We offer a wide range of variants when it comes to the diameter, shape, and design of our hot zones. This is how we guarantee the optimum hot zone for you according to the furnace and working temperature:
For your new furnace or as a replacement: metallic hot zones from the professionals
At working temperatures between 1000°C and 2800°C, our metallic hot zones are the first choice. Key factors in your high-temperature process depend directly on the hot zone. These include temperature distribution, process purity, and energy consumption. We are true specialists in hot zones. We offer a wide range of attractive design features and combinations of materials to suit your process.
Your advantages at a glance:
Standard
products or customer-
specific designsExpert team with decades of experience
High energy efficiency
Innovative, application-
specific solutionsAll-round support including remote service
Top quality direct from the manufacturer
The optimum zone for your furnace
| Design | Orientation | Temperature in °C | Usable space in mm | Shielding | Equipment possible in | |||
| Diameter | Width | Height | Length | |||||
| Round | Vertical | > 1,650 to 2,500 | < 500 | > 50 | W + Mo | Premium | ||
| Round | Vertical | < 1,650 | < 500 | > 200 | ML + Mo | Basic+Premium+Enerzone | ||
| Round | Vertical | < 1,650 | > 500 | > 500 | ML + Mo | Basic+Premium+Enerzone | ||
| Round | Horizontal | < 1,650 | > 200 to < 500 | < 500 | ML + Mo | Basic+Premium+Enerzone | ||
| Round | Horizontal | < 1,650 | > 500 | > 400 | ML + Mo | Basic+Premium+Enerzone | ||
| Angular | Horizontal | < 1,650 | > 400 | > 400 | > 400 | ML + Mo | Basic+Premium+Enerzone | |
Overview of Plansee hot zones
Our equipment packages
We offer three different equipment packages for hot zones in the temperature range below 1700°C. Select the right package for you:
- BASIC: The most cost-effective solution for moderate usage conditions
Our basic hot zone has a tried-and-tested standard design and consists of the standard materials molybdenum and steel. The basic hot zone is recommended for temperatures up to 1350°C under moderate usage conditions. We produce heating elements such as shieldings, mountings, and charge carriers from the particularly dimensionally stable molybdenum alloy ML. Pure molybdenum guarantees optimum purity in the furnace. Elements such as gas nozzles or offset shieldings can be ordered with the basic version as optional extras.
- PREMIUM: The ideal solution for harsh usage conditions and a long service life
Our premium hot zone is based on particularly creep-resistant and high-strength molybdenum alloys such as molybdenum-lanthanum-oxide (ML) and TZM as well as high-grade stainless steel components. Instead of pure molybdenum, we use ML and TZM for heating elements, charge carriers, or the innermost layer of the shielding, for example. Special design features ensure a high degree of resilience, improved functionality, and a particularly long service life of all components. Examples include our support posts with U-rails. The support frame consists of highly heat-resistant steel (SS316Ti), which retains its shape for a very long time. Additional shielding elements such as ML ring shieldings on the front with brackets reduce the energy consumption in comparison with the basic hot zone. Additional external shieldings for gas nozzles are included with the premium hot zone. The additional price of the premium hot zone pays off in no time at all.
- ENERZONE: For maximum power at the lowest operating costs
With the Enerzone range, we have reduced the energy demand of the system by more than a quarter with unlimited power. We have achieved this by means of additional thermal shieldings, a lower weight, and an optimized design. In the Enerzone range, we use particularly lightweight bearing rails made of molybdenum alloys that we bend into a U-shape. These lie directly on the bolt and only need to be cross-pinned; caps are no longer required. This means that the new charge carriers are less susceptible to deformation and are much easier to replace.
We use the molybdenum alloys ML and TZM for Enerzone instead of pure molybdenum in order to reduce the weight. Shield packs and charge carriers made of ML and TZM are particularly dimensionally stable and strong. We also replace the stainless steel elements with molybdenum. This is because a molybdenum shielding layer has the same shielding effect as five layers of steel.
These optimizations have been made possible thanks to new production procedures and our specially processed molybdenum alloys.
The Enerzone hot zone heats up more quickly, cools down more quickly, and thereby guarantees shorter cycle times. A full-metal Enerzone hot zone with the dimensions 600 mm x 600 mm x 900 mm has the following advantages over the basic version:
- 15-20% weight reduction
- 20% faster heating-up time in an empty furnace
- Energy savings of more than 20%
- 15% faster cooling-down time
Our designers have developed all-round spacers. In combination with an external support frame made of stainless steel, these provide sufficient stability, even in the case of thin sheets. The Enerzone features special corner shieldings to prevent energy from escaping through critical gaps. Additional shielding disks also ensure that energy is not lost via the current conductors.
Costs, energy consumption, and CO2 emissions depend heavily on the size and operating duration of your hot zone. Here you can calculate the extent to which these values vary according to the equipment package – simply enter the data and find out instantly how much you could save:
Our recommendation: equip your furnace with a Plansee hot zone from the start. We'll be happy to work directly with the furnace manufacturer of your choice. You'll be impressed with the result. We'll gladly create a personalized quote just for you.
Maximum precision for innovative solutions
Our cross-divisional engineering team is a true specialist in furnace construction. Whether it's a coating system, annealing furnace, or sintering furnace, we are familiar with all high-temperature processes. Depending on the atmosphere, throughput time, and temperature, we will work with you to find the best solution for your furnace. To make sure every detail is correct in the finished hot zone, we use FE analyses to simulate the behavior of the hot zone in practice.
In the case of complex projects, our engineering team models 3D drawings on the computer. Even before it is put to use, everything is tested, right down to the last screw. Our team prides itself on finding innovative solutions for your
applications. Until now, heating elements have had a planar design. With one disadvantage: these heating elements begin to sag very quickly under high temperatures in very large furnaces. This results in short-circuits, cracks, and therefore failures. The new design, patented by Plansee, is curved, thereby preventing sagging.
All-round service direct from the manufacturer
Whether you're working with a high vacuum, a protective gas atmosphere, or hot isostatic pressing (HIP), whether you have questions about sintering, soldering, annealing, or heating systems, we are the right manufacturer for you.
Hot zones consist of countless individual parts such as heating elements, shieldings, riveted racks, heating tapes, and rails. We offer both standard and tailor-made solutions:
- Hot zones made of molybdenum, tungsten, tantalum, niobium, and their alloys
- Full-metal or hybrid zones with graphite or ceramic fiber insulation
- From very small (a few cm³) to very large (several m³) hot zones
- For temperature ranges from 1000°C to 2000°C
- Round, angular, vertical, horizontal, or special shapes
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Your new hot zone from Plansee
If your existing hot zone has become outdated or is no longer delivering the required performance, call on Plansee as a reliable partner for replacing your hot zone. We guarantee top quality and reasonable prices. Our experienced global service team will deal efficiently with your request.
Ask your system manufacturer about our hot zones. We have been working closely with furnace manufacturers throughout the world for decades and they have come to rely on our quality.
Metallic hot zones with the highest purity
Full-metal furnaces are the neat solution for particularly complex applications. Graphite furnaces are often contaminated by carbon – an extremely reactive material that can damage your products. Not so in metal furnaces with hot zones from Plansee. These are ultrapure and guaranteed to be carbon-free.
- Excellent vacuum conditions
- No contamination from oxygen, moisture, or carbon
- Short cycle times
- Extremely fast quenching with high gas pressures
- Special metal alloys for very good dimensional stability
Would you like to find out more about the special properties of our materials and why they are so well suited to furnace construction?
Production sites worldwide
We produce our hot zones at various sites within our worldwide production network. With the world's largest production facilities for refractory metals and our large sales and production network, we can guarantee customer focus, reasonable prices, and sufficient capacity.
Whether remotely or on-site – we are here for you
Regardless of whether you need an entire hot zone or a spare part for your existing furnace, naturally we would be happy to install our products for you on-site. Our experts can also handle the inspection, maintenance, and optimization of your existing furnaces.
Should repairs become necessary, that is also a task that we would be happy to take care of for you on-site. If desired, our experts can also provide a remote service to support your needs. The major advantage of this is that questions and problems can be answered and solved quickly, significantly minimizing your downtimes.
Our largest hot zone
50,000 individual parts, 8 meters in length, 6 metric tonnes in weight. These are the dimensions of our largest hot zone. The entire manufacturing process was overseen by our team, from construction through to installation in the boiler directly on the customer's site. We even developed new tools for the demanding heating components.
Further products for high-temperature processes
Whether for annealing furnaces and soldering processes, coating systems, 3D printing sintering equipment, MIM furnaces, sintering furnaces, HIP processes or single crystal growing – our products made of molybdenum, tungsten, tantalum, and niobium can withstand the highest temperatures:
Is your product not yet included? Get in touch and we'll be happy to develop a tailor-made solution for your specific application.
You can find additional products for furnace construction as well as semifinished products in our Plansee online shop. You can quickly and easily order configurable dimensions from stock.
