Carboflam®

Surface coating with carbon

Carboflam®
The coating of surfaces with carbon is an
alternative to separating and insulating with
graphite suspensions, waxes, emulsions, etc.
The carbon is applied with an acetylene/oxy-
gen or acetylene/air flame. On being burnt,
the acetylene separates into carbon and
hydrogen and forms a thin layer of carbon on
the surrounding surface.
Carbon in the Carboflam® process
The coating of surfaces with carbon is often called
sooting. Many users, however, see soot as something
negative, associating it with smoking chimneys and the
black exhaust fumes of diesel vehicles. All-in-all un-
wanted and, from an ecological and health point of
view, dubious combustion products.
There is, however, another class of materials, namely
industrial soot or, more precisely, carbon black. It is
produced under exactly defined conditions and is gen-
erally physiologically safe. For this reason, therefore, we
only speak of carbon coating in connection with the
Carboflam® process, and not of sooting.
In the Carboflam® process pure acetylene is burnt
under defined and reproducible conditions in such a
way that 90 to 95 percent of the resultant carbon is
deposited on the surface being coated. As a result of
the short coating period (less than 0.1 second in glass
manufacture and less than one second in aluminium
extrusion moulding), the workplace concentration of
harmful substances is significantly lower than when
spraying and then burning oils or suspensions.
2
Structure and properties of acetylene
carbon coats
Acetylene carbon particles form a very fine, jet black
powder. They consist to 98 – 100 percent of pure car-
bon, contain virtually no volatile or extractable compo-
nents and are not soluble in water or wettable. The
coats produced with the Carboflam® process consist of
these almost globular particles, which are lined up one
behind the other in a chain. Each of these particles
consists of a large number of small crystals in a size
range of 2 – 3 nm. The crystals, in turn, consist of a
row of graphite layers mostly 3 – 5, which then form
the almost globular shape of the particles. The particles
are sized approx. 40 – 50 nm.
The coats themselves lie parallel to each other. Each
can contain 30 C6 rings. In contrast to graphite, the C6
rings are pushed against each other irregularly. The lat-
tice constants of the carbon crystals also differ signifi-
cantly from those for pure graphite. This could explain
why acetylene carbon does not have a lubricating
effect. Its inflammation temperature in air is approx.
600 °C. Chemicals have virtually no effect at all on it. Its
surface activity is low, i.e. it does not influence the
materials with which it comes into contact. The thermal
conductivity of acetylene carbon is 25 percent of the
value of a graphite suspension:
λc = 0.104 W/mK / λG = 0.422 W/mK at 100 °C, i.e.
the carbon has a very good insulating effect.
Burner principle
The carbon coat is applied using an outside mixing
burner, a so-called air shield burner. In this burner the
fuel gas stream (acetylene) is shielded by an oxygen or
air stream, the air shield (figure 1). This helps to sta-
bilise the flame and to accelerate the carbon particles
kinetically. It also prevents carbon from being let off into
the surroundings.
 Fields of application
Air or O2
Acetylene C2H2
Casting processes:
Acetylene/
• Chill casting
} for copper, lead,
Oxygen C2H2/O2
Acetylene C2H2
• Continuous casting aluminium, grey cast iron
Air or O2

Moulding processes:
• Extrusion moulding
• Compression moulding } for glass, aluminium

Annealing processes:
• Metal powder

Figure 1 Principle Carboflam® burner

0.04 500 l/h 1000 l/h

0.04
The gas is ignited by a permanently burning, neutral-
ly set acetylene/oxygen flame. This flame is simultane-
ously used for monitoring purposes.
∆m [ g ]
The burner is designed according to the require- 0.03 0.03

ments of the particular production method and the

mould size.

0.02
0.02
Gases
The ignition flame is a premixed flame of acetylene
and oxygen in a mixture of 1:1. It is therefore very
stable vis-à-vis vibrations or side air. 0.01
0.01

The coating flame is produced by igniting an acety-

lene/oxygen mixture. Comparisons with other fuel gas-
es containing carbon, e.g. ethylene or propane, have 0
0

shown that at least twice the carbon yield is attained

with acetylene (figure 2) from the same quantity of gas.
As a result of acetylene's large ignition range with oxy- C2H2 Acetylene
72 % CH4 Methane
22 % C2H2 Acetylene
gen (2.5 – 93 percent by volume acetylene in mixture), 6 % C3H8 Propane

the carbon quantity can be dosed well. When the para-

Figure 2 Carbon quantity related to gas quantity
meters of gas pressure and burner distance are kept
constant, the coat is reproducible. The coat thickness
depends on the gas quantity, the acetylene/oxygen
mixing ratio and the coating time.

3
Carboflam®

Processes mould for coating. The coating time is approx. 3/10 of

a second.

Moulding processes Commercial glass is usually manufactured in revolv-

ing machines in one step. Coating is carried out as in
Container ware and commercial glass container ware production in two phases.

This field groups the following products: Oxygen O2

Acetylene C2H2
Container ware
• Glass bottles
• Flacons
• Preserving jars
Flushing phase
Commercial glass
• Drinking glasses
• Bowls
• Vases Oxygen O2
Acetylene C2H2
Container ware is largely produced in so-called indi-
vidual section machines. These machines consist of
several individual sections, mostly six to 12 per
machine. One to four moulds per section can be filled Coating phase
with glass at the same time. The centre distance
between the moulds ranges between 4" and 6". The
glass is shaped in two steps:
Figure 3 Coating principle for hollow glass moulds
The so-called gob is manufactured in the blank
mould with compressed air or a press level. The final Burner design
shape is formed in the postform with compressed air.
Thus the terms blow-blow or press-blow. Thanks to a module system, the burners can be
adapted to the respective moulds. Burners come in the
The principle for the coating of moulds for glass form of one-nozzle burners with and without water
manufacture is shown in figure 3. It is always done in cooling (figure 4), which are mainly used in revolving
the blank mould. machines for the production of commercial glass, as
well as two and three-nozzle burners, which are primar-
Carbon coating is carried out in the closed mould in ily used in individual section machines. These burners
two phases. can be designed for various mould centre distances
(4" – 6") (figure 5).
The first is the so-called flushing phase, in which the
air cushion in the mould is expelled or diluted with oxy- The gas supply for acetylene and oxygen is con-
gen to create an inflammable atmosphere. In the sec- trolled with solenoid valves. The gas quantities are reg-
ond phase acetylene is added and ignited, thereby pro- ulated with regulating valves and corresponding pres-
ducing the carbon coat. Coating is carried out in vari- sure. The gas supply is shown in figure 6.
ous cycle intervals, depending on the product. The
burner must be positioned in the centre above the

4
 Double extraction point

O2

Oxygen
Burner, one-nozzle

Outlet station
flashback arrester

C2H2
To burner
Acetylene

Burner, one-nozzle
with water cooling
Figure 6 Supply principle Carboflam®

Figure 4 Design principle of a Carboflam® burner, one-nozzle

Flat glass and industrial glass

This includes the following products:

Flat glass:
• Automobile glass
• Glass bricks
Two-nozzle burner • Wire-reinforced glass

Industrial glass:
• Borosilicate glass
• Ampoules
• Tubes

Carbon coating in flat glass production is carried out

Three-nozzle burner with special burners. In the production of automobile
Figure 5 Design principle of Carboflam® burners,
glass, for example, point-like coating is required. The
two and three-nozzle principle of application remains the same.

Borosilicate glass is also coated with a special burn-

On request a pneumatic module with controller can er, a so-called flat burner without nozzles.
be delivered to position the burner above the mould.
This module is also suitable for individual section
machines.

5
Carboflam®

Aluminium extrusion moulding Continuous casting of copper

Figure 7 shows coating in extrusion moulding. The
aluminium billet is pressed through a die to form a fin-
ished aluminium section. The carbon coat prevents the
pressure ram and billet from sticking together. The
burner is operated with acetylene and air.
Coating burner Aluminium billet
In the production of copper blooms (figure 9) the
casting wheels are coated to prevent the molten cop-
per from sticking to the copper casting wheel.
The casting wheel has a trapezoidal shape, which is
restricted on the long side by a steel band. The casting
wheel itself is made of copper. The casting wheel and
Finished steel band are coated permanently.
aluminium
profile

Molten copper
Coating
burner
Copper
bloom
Die
Pressure ram
Carbon coat

Figure 7 Billet coating in aluminium extrusion moulding

Casting Steel band
wheel

Casting processes

Grey cast iron

Figure 9 Coating of casting wheels in the production
of copper blooms
Figure 8 shows coating of chills for small castings in
a revolving machine. The carbon forms a separating
layer between casting and chill. The burner is operated Annealing processes
with acetylene/air.
Metal powder annealing

In the production of sintered metal parts, metal pow-

der is sprayed with water and then annealed in a re-
ducing atmosphere. For this the powder is poured
쐇 Casting about 5 cm thick on plates sized 0.6 x 1.0 m
Acetylene burner
(figure 10).

Coating with carbon makes it easier to separate the

powder cake from the plate after annealing. No sepa-
쐃 Coating 쐋 Ejection rating agent residues are left in the powder. The plates
of the casting
also require virtually no cleaning.
Chill rotation

Figure 8 Coating of chills

6
aa
Advantages
Metal
powder
aaa
Increase in product quality through
Annealing furnace

Coating
burner

Figure 10 Coating of plates in metal powder annealing

Reduction in workplace concentrations of harmful sub-

stances through
• specific and optimally dosed application of the car-
bon coat
• short coating times
• falling away of special cleaning processes for
moulds

• good insulation properties of the carbon coat, thus

reduction in the formation of cold waves in glass
manufacture

Reduction in the number of rejects through

• complete and residue-free separation

Increase in mould lifetime through

• falling away of mechanical stressing through manual
application and cleaning processes
N2 / H2

Flexible adaptation to automatic production cycles

through
• short coating times
• easy control
• modular hardware

Summary
Carboflam® is a versatile process that can be used
in many applications. Thanks to the good separating
and insulating effect of the carbon, the different require-
ments of users can be met. The reduction in workplace
concentrations of vapours and mists, which arise when
using oils and emulsions, is of special interest. The
dirtying of revolving and individual section machines is
a special problem in the glass industry. Carboflam® is
also used primarily to improve the quality of the glass.
In the metal-processing industry the focus lies more on
the good separating effect and chemical neutrality of
the carbon vis-à-vis the product and mould.

Thanks to the module system for the construction of

the burners, individual adaptation to revolving and indi-
vidual section machines is possible.

7
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