The dual chamber vacuum furnace type ALD DualTherm® offers high flexibility and is mainly used in the production of single parts and small batches in the automobile and aviation industry as well as in the in the tool industry.

Primary applications are:

• Neutral hardening up to 1,200 °C

• Low pressure carburization up to 1,050 °C

• Low pressure carbonitriding

• Annealing under partial pressure up to 1,250 °C

• Vacuum brazing

The ALD multi-chamber furnace type DualTherm® combines perfectly the vacuum furnace and cold quench chamber and is therefore the optimal solution to harden even low-alloyed steels successfully.

The ALD vacuum single-chamber furnace type MonoTherm® has broad capabilities and can be used in a wide variety of heat treatment processes like:

• Annealing

• Hardening

• Tempering

• Brazing in fine respectively high vacuum

• Case hardening

• Sintering

Vacuum induction melting and casting is the most commonly used process in secondary metallurgy to melt solid metal feedstock, to refine the metals while in the liquid state and to adjust the chemical composition. Melting and casting in vacuum or controlled inert gas atmosphere is often required for the production of a variety of high-performance metal alloys and is essential for quality manufacturing of Ni-based super-alloys as well as Fe-, Co-, Cr-based and other special alloys.

The advantages of VIM include precise modification and control of the alloy composition while in a controlled atmosphere. Subsequent casting of the molten metal again under vacuum or controlled inert gas atmosphere in partly pre-heated molds or using other casting technologies such as continuous casting minimizes surface oxidation of the cast metal and can improve material properties.

ALD Vacuum Technologies is the market and technology leader for vacuum inert gas atomizers used in the production of high-quality metal powders. In addition, ALD has extensive experience in combining various melting technologies with inert gas atomization systems to address particular material requirements. The application-specific combination of melting and atomization techniques enables production of a wide range of super-clean metal powders, including super-alloys, precious metals, refractory and reactive metal powders. Our clients can choose between two main atomizer types, namely EIGA and VIGA, for charge weights from 5 kg up to 2500 kg. Customized EIGA and VIGA design variations are available to meet customer specific requirements.

The EBuild® is a completely newly developed system from ALD Vacuum Technologies for the Electron beam Powder Bed Fusion (E-PBF) process on an industrial scale. It is the first system on the market suitable for additive manufacturing of both large-scale parts and high-volume production. High productivity, robustness and superior material quality enable the step to industrial additive manufacturing.

The world’s largest build volume and the highest beam power currently available in E-PBF greatly expand the possibilities for new products and materials. The advantages of the EBuild® 850 system in combination with ALD’s E-PBF process allow an increase in efficiency in end products such as turbines while significantly reducing material consumption compared to conventional manufacturing processes. The benefits generated lead to both cost reduction and a lower carbon footprint in production and product life cycle.

Flavor and vitamin-preserving freeze-drying of coffee and fruit on an industrial scale

 Features of vacuum freeze drying:

• Leading process for the production of instant coffee, e.g. Robusta or Arabica, as well as freeze-dried fruit

• High-quality, reproducible product quality with natural flavor

• Plant size from 2,500 to 6,000 t/year

  Continuous and reproducible production process through separable condensers, canted freeze drying trays, controlled pressure equalization and automatic loading and unloading of hanging carts
  Excellent product quality with maximum flavor and vitamin preservation through precise measurement and control of important process parameters, such as pressure and temperature, as well as the use of contact heating that is gentle on the raw materials

Hot Isothermal Forging (HIF) became an important technology for producing rotationally symmetric parts in near net shape. It is applied to titanium and superalloys that are hard to shape, used in jet-engine subject to high stress.

If the forging is done under „Superplastic“ conditions, only small stresses occur in the workpiece and the grain-size remains nearly unchanged. Isothermal forging is typically performed at temperatures of 1.050 °C – 1.200 °C in the case of superalloys or 900 °C – 1.050 °C in case of titanium alloys.

The VIM-IC furnaces are used for investment casting or precision casting of superalloys.

The standard VIM-IC furnaces are modular and can be used for melt weights from 5-500 kg. Vertical and horizontal type furnaces can be offered depending on cast weight and mold dimensions. The solidification structure of the casting can be equiax (E) or, through the use of an additional mold heater, directionally solidified (DS) or single crystal (SC). The furnace can be built as combined furnace, thus customers can easily switch over from equiax to DS/SC mode and vice versa.