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The use of pre-cast and pre-fired refractory shapes has increased
over the last few years as more and more plant maintenance managers
have come to appreciate their advantages and the ,savings they offer
in terms of reduced downtime and decreased repair costs.
One major advantage of pre-cast shapes is the ease of installation,
both initially and on future repairs. The use of outside crews can
sometimes be eliminated, and spare parts can be kept on hand for unexpected
repairs. The shapes are typically pre-fired as well, which can eliminate
the need for extensive initial cure-outs, thereby shortening the duration
of an outage.
Another obvious advantage is that, by manufacturing a refractory lining
system under controlled conditions, material properties such as strength
and abrasion resistance can be totally optimized. Critical factors
such as water content, mixing conditions, curing, and bake out are
carefully controlled by the manufacturer, ensuring good material properties.
The finest refractory material in the world will not perform as expected
if care is not taken to monitor these items. Field installation requirements
often compromise one or more of these factors. TFL, Incorporated operates
a state-of-the-art manufacturing plant for pre-cast refractory shapes.
The facility includes precision mold-making capabilities, an automated
mixing platform with product conveying equipment and automatic dumping
from the mixer, as well as electronically-controlled water metering.
Shapes are fired in a furnace with a computer-controlled combustion
system.
Whatever the application, if it lends itself to a pre-cast refractory
shape, you can count on reduced installation and replacement costs,
and a better service life from the refractory lining.
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