Design and simulation optimization of temperature uniformity for well type muffle free heat treatment furnace

In order to improve the temperature uniformity of large wall thickness workpieces in large heat treatment furnaces, a well type muffle free heat treatment furnace with an inner diameter of 2300 mm was designed. Forced convection heat transfer was achieved by a fan and a guide tube, and transient numerical simulation of the temperature and flow field during the heating process of the workpieces was carried out. A comparative analysis was conducted on the effects of three different guide tube base structures on the heating rate and temperature uniformity of heat treated workpieces. The results show that using an optimized seven holes base structure with six small holes surrounding one large hole, the workpiece temperature increased rapidly while achieving better temperature uniformity (2.14% temperature difference). This research achievement has certain guiding significance for the structural optimization and engineering application of large-scale well type muffle free heat treatment furnaces.