Wire lubrication system for frictionless drawing

Wire rod lubrication by PDH system

The system revolutionises the wire drawing process, benefiting from unique PDH multi-function technology, enabling an automatic control of lubrication crucial parameters (pressure/temperature/viscosity), including lubricant injection speed and lubricant thermal stability. In operation, all these parameters communicate together in a sensitive and automatic multi-way interaction, performing: (a) a high-density strongly adherent anti-wear multi-layer coat for high carbon wire (0.88–0.90%C), deposited in 5–10 microseconds, and (b) a nano-layer coat for plating wire.

The critical aspects of lubrication are presently greatly simplified and some virtually eliminated, such as friction and wear. Instantaneous wire rod dry coating, operating with no speed limit, at zero energy consumption (self-generated by the PDH unit), enables automatic control of liquefied lubricant thermal stability, a vital parameter that prevents metal-to-metal contact at the wire-die interface and permits the highest frictionless drawing speed with a unique wear performance of about 0.1–0.3 micron per ton of wire drawn in the last draft, and 200 tons per die in the first draft.

Spring wire is drawn from mechanically descaled bare rod, without pre-coating chemicals, at 18m/s (3,600ft/min); 5.5mm 0.72%C rod drawn to 2.35mm at 16m/s (3,200ft/min); 10.5mm 0.88%C rod drawn to 4.22mm at 9m/s (1,800ft/min).

In the LVC version, used in the first draft, the PDH system eliminates conventional wire rod wet preparation, including phosphate and borax pre-coating chemicals. The result is lower cost, improved wire quality and environmental benefits. The PDH unit is compact, and easy to install and use.

PUBLISHED: 22 Jun 10