Vacuum Furnace, Heat Treat

Vacuum furnace and heat treat environments can be problematic for sensitive instrumentation like vacuum gauges and sensors because contamination isn’t just a risk, it’s a given. For over 85 years, Televac has been a preferred supplier of high performance vacuum gauges for the heat treat and vacuum furnace industry because our extensive line of vacuum sensors, active vacuum gauges, and controllers deliver world-class vacuum measurement for demanding environments. Talk to one of our engineers today about our 7B Penning magnetron cold cathode sensor, thermocouple sensors, convection sensors, and our MX200 vacuum controller with EthernetIP communications which interfaces directly with Rockwell Automation Allen-Bradley PLCs.

vacuum furnace, heat treat, vacuum gauge

Courtesy of Solar Atmospheres

Cold Cathode Technology for Vacuum Furnaces and Heat Treat

  • Penning magnetron vs competing inverted/double inverted magnetron cold cathodes
  • Contamination resistant Penning magnetron cold cathode technology
  • Cleanable cold cathodes for extended gauge life (bead blasting or abrasive pad cleaning)
  • Simple gauge disassembly and cleaning for extended life and lower maintenance costs

Contamination Resistance for Vacuum Furnaces

  • Pirani, thermocouple, convection technologies (thermal conductivity gauges)
  • Macro vs micro (MEMS) sensors for contamination resistance
  • Feedback from customers: MEMS (micro) sensors are more susceptible to contamination, particularly in heat treat/vacuum furnace applications
  • Requires more frequent calibration and replacement (additional cost)
  • MEMS sensors are often active gauges and include electronics, adding to replacement costs

Digital calibration for Vacuum Furnaces

  • Historically all calibration is analog – done with potentiometers (pots)
  • Gauges and controllers with display
    • Allows calibration at gauge instead of needing multiple people at gauge/display or additional equipment
  • Digital calibration – via digital communications
    • EtherNet/IP, RS-232, RS-485, among others
    • Prevents mismatch between HMI and display
    • Allows for integration of calibration into PLC HMI

Active Vacuum Gauge Solutions for Nadcap/AMS 2769/Aerospace Certification

To maintain Nadcap accreditation and comply with the requirements outlined in AMS 2769, rough vacuum gauges must be annually (once every year) calibrated to a NIST traceable standard, whereas high vacuum gauges (cold cathodes) require quarterly (once every 3 months) calibration. Active gauges greatly simplify this process by allowing you to return an individual active gauge for calibration without removing any cabling or other equipment from your system.

vacuum furnace, heat treat, vacuum gauge

Products

Active Gauge Solution

MX4A Convection Active Digital Vacuum Gauge

MX4A Convection Active Vacuum Gauge

• 1*10-4 Torr to 1000 Torr
• Sensors easy to replace
• Contamination resistant

MX7B Cold Cathode Active Vacuum Digital Gauge

MX7B Cold Cathode Active Vacuum Gauge

• 1*10-3 Torr to 1*10-8 Torr
• Robust and highly resistant to contamination
• Simple to disconnect sensor from electronics
• Multi-color OLED display with full menu functionality

MX Active Gauge EthernetIP Gateway

MX Active Gauge EthernetIP Gateway

• Connect up to (4) Televac MX active vacuum gauges and (1) CDG
• Interface directly with Rockwell Automation® Allen-Bradley® PLCs
• Faster and more reliable vacuum measurements
• Eliminates the need for additional analog-to-digital converters

Controller Solution

Modular vacuum controller that offers the full vacuum range of 1E-11 to 10,000 Torr with EthernetIP digital communications.

MX200 EthernetIP Vacuum Controller

• Seamless integration with Allen-Bradley PLCs
• All features accessible through the front panel and through digital communications
• Control up to 10 sensors, display up to 8
• User-configurable analog 0 to 10 V DC output ranges

4A Convection Vacuum Gauge - Vacuum Transducer

4A Convection Vacuum Gauge

• Atmosphere to 1*10-3 Torr
• Fast response time
• Contamination resistant
• ±10% accuracy

NW25/KF25 Stainless Steel 7B Penning Magnetron Cold Cathode Vacuum Gauge - Part Number: 2-2100-272

7B Penning Magnetron Cold Cathode Vacuum Gauge

• 1*10-7 Torr to 1*10-3 Torr
• Robust and highly contamination resistant
• Easy to disassemble and clean