Round Bar Heating With Swirl Burners

A method of heating round steel bars using a swirl burner or swirl burner furnace combination is described. This technique is suitable for surface hardening or processing of long steel bars. The uniform heating around the steel bar, coupled with the high heat transfer rate of the swirling flow, allows a relatively small swirl burner to be used. Experimental results are presented from small-scale prototype trials with a 200 kW burner and 25 mm diameter mild steel bars.