Next generation insulating products cut energy consumption in metal processing

In the past, many furnaces were lined with dense castables or conventional firebrick. These offer long life and good resistance to chemical attack but are less efficient as insulators than many of the newer materials available today.

A wide variety of alternative lining products are now available for thermal processing equipment, including continuous heat treating furnaces, steel reheat furnaces, and forge furnaces. One new high temperature thermal insulation, produced by Morgan Thermal Ceramics, offers key advantages over all other high temperature fiber products currently available.

Superwool® Plus™ insulation wool is 17 percent more energy efficient than traditional insulation wool

Alkaline Earth Silicate (AES) insulation wools are an ideal choice for use in both the steel-making process and such downstream processes as reheating and heat treatment. Morgan Thermal Ceramics’ Superwool® AES products have been established in steel plants for many years.

From blast furnaces to reheating and galvanizing lines, AES insulations are providing the iron and steel industry with important attributes that enables users to increase efficiencies and make significant cost savings associated with energy usage.

Morgan Thermal Ceramics has introduced Superwool® Plus™, a new high temperature insulation wool that is 17 percent more energy efficient than traditional Refractory Ceramic Fiber (RCF) and any other AES insulations. It is ideal for furnace linings in the iron and steel and aluminum industries, as well as all applications where high temperature processing is a requirement. Typical applications include ladle slide gate insulation, tundish and stopper insulation, nozzle insulation, ingot insulation, roller inserts and insulation of an annealing furnace.

Superwool® Plus™ provides excellent insulation in high temperature environments with a classification temperature of up to 2192°F (1200°C). A breakthrough in the company’s advanced manufacturing control has allowed the product to be engineered to maximize the fiber content. This increase in surface area of fiber structure effectively blocks the thermal radiation and as a result, it has significantly lower thermal conductivity – up to 20 percent lower than competitive insulations - and enhanced energy saving properties with much improved handleability.

Superwool® Plus™ is efficient at restricting energy flow while maintaining other key material properties such as low shrinkage and good mechanical durability. It delivers high performance with less mass and blanket thickness than alternative products. Consequently, users can use less insulation and can make weight and cost savings. Customers can now use a thinner insulation blanket, such as the Superwool® Plus™ blanket 6 lb./ft3 (96 kg/m3), to provide the same insulation as a typical 8 lb./ft3 (128 kg/m3) blanket.

The Superwool® Plus™ blanket has high tensile strength with good handling ability. As such, it does not tear easily and is simple to install.

Industries are under increased pressure to improve energy efficiency and reduce carbon emissions. In addition, RCF is classified by the EU and has been added to Annex IV of the REACH regulation. Superwool® products offer the advantage of being exonerated from carcinogenic classification under Nota Q of Directive 67/548 and therefore are unrestricted in their use.

In light of this, Morgan Thermal Ceramics is committed to providing a new range of products to replace RCF, which offer more value and satisfy the needs of the future. The Superwool® Plus™ range is an ideal alternative to RCF, helping customers to increase energy efficiencies throughout their plants.

As energy costs continue to rise, using high performance insulation (such as Superwool® Plus™) together with regular furnace maintenance in heat-intensive industries is crucial to sustaining high furnace efficiency and keeping fuel expenses at a minimum.

About Thermal Ceramics

Morgan Thermal Ceramics is a world leader in the design and manufacture of advanced heat insulation products which are used to help reduce energy consumption in a range of industrial processes, from iron and steel production to power generation, and specialized structural fire protection. Key products include Superwool®, the leading low bio-persistent insulating fiber, insulating firebricks (IFBs) and a range of monolithic materials. The business employs some 3,000 people in more than 50 locations worldwide, with manufacturing sites in 25 countries.

Morgan Thermal Ceramics is a business within the Morgan Ceramics Division of The Morgan Crucible Company plc. Morgan Crucible is an advanced materials company that provides technically complex, bespoke solutions to its customers, enabling them to address global trends such as energy demand, healthcare and environmental sustainability. It has a world leading position in its target niche markets within sectors that include power generation, petrochemical, medical, aerospace and defense. Morgan Crucible has operations in more than 50 countries, including a significant and fast growing presence in the dynamic growth economies of the world such as China, India and Brazil. Its shares are listed on the London Stock Exchange and it is a member of the FTSE 250 index. Further information is available at www.morgancrucible.com.