e-Ion Plasma - Thermal Plasma

MHI's unique e-Ion Plasma™ features novel technology that allows it to replace existing processes while simultaneously improving efficiency and productivity. Immerse in CleanElectricFlame™ for non line-of-sight processing or bend-heat requirements. Compare with Laser.

e-Ion Plasma™ Uses
Rapid Degreasing and Stripping	Rapid Deburring and Smoothing from Metals to Plastics. Smooth Finishing.
Nickel or Cobalt Alloy Brazing and Hardfacing (call for details)	Surface treatment without grounding object. Connect to gas and electric.
Plastic Surface Functional Manipulation (please download ideation brochure). Plasma Ideation Brochure.	Heat Treatment for hardening and other processes. Please click on comparison tabs above.
Ion Nitriding	Nitriding
Electron beam replacement	Plasma Nitriding
Electron Beam Furnace	Smoothing and conditioning.
Compare to electron beam or laser welding	Cleaning extruded plastics. Avoid toxic chemicals. Unique power adjustments possible. Plasma Ideation Brochure.
Compare to electron or laser beam Melting	Induction Heat Treating
Improving surface adhesion. Cause functionalization.	Compare to Induction Heat Treating
EB Welding support Extremely Wide Area Plasma (with LIP)	Compare to Induction Melting. Please download aluminum processing brochure, Download Plasma Applications for Aluminum Supplement.
Laser Welding support	Surface Cleaning
Enable Plastic Welding	Enable Seam Welding. Dissimilar Materials.
Thin Film Deposition	Carburization
Thermal Diffusion	Carbonnitriding
Rapid Annealing	Rapid Thermal Processing
Output Shaft Hardening	Horizontal Drive Bar Hardening
Shock Absorber Stem Hardening	Axle Shaft Hardening
Constant Velocity Joint Hardening	Hardening of power take-off.
Cardan Shaft Hardening	Bolt Head Hardening
Heating of titanium and/or stainless steel wires and subsequent warm heading on multistage header.	Hard Metal Tool Brazing
Resistance Brazing	Gauge Brazing
On-line tempering of mechanical parts.	Shrink Fitting
Hardening and tempering of chains.	Section hardening of tools for agriculture.
Drive Shaft Hardening	Stub Shaft Hardening
Power Transmission Shaft Hardening	High Wear Application Hardening
Automotive Axle Shaft Hardening	Internal & External Tube Brazing
Honeycomb brazing	Metal/Non-metal welding
Oil & Gas Wear Resistance Treating	Rapid Tool Bit Manufacturing (WC-Cobalt)
Manufacturing Shiny Parts without Reducing Gas. Copper Brazing.	Low to mid-carbon steel heat-treatment (4140 grade)
Bio Implants of Plastics, Cobalt alloys or Titanium alloys for various types of surface enhancements from antimicrobial to best fusion with base metal.	Decontamination

Comparisons with directed energy systems (Laser to Sunlight)

	e-Ion Plasma™	Laser	Electron Beam	Microwave	Induction	Sunlight
Surface Impact	Beam up to 150mm, large impact, improves productivity. Large area allows for CleanElectricFlame soaking at various power settings.	Commonly available average beam size is less than 2mm	Commonly less than 0.5mm beam	Poor	Depth varies with frequency of machine.	Varies
Welding/Joining	Yes, even for dissimilar materials	Yes, limited by beam parameters	Yes, limited by beam parameters	Very rare possibilities	No for non-metals or poor electrical conductors like ceramics or plastics Yes when metallic. Coils need to couple and sometimes be formed into complex shapes.	N/A
Drilling	N/A	Yes	Yes	No
Vacuum Always Required?	No. Plasmize Air to cut down on cost of input gas.	No	Yes	No Cannot be used with metal.
Power Density	10⁶-10⁹ W/m²	10⁶-10⁸ W/m²for commonly used industrial CO2 continuous lasers. Depends on laser type.	~10⁶ W/m² Depends on acceleration voltage and wavelength of beam	Commonly about 1 to 2 kW for entire chamber. Power density is low for surface. Bulk volume dominates as major term for power density.	Efficiency depends on Coil spacing, frequency and type of materials keep in coil.	1.3x10³ W/m^{2 (average)}
Water Requirement	None. High Energy Efficiency.	High	High	No	Extremely high	N/A
Energy Efficiency	Very high	Very low	Very low	Variable	Very Low	N/A

e-Ion Plasma™ use compared to Combustion

e-Ion Plasma Clean ElectricFlame

CleanElectricFlame™. Nitrogen e-Ion Plasma™ Plume (possible species include N2, N2+ , N+, N, e-). Discharge is into room air conditions.

Issue	Combustion Flame (Conventional Plume)	MHI Advanced LIP System GEN 3 (CleanElectricFlame™ Plume)
Emissions, Health & Environment	Likely to produce CO2, SO2 and soot Uses combustion gas inputs of fuel and air, commonly requiring plumbing Typical 20,000 BTU/hr burners produce about 22 moles of greenhouse gasses per hour Fossil fuel powered combustion often leads to toxic byproducts such as Carbon Monoxide Surfaces impacted by flame may be contaminated with small size soot-like particles	CleanElectricFlame™ technology produces no CO2, SO2 or soot as a byproduct No toxic emissions. Air is typical input. Electricity powered, no plumbing or piping needed No venting required Uses only air input, no other gasses No greenhouse gasses Air to Air. It's like changing your combustion flame to an electric flame Highly efficient, saving on energy costs Non-toxic No residues left because of process Improves productivity May improve shelf life and quality of products
Process Impact	Narrow area impact when requiring intense flame, non-uniform heat application Uniformity requirements may require multiple burners	User configurable width of plume Higher efficiency Requires less monitoring, saving on labor costs
Explosion Hazards	Highly combustible, volatile Incomplete combustion may be a down-stream fire hazard	No combustible gasses used as inputs LIP systems offer integrated over-temperature controls
Energy Efficiency	Flames are energy inefficient, with only around 10% of their energy able to be utilized for heat as quantized radiation may dissipate heat	Over 90% energy efficient Realized energy savings may approach 80%. (A 30kW combustible flame may be replaced by a 6kW plasma plume)
Control	Lack of precise control Frequent quality control issues	Precise Available built-in safety controls including an over-temperature shut-off
Noise	Noisy combustion process	Silent
Odor	Noxious odor is often noted from combustion byproducts	Odorless Clean Process
Cost of Operations	Consumes expensive reactant gasses Frequent downtime leads to lost revenues and costs of repair Higher insurance and other costs because of emissions and other flame hazards	Uses air and electricity No reliance on supply of combustibles Less downtime, less lost revenues, less cost of repairs Possibility of lower insurance premiums from improved safety

Comparison of Surface Deposition Techniques

	e-Ion Plasma™	Laser	Electron Beam
Deposit Rate	Very high, continuous	Medium	Medium, discontinuous
Species Deposited	Atoms and Ions	Atoms and Ions	Mostly Atoms
Complex Shaped Objects	Good/Excellent, varying uniformity	Good	Poor, based on line of sight
Alloy Depositing	Yes	Yes	Yes
Simultaneous Gas Heating	Yes	No	No
Substrate Heating	Yes	Low	Yes

e-Ion Plasma™ Source Models
Model #	Voltage	kW
FPA220MP-3	208/220/230/240	3
FPA220MP-6.5	208/220/230/240	6.5
e-Ion Zapper™ Furnace
FPA220MP-9.0-EIZ	208/220/230/240	9-15
FPA220MP-C - Custom Brazing, Hardening and Heat-treating Applications	208/220/230/240	9-30 kW
GEN 3 LIP Systems
LIP-G3-6.5	208/220/230/240	6.5

Zapper and Magnifiers are optimized for metals and ceramic. e-Ion LIP system or OAB are suggested for polymer 3D sintering.

e-Ion systems allow for continuous sintering (3Dsintering™) or hardfacing without the use of hydrogen. All ionic gasses are of a reducing kind.

Plasma polymerization of many unique polymers and blends and their surface deposits remain unexplored with this new method.

e-Ion Plasma™ - Thermal Plasma Generator

About e-Ion Devices

Learn More About e-Ion Plasma™ Technology

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