Heat treatment

Because of the oxygen content in the air, the normal room atmosphere is not suitable for many industrial processes. Especially the heat treatment of steel is part of these processes: hardening, sintering, forming. With regard to the fundamental importance of carbon for the mechanical properties of steel it is necessary to pay special attention on the protective atmosphere in these processes – thus on the carbon exchange between the furnace atmosphere and the treated parts. Endothermal gas – or "Endogas" – is used as protective gas in the thermal treatment of metals. Endogas is a mixture of carbon monoxide (CO, approx. 20 vol.-%), hydrogen (H₂, approx. 40 vol.-%), carbon dioxide (CO2, approx. 0.3 vol.-%) and nitrogen. It is produced in endogas generators by burning natural gas or liquefied petroleum gas at at high oxygen deficiency. The reaction takes place on a Nickel catalyst at a temperature of about 1,000° C and a space velocity of about 1,000 h-1. The production of endogas is an endothermal process; therefore, the heat input is very important for the quality of the endogas.

Our endogas catalysts show the following characteristics:

• High geometric surface
• Thermally, mechanically and chemically stable carrier material
• Low pressure loss through unique geometry
• High coking resistance because of the basic character of the carrier material