Serving as high-quality lightweight parts, aluminum plates and sheets are used in numerous special applications. Particularly in automotive construction and in the aerospace industry, the material is used to an increasing extent due to its little weight with but high strengths. Without these innovative aluminum materials for structural parts or exposed applications it would be very hard to satisfy the condition of low weight. Many of these applications demand for the cold-rolled aluminum strip to be treated in a process of annealing combined with fast cooling to achieve formability and the necessary material strengths.
For the production of such grades, SMS group supplies suitable HCTLs (Heat and Chemical Treatment Lines). In addition to material heat treatment, the strip surfaces undergo an extra chemical treatment. The lines cover a vast range of materials. Material thicknesses are between 0.2 and 4.5 millimeters, while the strip width may be more than 2.5 meters.
Line Concept
Heat and chemical treatment lines

Heat and chemical treatment lines
Often, linking up all processes in one heat and chemical treatment line is the most efficient solution. Here, the strips enter the plant from one or two payoff reels and are joined by a strip stitcher into an endless strip. Sometimes the entry end also includes a side-trimmer unit and a pre-cleaning section. It's important to disconnect the infeed from the process section - a job for the strip accumulator. As a result, the material travels at a constant speed through the downstream process section. That consists of an annealing furnace, cooling equipment, tension leveler, and cleaning and chemical treatment sections. Then another accumulator disconnects the process section from the exit section. Normally, a strip inspection stage is integrated in the exit section, plus a pre-aging furnace which re-heats the strip. Other options available are a trimming shear and an oiling machine. Finally, a cross-cut shear cuts the strip into lengths before coiling on one or two reels.




Chemical treatment line
Typically, the entry section of a pure chemical treatment line includes one or two payoff reels and a strip stitching machine into which the strip enters from an entry accumulator. Then it is cleaned and chemically treated in the process section before collection in the exit accumulator. Included in the exit section are an inspection station, an optional sidetrimmer unit, and/or an electrostatic oiling machine. It often makes sense to arrange the oiling machine (e.g. Drylube) in the coating line downstream of the heat treatment line. A cross-cut shear cuts the strips which are then wound into coils.




Heat treatment line
Pure heat treatment lines also start with one or two payoff reels that feed the strip into the line. Next, the strips are joined by a strip stitcher. Here, the entry section usually includes pre-cleaning facilities. There is the added option of installing a trimming shear unit. The process section consists of the annealing furnace with downstream cooling equipment and tension leveler. This section is disconnected from the entry and exit ends by two strip accumulators. Finally, the strip travels through an inspection unit and a pre-aging furnace before being cut by the cross-cut shear and wound onto one or two tension reels.




TECHNOLOGY
Selected references
Service
Electrical and Automation systems
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Furnace technology
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Strip Processing Lines
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Aluminum Strip Processing Lines: Product Portfolio, Technology and References
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Maintenance service
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Service solutions for rolling mills and process lines
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Low-Voltage Frequency Converter
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Innovative Solutions for Strip Processing Lines
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Future-proof complete solutions from one source - Electrics and Automation
Contact

Stefan Melster
SMS group GmbH
Technical Sales Processing Lines
Eduard-Schloemann-Straße 4
40237 Düsseldorf
Germany
Phone
: +49 211 881 5217
Fax
: +49 211 881 775217

Walter Timmerbeul
SMS group GmbH
Vice President Electrics/Automation Processing Lines and Furnaces
Eduard-Schloemann-Straße 4
40237 Düsseldorf
Germany
Phone
: +49 211 881 5708
Fax
: +49 211 881 775708

Ronald Genssler
SMS group GmbH
Service Processing Lines
Ivo-Beucker-Straße 43
40237 Düsseldorf
Germany
Phone
: +49 2161 350 3570
Fax
: +49 211 881-774162