Muffle Furnace

83-4170

OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS
Muffle Furnace

83-4170

ELE International Distributor: ELE International

Chartmoor Road, Chartwell Business Park Soiltest Product Division
Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire, LU7 4WG PO Box 389, Loveland, CO 80539
England USA
phone: +44 (0) 1525 249200 phone: +1 (800) 323 1242
fax: +44 (0) 1525 249249 fax: +1 (970) 663 9781
email: [email protected] email: [email protected]
http://www.ele.com http://www.eleusa.com
ELE International, a division of Hach Lange Ltd.

In the interests of improving and updating its equipment, ELE reserves the right to alter specifications to equipment at any time
ELE International 2018 

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Contents

Section Page

1 Introduction 3

2 Technical Information 3

3 Operation : Version 1 3

4 Operation : Version 2 (post 2016) 6

5 Electrical Supply 8

6 Spares 9

Appendix 1 10

WEEE Directive

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1 Introduction
ELE’s muffle furnace is used for determining various properties of construction materials.
Please refer to Operation section before installing machine.
2 Technical Information
2.1 Rated power : 5 KW
2.2 Rated voltage : 220V
2.3 Phase : Single phase
2.4 Heating time for empty oven : Less than 60 minutes
2.5 Consumable power for empty oven : Less than 1.2 KW
2.6 Interior dimensions (l x b x h) : 200 x 120 x 80 mm
2.7 Overall dimensions (l x b x h) : 545 x 385 x 400 mm
3 Operation : Version 1
3.1 The muffle furnace should be located on a sturdy structure away from heat sources.
3.2 The relative humidity of the testing environment should be less than 85% and the
area should be free from combustible and explosive materials.
3.3 Electrical Safety
This equipment has been tested and is safe to use providing that the proper safety
precautions are observed:
Do not use this equipment in any manner, other than as specified in this user
manual, misuse may result in serious injury to personnel.
Do not attempt to operate the equipment with electrical covers removed.
Do not operate machine with wet hands.
Important Note : Please read this entire manual before unpacking, setting up or
operating this equipment. Pay particular attention to all DANGER and CAUTION
statements. Failure to do so could result in serious injury to the operator, or other
personnel, or damage to the equipment.
Key to Hazard Information
DANGER : Indicates a potentially or imminently hazardous situation which, if not
avoided, could result in death or serious injury.
CAUTION : Indicates a potentially hazardous situation that may result in minor or
moderate injury.
Important Note : Information that requires special emphasis.
Note : Information that supplements points in the main text.
Before removing any covers or performing maintenance repair and service, isolate
from electrical supply by removing mains plug. Where mains supply is required during
these activities, only competent persons should perform the work.
Check that the power supply is compatible with the requirements stated on the label
and connect in accordance with IEE regulations or to local requirements.
It is recommended that this machine be connected via a residual current device (not
supplied), and it should operate if earth leakage current exceeds 0.03 amps.

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The power cable is coded as follows:

Brown wire L Live or Power
Blue wire N Neutral
Green/Yellow wire E Earth or Ground
Portable Appliance Tests (PAT)
All ELE supplied products are tested for electrical safety prior to sale.
An electrical safety test label is fitted (usually adjacent to the mains input socket).
Should no label be found, please contact the ELE service department quoting the
serial number of the equipment.
DANGER : Organisations have an obligation to ensure equipment is maintained and
safe for use. Regular PAT testing is one means of ensuring equipment continues to
be electrically safe.
NOTE : DO NOT FLASH TEST ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT.

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3.4 Set the working temperature and time as follows:-

To set temperature:
Press “SET “once and SP will highlight.
Press up arrow to set the tens and units.
Press the side arrow key and then press the up arrow to set the hundreds and
thousands.
Press “SET” twice to exit.
To set time:
Press “SET” twice.
Press up arrow to set the time required.
Press ”SET” to exit.
3.4.1 Before using for the first time, and following periods of rest, the furnace should be
pre-heated prior to use. Suggested pre-heating times are:-
2 hours : 100°C
3 hours : 400°C
3 hours : 600°C
1 hour : 900°C
Disconnect power and allow to cool at room temperature.

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3.4.2 The working temperature of the furnace must be less than 1,200°C to avoid damage
to parts of the furnace. Do not add liquid and melt metal in furnace.
3.4.3 The circuit system of the furnace and controller should be checked at regular
intervals.
4 Operation : Version 2 (post 2016)

4.1 Front Panel and Operation

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Upper display window, displays PV, or code of a parameter.

Lower display window, displays SV, alarming code, or value of a parameter.

Set-up key, for accessing parameter table and confirming change.

Data shift key, also for activating auto-tuning.

Data decrease key.

Data increase key.

Indicator lamps (MIO, OP1, OP2, AL1, AL2, AU1, AU2 indicate the I/O actions of
the corresponding modules. MAN and PRG are non-applicable for AI-508).

Basal display status : When the power is on, the upper display window of the instrument
shows the process value (PV), and the lower window shows the setpoint (SV). This status is
called the basal display status. When the input signal is out of the measurable range (for
example, the thermocouple or RTD circuit is activated (broken), or the input specification is
set incorrectly), the upper display window will alternately display “orAL” and the high limit or
the low limit of PV, and the instrument will automatically stop output.
4.2 Operation Description
4.2.1 Set value setting:
In basal display status, if the parameter lock “Loc” isn’t locked, setpoint (SV) can be set by
pressing , or . Press to decrease the value, to increase the
value, and to move to the digit expected to modify. Keep pressing or , the
speed of decreasing or increasing value quickens. The maximum value of the setpoint is
HIAL.
4.2.2 Parameter setting:

In basal display status, press and hold for approximately 2 seconds to access Field
Parameter Table. Pressing can go to the next parameter; pressing , or
can modify a parameter. Press and hold to return to the preceding parameter.
Press (don’t release) and then press simultaneously to escape from the
parameter table. The instrument will escape automatically from the parameter table if no key
is pressed within 30 seconds.
4.2.3 Artificial intelligence control and auto-tuning
When AI control method is chosen, the control parameters can be obtained by running auto-
tuning. At the first time of running auto-tuning, in basic display status press for 2
seconds. “At” will flash at lower display window and the instrument executes on-off control.
After 2 to 3 cycles of on-off action, the instrument will obtain the values of PID control
parameters. If you want to escape from auto-tuning status, press and hold for
approximately 2 seconds until the “At” flash stops.

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Depending on the system, the time of auto-tuning can be several seconds to several hours.
After the auto-tuning finishes, the parameter “CtrL” automatically changes to 3 (the initial
value is 1) or 4, and then you are unable to activate auto-tuning by pressing for 2
seconds. If you want to run auto-tuning again, set parameter “CtrL” to 2 (refer to the
description of parameter “CtrL”).
Note 1 : Before running auto-tuning, the setpoint should be set to an often-used value or
middle value first, and then start auto-tuning. Generally, for application with 10% -
80% heating time, the auto-tuning results should be satisfactory. If the heating time
is not in the range of 10% - 80%, the auto-tuning will run for a long time and a
satisfactory result cannot be obtained. Raising the setpoint for heating time less than
10%, or decreasing setpoint for heating time greater than 80%, can improve the
auto-tuning result.
Note 2 : Do not modify the setpoint during auto-tuning as it may affect the precision of the
auto-tuning.
Note 3 : The temperature fluctuation caused by interference may affect the precision of auto-
tuning. Besides checking the wiring, increasing the parameter dL (input digital filter)
can also reduce interference.
Note 4 : After auto-tuning finishes, generally the rising temperature has a little over-shoot
(approximately 1 - 3°C). This is because the transducer is often placed between the
heater and heated material, and a little over-shoot can shorten the time of rising to
setpoint and save power. (Generally the temperature of the transducer can be
raised faster than that of the heated material.)
5 Electrical Supply
5.1 For Version 1 : The controller should be connected as per figure 1 below:

figure 1

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5.2 For Version 2 :

6 Spares
Please contact ELE’s service department.

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Appendix 1

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DIRECTIVE ON WASTE ELECTRICAL & ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT (WEEE)

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Original Instructions 12 9907X0059 Issue 3