adphos makes it reality

Saving time without losing productivity can certainly put you up front with the market leaders. Lengthy industrial and business processes can now be shortened significantly, creating instant new opportunities for enhanced
performance and better results. NIR® system technology from adphos not only reduces process times and energy consumption for plastics heating, it also reduces the process risk for our customers. This makes NIR® technology one of the most innovative applications around.

Small section, big effect
When heating plastics, the unique features of a small section of the electromagnetic spectrum are needed to conjure up that magical word “efficiency”. Just above the visible spectrum, in the near-infrared range (NIR), radiation reaches its maximum energy density. Completely new heating processes are possible here, making processes much easier to control than is possible with conventional technologies. The energy from the radiation is targeted very efficiently to the exact spot where it is required.

Short processes, high efficiency
In the NIR range, plastics have a high radiation transparency. The beams immediately penetrate deeply and heating is performed rapidly and evenly with extremely short processing times. There is also a clear reduction in energy consumption because the system does not have to be preheated. What’s more, it takes up a lot less space. Shorter heating paths also enable optimum integration into production machines and equipment. An integrated control loop also reduces the number of rejects produced.

NIR® technology uses beams to transfer thermal energy directly and
rapidly to the target substance. This ensures the material is heated evenly.

A changing market
We are currently helping to optimize a whole range of industries and industrial processes using NIR® technology. The system can be used in almost all thermal processes and can play an important role in helping companies gain a competitive edge. The technology pays for itself in no time thanks to its superb efficiency, which far outstrips conventional systems. Excellent maintenance and service conditions and advanced process simulation ensure high process reliability and rapid adaptation of new applications.

Growing market lead
adphos’ technical edge has been achieved through research, development and a high level of expertise in the field of process engineering. This enables us to offer you an outstanding systems package consisting of our comprehensive , (Near- Infrared), and (Thermo-Air) solutions. It is a measure of our success that many of our systems—ranging from special equipment and series solutions through to complex NIR®/UV combination systems—have already been installed by major brand manufacturers. Application-focused solutions, cooperation and development partnerships give our customers sustained productivity benefits and a competitive edge on many global markets. License agreements enable us to offer even more key advantages on markets that are becoming ever more competitive.

Thermoforming

The global plastics market is vast. Different materials are used in a great many forms through all sectors of industry. Blister packaging has long been the definitive packaging method for food stores, DIY stores, drug stores and pharmacies. A great many industrial companies produce packaging and products for these markets, where semi-finished thermoplastics are used for the molding process. Thermoformed molds for kitchen goods, furniture or automobiles have become an indispensable part of everyday life. Many producers today are already using innovative NIR® technology in the thermoforming process for these plastics. And their numbers are growing all the time.

Quality you can rely on
To ensure rapid heating of semi-finished thermoplastics during the thermoforming process, the heating system must be able to guarantee certain quality parameters. NIR® technology provides contact-free, evenly distributed heating, where the required process temperature is precisely maintained by a control system. Compared to conventional processes e. g. hot plates, this system has a convincing array of important advantages, including small footprint, short process times and high efficiency.

A whole range of applications
This system from adphos is designed for rapid, even heating processes for plastics using uniform or focused radiation of the mold material, and has a wide variety of applications. Preheating of films for laminating processes and targeted heating for thermal bending and welding are just some of the applications supported by the innovative NIR® system. Applications also include shock vulcanization of very short rubber profiles and uniform heating of particularly thick expanded film and insulating film. When heating films for stretching and orienting processes, mask technology can be used to heat and then mold only the specified parts of a semi-finished item.

An innovative solution that works for large components too – laminating a plastic
bumper using NIR® technology.

PET-Preform

PET bottles have already replaced the traditional glass bottle in many areas. They are lighter, more environmentally friendly, safer and have become very successful all over the world in the last few years. Even so, it’s no secret that manufacturing them is a relatively laborious process. Till recently, that is. Here, too, NIR® technology can now be used to dramatically reduce heating times, size, rejects and energy consumption. This is the start of a new chapter in the story of lightweight PET bottles.

Exact temperatures
The PET pre-mold produced in the injection molding process must undergo specific heating in a further process stage in order to create a bottle. This is an important aspect in the production of high-quality bottles. NIR® technology meets all the precise temperature criteria that this process demands. Extremely small zones can be heated on the pre-mold thanks to a patented reflector profile for each individual emitter. The temperature profile can be set using the height of the pre-mold and is maintained at a constant level by means of contact-free temperature measurement and a control loop. This enables the NIR radiation to heat the material fast and evenly without heating the thread of the bottle—thanks to precise, zone-specific radiation.

Minimal outlay
The fact that this process for heating PET pre-molds is reproducible and stable makes it much more efficient than conventional systems. NIR® technology drastically reduces the long heating times required by older systems. With shorter heating paths, much lower energy costs and very short start-up times with no warm-up phase, adphos has developed the
ultimate efficient heating process.

The compact, powerful, U-shaped emitter module is extremely durable and is in some
cases fitted with an on-board control system (patents pending).