Marle Group, a global manufacturer of orthopedic prostheses, has expanded its heat treating potential with the acquisition of a new furnace. The furnace on order will be used for the heat treatment of cobalt implants.
This Vector® vacuum furnace, supplied by SECO/WARWICK, will provide the high temperatures, pure environment, temperature uniformity, and quick cooling necessary for the Cobalt alloy hardening process.
Factory Director
Marle Group
In the words of Antoine Eschbach of Marle Group, “The furnace we ordered solves the challenges faced by anyone who has to heat treat cobalt alloys in a production process. . . . Knee implantology is a field that is developing rapidly especially in developed countries, such as United States of America and in many European countries. Our mission is to create the highest quality implants which raise the living standard of people around the world, and the Vector furnace will help us to achieve this goal."
In order for cobalt alloys to be used in implantology, they must be deprived of their ferromagnetic properties. This shiny, hard metal loses this property only when it reaches a temperature higher than 1131°C/2067.8°F. Such a high temperature makes it necessary to use a vacuum furnace in the implant production process.
The solution on order uses two gases - nitrogen for cobalt hardening and argon to achieve purity of the process during heating. It is also equipped with a dew point sensor for each of the gases, thanks to which the phenomenon of water vapor condensation and, consequently, the possibility of the processed load’s surface oxidation is eliminated.
Also significant for the cobalt treatment process is also a quick cooling system based on a gas blower ensuring a maximum hardening pressure of 15 bar abs.
