven heating, high energy consumption, and low production efficiency. ● Application effect: After introducing infrared heating lamps, the rapid and uniform heating of bottle preforms is achieved by precisely controlling the wavelength and energy output of the infrared lamp tube, significantly improving the consistency of bottle thickness and enhancing product quality. At the same time, the heating time is shortened, energy consumption is reduced by about 15%, and production efficiency is greatly improved. When choosing an infrared heating lamp suitable for a bottle blowing machine, the following aspects need to be considered: Wavelength ● Matching preform material: Different plastic preform materials have different absorption characteristics for infrared radiation. For example, PET plastic bottle preforms usually have good absorption effects in the wavelength range of 1.2 µ m to 1.5 µ m. Choosing an infrared heating lamp in this wavelength range can achieve rapid heating and efficient energy utilization. ● Heating depth requirement: Short wave infrared (0.75-1.4um) has strong penetration power, which can evenly heat the preform from the inside out. It is suitable for the preform preheating and forming stage, such as drying and curing of high-speed printing equipment, plastic blowing and welding, etc. Power ● Consider the size of the heating area: Select the power based on the size of the heating area of the bottle blowing machine and the number of preforms. The heating area is large and there are many preforms, requiring high-power heating lamps to ensure sufficient heat supply and uniform heating. A large hollow container blowing machine with a large heating area may require a heating lamp of over 3000W. ● Adapt to production speed: With fast production speed, it is required that the heating lamp can provide sufficient heat in a short period of time to reach the appropriate blow molding temperature for the preform. High power heating lamps or multiple sets of heating lamps should be selected for high-speed production lines. Lamp material ● Quartz glass: It has good transparency and high temperature resistance, can withstand high temperatures without deformation, and can ensure effective transmission of infrared radiation and stable heating. It is a commonly used material for infrared heating lamps. ● Tungsten wire: As a filament material, it has high melting point, high resistance and other characteristics, and can quickly generate heat and infrared radiation after being energized. It has high heating efficiency and can quickly reach the working temperature of the heating lamp. Reflecting layer ● Enhanced heating effect: Infrared heating lamps with reflective layers can reflect the infrared energy that has not been absorbed by the preform back to the surface of the preform, improving heating efficiency and reducing energy waste. The reflective layer material, such as aluminum alloy or ceramic coating, can achieve a reflectivity of about 95%. ● Optimize heating uniformity: By designing the shape and angle of the reflective layer reasonably, infrared rays can be more evenly irradiated on the preform, avoiding local overheating or insufficient heating, which helps to improve the quality and consistency of the bottle body. Brand and Quality ● Market reputation: Choosing well-known brands of infrared heating lamps usually ensures better product quality and performance. Brands such as USHIO and Philips have a high level of recognition and good reputation in the bottle blowing machine industry. ● Service life: High quality heating lamps have a long service life, reducing the frequency of equipment downtime and lamp replacement, and lowering maintenance costs. For example, the service life of some light tubes can reach over 5000 hours, which can save more time and costs for enterprises compared to ordinary light tubes. Control system compatibility ● Adjustable: The heating lamp should be compatible with the control system of the bottle blowing machine to achieve precise power adjustment. This allows for flexible adjustment of heating temperature and time according to different preform materials, specifications, and production process requirements, ensuring the best heating effect for preforms. ● Response speed: The fast response heating lamp can adjust the output power in a timely manner according to the temperature changes of the preform during the production process, improving production efficiency and product quality. For example, some shortwave infrared heating lamps can quickly heat up or cool down within 1-3 seconds, making the heating process control more flexible.

Infrared heating lamps can also be applied to EVA film heating. The following is the relevant introduction: The principle of infrared heating lamp for heating EVA film The infrared radiation emitted by the infrared heating lamp is absorbed by the EVA film and converted into heat energy, causing the temperature of the film to rise. After absorbing infrared energy, the molecules in EVA film move more vigorously, generate heat through intermolecular friction, and achieve uniform heating. Key points for choosing an infrared heating lamp • Wavelength selection: EVA film has good absorption characteristics in the near-infrared band (0.75 µ m-1.5 µ m). Choosing an infrared heating lamp in this wavelength range can enable the film to quickly absorb energy and improve heating efficiency. • Power determination: Select the appropriate power heating lamp based on the width, thickness, and heating speed requirements of the EVA film. Generally speaking, when the width and thickness of the film are large, or when rapid heating is required, a higher power heating lamp should be selected. For example, for an EVA film with a width of 2 meters and a thickness of 0.5 millimeters, in order to reach the predetermined temperature in a short period of time, an infrared heating lamp group with a total power of 5-10 kilowatts may be required. Heating uniformity: To ensure uniform heating of EVA film, an infrared heating lamp with a reflective cover can be selected, and the position and angle of the heating lamp should be arranged reasonably. The reflector can reflect infrared rays onto the thin film, reducing energy loss and making heating more uniform. For example, by using multiple low-power heating lamps evenly distributed above the film and optimizing the design of the reflector cover, the surface temperature deviation of the film can be controlled within a small range. Application advantages • Efficient and energy-saving: The infrared heating lamp directly radiates energy onto the EVA film, which can be quickly absorbed and converted into heat energy. Compared with traditional heating methods, it can reduce the loss of heat during transmission and has a significant energy-saving effect, generally saving 20% -30% of energy. • Fast heating speed: It can quickly reach the required temperature of EVA film and improve production efficiency. For example, on some EVA film production lines, the use of infrared heating lamps can shorten the heating time to 1/3-1/2 of the original. • Accurate temperature control: With a high-precision temperature control system, the infrared heating lamp can accurately control the heating temperature of EVA film, which is conducive to ensuring the stability of product quality. For example, the temperature control accuracy can reach ± 1 ℃, effectively avoiding changes in film performance caused by temperature fluctuations.

Infrared heating tubes are basically characterized by infrared rays. It is actually a tubular heater that uses the working principle of infrared rays. Generally speaking, its performance is relatively stable, its quality is high, its thermal efficiency is high, and its power density is relatively high, so it can help products heat up quickly and help enterprises save time and electricity with high efficiency. Relatively speaking, this heating technology can be called a more energy-efficient heating method in the market, and it can also save electricity and energy, helping enterprises reduce overall operating costs. Also because of its energy-saving heating characteristics, it has been listed as a key promotion project in my country, and it has also achieved very good economic benefits at present.   Especially in this era of countries vigorously advocating energy conservation, emission reduction and green industry, the emergence of infrared heating tubes is very in line with the current market needs, helping industries reduce energy consumption and playing a role in environmental protection.   The infrared heating tube does not need to be dried in an open or sealed environment, because the drying material has a high absorption efficiency for infrared rays, while ensuring the drying quality and efficiency. In addition, short wave, medium wave and other wavelengths can match the absorption spectrum of most materials very well, and can effectively meet the needs of workpieces made of different materials, and can tailor-made heating plans for customers based on the performance of the heated object.   Short-wave and medium-wave radiation heating use a simple and direct heat transfer method that is more energy-saving. The feature of "inside-to-outside" simultaneous heating can improve the quality of the workpiece and is suitable for most heated objects. Therefore, infrared heating tubes have the advantages of excellent thermal efficiency, resource saving, simple installation, cleanliness, and high cost performance.   Customer case Customer's problem: The customer is an electroplating factory. The previous method was to use commercial steam to dry electroplated parts by hot air convection. Commercial energy consumption is high, costs are high and commercial steam supply is unstable, affecting production efficiency;   After receiving the request, we quickly made a plan for the customer, customized short-wave infrared heating lamps according to the infrared absorption wavelength of the material, and installed a lamp arrangement every 30cm at the end of the drying room.     After switching to infrared heating, the following effects are achieved: ●Space saving - Originally, using hot air required a 45m long production line, but replacing infrared lamps only requires a 10m long production line.   ●Time saving - When using hot air, the drying effect can be achieved in 15 minutes at a speed of 3m/min. Using infrared lamps, under normal production line speed, if the 60KW is turned on to 3m/min, there will be local moisture at about 10m. If the full power is turned on, the drying effect is very good. If the moisture content is less than 50%, the production requirements can be met.   ●Energy saving - The original use of hot air consumes 0.5 tons of steam per hour and is unstable; there are 33 infrared lamps, each 2.5KW, and the total power is 82.5KW. Stable, clean and efficient.   ●Cost saving - the original use of hot air steam was 430 yuan/ton. You need to pay 215 yuan per hour, and if the infrared is turned on at full power, it is 80 yuan/hour.