Should you buy a domestic muffle furnace EKPS-10 or turn to foreign analogues?
OJSC "Smolensk SKTB SPU" was formed in Russia in the early 90s, specializes in the production of devices for maintaining constant temperature, laboratory equipment, and components.
The list of the company's products is extensive.The catalog presents medical products, devices for research centers, defense industry enterprises, food industry, and other areas.
The company occupies a worthy place in the domestic market of the country and the CIS territory.
Are muffle furnaces suitable for firing ceramics or jewelry?
This type of muffle furnaces:
- intended for research projects;
- is intended to create dental impressions;
- used in production raw materials and supplies;
- is used in mining and processing industries;
- used in jewelry design;
- is used for firing of ceramics.
The devices are heating up up to 1100-1300 degrees Celsius. Provided 15 programmable modes. They are a chamber made of mulitsiliceous refractory roll fiber (MKRV) with built-in heaters.
Muffle furnaces are installed on a solid, stationary, level, non-flammable surface. They do not tolerate vibration, dust, gas pollution, and are sensitive to voltage drops.
Model range of devices
Exists several models furnaces of this type.
EKPS-5
The number 5 in the name means useful volume of the firing space (5 l). Maximum heating - 1100 °C.
Features of the EKPS-5 muffle furnace:
- operating temperature range — from 50 to 1100 degrees Celsius;
- the error in the maintained temperature is ±20 °C;
- warm-up time — 45 minutes;
- Power consumption - 1.8 kW.
Photo 1. Muffle furnace model EKPS-5, power 1.8 kW, manufacturer - JSC Smolensk SKTB SPU.
The dimensions of the devices are quite compact: the dimensions of the working chamber are 170x200x160 mm, External dimensions of the oven - 440x488x570 mm, weight - about 30 kg.
EKPS-10
It differs from the EKPS-5 in its volume and larger dimensions - 490x590x600 mm, power —2.2 kW. At the customer’s request, the design can be supplemented with a powerful autonomous hood, as well as an interface for connecting to a PC.
Temperature error with the door hermetically closed does not exceed ±1 °C. The digital display contains data on the current and set temperature. At a speed no more than 90 minutes the muffle furnace reaches its thermal limit. Power failures will not cause the program to fail. The device will switch off automatically if the heating sensor readings go off scale.
EKPS-50
Dimensions - 650x900x1040 mm. Volume of the working chamber — 50 l. Can be equipped with an automatic programmer for precise control over the heating process. The power is 5.0 kW.
It has two modification options: a furnace with an analog temperature controller (temperature control range in the furnace 400—1100 °C); oven with microprocessor temperature controller (from 50 to 1100 °C). Absolute error - no more than ± 6/4 °C respectively.
EKPS-300
Maximum power - 13000 W. The highest temperature limit is 1100 °C. Useful volume of the working chamber — 300 l. Warm-up time from 0 to maximum does not exceed 140 minutes. Equipment power — 13.0 kW. Parameters without autonomous exhaust are 950x1441x1060 mm. The mass of the furnace is 410 kg. Installed on a stone countertop or concrete base.
EKPS-500
Maximum temperature in +1100 degrees is reached in 150 minutes. Volume - 500 l. Equipped with an open muffle. Dimensions — 950x1600x1410 mm, weight - 500 kg. Due to its large size, it has the ability to heat the surrounding space. by 10-15 degrees.
The advantages of the model:
- uniform temperature distribution in the chamber;
- Creation protective barrier from electromagnetic radiation;
- delayed launch programs.
If the temperature inside will exceed 1160 °C, is heard sound signal. The same thing happens at the end of work, in all emergency situations.
How to choose a muffle furnace
Muffle furnaces EKPS operate from the electric network alternating three-phase current. Consists of outer casing and inner chamber. The heating element in the design can be of an open or closed type. The second option is the most preferable, since its resource is higher.
When choosing a device, you should consider the following parameters:
- type of material working chamber;
- maximum heating temperature;
- useful volume of workspace.
Take into account the fact that the muffle is solid cast element, therefore it experiences overloads not only during heating, the process is important loyal cooling, that is, it should cool down fairly quickly, but without sharp temperature fluctuations. Thermal jumps will greatly reduce the life of the device.
If during the process of use there will be present mechanical factors of influence on the working chamber: a large mass of loaded products, their careless introduction into the oven chamber - chips and cracks will appear.
Attention! Replacement internal muffle — is an economically unprofitable activity. It is highly undesirable to allow such phenomena. Additional equipment of the furnace with ventilation and a reasonable approach to the cooling process will help here.
Weigh up all the pros and cons when choosing a stove with a fast speed of gaining high temperatures. Its resource is much lower than the resources of those models that spend more time on this. The difference, as a rule, consists in tens of minutes, and the service life is reduced by ten years.
From here it follows smoothly choice of material, from which the heating chamber can be made. Ask about strength tests and quality certificates for the inner surface of the muffle.
Reference! It is better to place a massive part not on the muffle itself, but on preheated liningIt can be purchased as a set with the oven or separately.
For many jobs it is important useful volume of the working chamber. If your goal is to ashing laboratory samples, specify the amount that can be placed on the kiln shelves at one time. If the fired items are tall, specify the location of the shelves, the possibility of moving them, and removing them.
Given that multi-tier loading muffle oven, the main factor is the characteristic of uniform heating over the entire surface of the chamber.
Software It is important for the customer if he wants to avoid problems when power outages, so that the process can continue without interruption, and after troubleshooting, there is no need to waste time and materials when starting the process from the very beginning.
Useful video
Check out the video, which provides an overview of the EKPS-10 muffle furnace manufactured by JSC Smolensk SKTB SPU.
Advantages and disadvantages of furnaces manufactured by JSC "Smolensk SKTB SPU"
The positive aspect is that the company will promptly deliver the goods to the regions, providing them with the results of preliminary tests, the necessary documentation; will carry out commissioning work at the request of the buyer. Warranty period of service equals 12 months. Specialists are always ready to travel to the client's site upon request for maintenance or repair.
Furnaces are available, possibly custom made (in this case, delivery times are negotiated individually).
The product is designed for a wide range of consumers.
If the oven is intended to be used in jewelry, ceramics or for melting metals, then within the framework of technical characteristics, the choice in favor of a domestic manufacturer is entirely justified.
It's a different matter when it's required exact temperature match in the chamber for a specific technological process.
The issue here is about uniform heating and cooling, competent software during work, and reducing the error in temperature readings to a minimum.
That is why research institutes and accredited testing laboratories prefer to have muffle furnaces in their arsenal. ovens of foreign analogues. This is explained by the fact that "SKTB SPU" in the production of small-volume loading furnaces does not use complex digital sensors temperature control.
Energy consumption — one of the important parameters of a muffle furnace. In imported devices this indicator is lower, which makes them more economical.
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