A High-Frequency Induction Furnace Plant For the Manufacture of Special Alloys

High-frequency induction furnaces have been used for some time for the laboratory preparation of special alloys on a relatively small scale, and, to a limited extent, on a commercial scale. High-frequency power has, in general, been secured from spark-gap oscillation generators. Recently the Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company installed a plant having a nominal capacity of 20 tons per month, in which alloys are being produced in high-frequency induction furnaces supplied with power from a 100-kw., 5000-cycle inductor-type alternator. Zirconium silicate finds extensive use for furnace linings and thermal insulation. Alloys of great purity, which meet unusual and severe requirements, are being produced at a cost which compares favorably with that of oridnary commercial materials of the same nominal composition but having much inferior properties.