On December 17, an important event took place at the St. Petersburg Precision Alloy Plant (PZPS) — the launch of a new vacuum furnace. This is a significant stage in the development of the enterprise, aimed at improving production processes and improving quality manufactured products. The new furnace is located on a new modern site of the plant, which makes it possible not only to expand capacities, but also to introduce advanced metallurgical production methods.
Advantages of vacuum melting: quality without compromise
Vacuum smelting of steels and alloys is a technology that takes metallurgy to a new level, providing unique advantages:
- Minimizing gas content. The vacuum environment almost completely eliminates oxygen, nitrogen and hydrogen, which adversely affect the mechanical and physical properties of metals. This is especially important in the production of alloys for medical and aerospace industries.
- Increased purity of the composition. The melting process under vacuum conditions prevents the melt from coming into contact with the environment, which significantly reduces the level of impurities such as oxides and sulphides. As a result, they increase mechanical properties alloys.
- Improving the structure. Absence of gases and impurities contributes to the formation of a uniform microstructure of alloys, which is especially important for materials used in high-precision mechanisms.
- Process accuracy. Modern vacuum furnaces are equipped with intelligent control systems that allow you to adjust parameters such as temperature, pressure and process time with an error of a fraction of a percent. This ensures consistent and repeatable results.
- Saving resources. Vacuum melting reduces metal losses by reducing evaporation and oxidation.
- Environmental safety. The technology reduces emissions of harmful substances, making the process safer for the environment.
These advantages make vacuum furnaces indispensable in the production of high-quality steels and precision alloys used in critical industries.
The range of alloys produced
The new vacuum furnace will produce a wide range of specialized alloys at the PZPS:
- Soft magnetic alloys: 49K2FA-VI, 27KH, 50N, 50NP, 79NM, 80NM, 81NMA. They are widely used in electrical engineering due to their high magnetic permeability and low coercive force.
- Hard magnetic alloys: EP-298, 13NHM. They are in demand in the production of permanent magnets.
- Alloys with a specified TKLR: 29NK, 36N, 42N. They are used in industries that require increased thermal stability, for example, in aerospace engineering and instrument making.
Thanks to vacuum melting, these materials acquire improved performance characteristics, which makes them competitive on the global market.
Prospects for a new production site
The new vacuum furnace is only part of a larger project to modernize the plant. It is planned to place on the new site:
- Furnaces for electroslag and electrobeam remelting, which will expand opportunities for working with high-alloy and hard-to-process materials.
- Hot rolling mill, capable of producing metal tapes with a thickness of 1 to 4 mm and a width of up to 450 mm.
- Cold-rolled mills, which will ensure the production of high-precision thin-sheet products.
The launch of the new vacuum furnace was an important step towards technological leadership. The introduction of new technologies will allow the plant to increase its output, start producing new grades of materials and strengthen its position in the metallurgy market.
