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Introduction

The advancement of human civiliza-tion has been aided and conse-quently marked by progress in theprocessing and use of advancedmaterials. Advances in materials pro-cessing have been critical inputs tothe economic prowess of societiesthroughout history. As evidenced byartifacts found through the stoneage, bronze age and then iron age,the processing of materials into toolslay at the heart of the socio-eco-nomic fabric of societies.Today, advanced materials ranging

from the latest silicon-based solarpanel, nanoscale electronic devicesto advanced composites in cars andaircrafts play a central role in theadvancement of technology.Technological challenges in materi-als processing, particularly in thearea of high temperatures, should beviewed as opportunities to innovateand create value.In a recent engagement with one of

Americas leading research centers at

Georgia Tech, a demonstration ofinnovation was brought to bearon advancing state-of-art hightemperature processing in carbon

fibers. Georgia Tech required anespecially distinctive configuration inthe line to accommodate fractionaltow sizes in the range of less than100 filaments. This condition was achallenge as it pushed the bound-aries for typical carbon fiber process-ing, as traditional commercial CFlines handle tow sizes of 3K, andrarely down to 1K. Harper Inter-nationalsexpert design team wasable to devise a proprietary solutionto this challenge, enablingresearchers to achieve their goals ofprocessing material more quicklyand utilizing less expensive additives.

Carbon Fibers a Focus in

Material ResearchHarpers thermal processing sys-tems will be used in our advancedmaterials research at Georgia Tech,commented Dr. Satish Kumar, Profes-sor at the School of Materials Scienceand Engineering. Solving toughproblems with real world solutions ispart of what we do at Georgia Tech.We are always interested in finding

Fig. 1Carbon fibers(courtesy:Harper International)

creative, technologically-focusedpartners to assist with our research."Carbon fibers including carbonnanotubes containing carbon fibersare a prime area of focus in advancedmaterials research due to theirincreased strength, flexibility, andunique electrical properties. Carbonnanotubes are of potential use inmany applications across almost allfields of science, engineering, andtechnology, and help expand therealm of nanotechnology throughtheir utilization in controlling othernanoscale structures. Additionally, it is critical to placeimportance on viewing innovationthrough the lens of environmentaland economic sustainability. This isone of todays foremost challengesthat our society must address. It isideal to strive toward reaching andbecoming the benchmark in energy

efficiency, which translates intohigher operational efficiencies. In aneffort to advance this position, aunique furnace system with dualfunctionality was recently developedfor a major US national laboratoryengaged in research, development,and commercialization of newadvanced materials that emulatesthe ideals of energy efficiency.

USA

High Temperature

Materials Processing Challenges and Innovation

Dr. Arun Bodapati

Harper International

Lancaster, NY

www.harperintl.com

Fig. 2 Carbon fiber furnace (courtesy: Harper International)

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processing cycle variations from30 min up to 10 h. ORNL will havethe flexibility to test and developnew carbon materials from a varietyof sources, including renewables.This project will enhance the use of avariety of renewable technologieswhile advancing the advanced com-posites industry as well.

Thermal Processing ofNuclear Fuel Pellets

As another example of overcomingtechnology complexities in high

temperature material processingand energy efficiency priorities, arecently developed system for theadvanced thermal processing ofnuclear fuel pellets required a con- fluence of skill sets drawn frommechanical engineering, nuclearengineering, ceramic engineering,and electrical engineering. Concernsover global warming have sparkedrenewed interest in the nuclearindustry to reduce greenhouse gasemissions. The global nuclear indus-try has 437 power plants in opera-

tion today with 55 facilities underconstruction and an additional 134facilities in the planning stage.Sintering is the crucial final step inthe refinement of nuclear fuelsbefore they can be used in nuclearpower plants. Nuclear fuel sinteringsystems must meet several criticalrequirements such as hydrogen gasatmosphere with controlled dewpoint in the 1700 to 1800 C tem-perature range, as well as tempera-ture uniformity, and safety controlsystems. Harper Internationals sys-

tems meet or exceed these require-ments and have proven highly reli-able and durable, a very importantaspect for this application. Harpersadvanced furnace systems for the

nuclear industry are currently inoperation on four continents.

Summary

Advanced technology due to theresearch and development ofadvanced materials is now consid-ered the norm. Cell phones, solarcells, nanomaterials, flat-screen dis-plays, lithium ion batteries,advanced catalysts, and carbon fiberare all fairly standard items in todaysworld. Harper International hasplayed an important role in assisting

companies with the developmentand commercialization of many ofthese advanced materials with theirhighly engineered thermal process-ing systems.Enabling the production of suchadvanced materials, Harper Interna-tional has been on a path of constantinnovation since founding in 1924.Over the past decades Harpers busi-ness and technical focus has evolvedinto collaborating with world-classclients in development, scaling up,designing, and commissioning first

of a kind complex processes. Today,Harper serves a wide variety of mar-kets including nanomaterials,advanced ceramics, inorganic chem-icals, advanced energy markets,lighting products, catalysts, solar sil-icon, nuclear fuel, carbon fibers, andothers. Harpers strong focus onenabling customers to reach theirgoals through the path of world-class innovation has been at theheart of Harpers business success.Leading manufacturers in advancedmaterials industries worldwide

appreciate the combination of high-level process assistance, world-classcustom equipment, and after salessupport that are the foundation ofHarper technological experience.

Fig. 3Furnacewith inset deliveredto Oak Rich Nation-al Laboratory(courtesy:Harper International)

Oak Ridge National Laboratory(ORNL) is researching the develop-ment of a wide range of carbonmaterials from renewable resources.

Thermal Processing

Systems for Carbon Fibers

To simulate commercial productionof carbon materials, a continuousthermal processing system wasselected by the ORNL research team.Precursor materials planned for thisdevelopment project have a widevariation in both particle sizes andparticle shapes. These variations inprecursor materials would requiretwo distinctive types of furnace sys-tems, a rotary furnace for one type ofmaterial and a mesh belt furnace sys-

tem for other materials.ORNL contacted Harper Internation-al for assistance in designing a singlecontinuous thermal processing sys-tem that could satisfy both require-ments efficiently. Harpers engineer-ing team developed the dual func-tionality furnace due to limitedspace within the lab, and the needfor flexibility in processing a widevariety of materials in both rotaryand mesh belt furnace systems. TheHarper team designed a multi-func-tional thermal processing systemthat can be transformed from arotary tube furnace to a mesh beltfurnace while utilizing a single ther-mal platform.The design of this custom furnacesystem demonstrates the commit-ment Harper makes to provide solu-tions, investments, and new con-cepts to achieve the needs of our val-ued customers, said Rick Rehrig,Harper Vice President of Sales. Theworld of advanced materials contin-ues to change at an acceleratedpace. The engineers and scientistshere at Harper International provide

custom solutions and technical assis-tance for the economical commer-cialization for the advanced materi-als industry.The single thermal processing sys-tem features a clam-shell design thatallows the top half of the furnace toopen, exposing the internal sectionof the furnace. The rotary tube maybe removed from the system, allow-ing for the installation of a mesh beltwithin the same thermal section ofthe furnace. Both furnace systemshave been designed to be gas tight

and operate with a variety of atmos-pheric gases including reactive andcorrosive gases. Additionally, the sys-tems have been designed to operatein the 1000C range with thermal