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Cover Story
Rough forged tubesheet . Heat exchanger tubesheet in Alloy 625 , dimensions OD 1.680 × 170mm thick .
Nuclear fusion Another rising technology for which Kind has received project orders is nuclear fusion . “ This is a completely new field of business which will be coming up in the next years ,” says Markus . “ We are currently working very closely with two companies on this technology , one based in the US , the other in the UK . Kind is producing large stainless steel forgings which will be used in magnets for these projects .” “ The aim is to produce energy via nuclear fusion ,” he explains . “ Those we are working with are very optimistic about getting this technology running within the next 10 years - and of course , those plants will need heat exchangers later on .” Markus also tells us of the ITER project in southern France which he refers to as a “ Masterpiece of engineering ”. A collaboration of 35 countries , ITER aims to build the world ’ s largest tokamak reactor , a magnetic fusion device designed to prove the feasibility of fusion as a large-scale and carbon-free source of energy ( iter . org ).
“ We have been supplying materials for this project for many years already ,” says Markus . “ We have carried out extensive investigations of how our products fare in incredibly low temperature applications . All materials we supply to this project are being used with liquid helium at 4K ( minus 296 degrees Celsius ), the lowest temperature on earth . So , we have to produce forgings that withstand those conditions and still possess the required mechanical properties . It also requires us to carry out testing at the same ultra-low temperature , but this is now very common to us .” What is clear about Rolf Kind is its confidence in its ability to provide the best possible service and products for its customers , regardless of the scale and impact of the final application . With a passion for performing where others cannot , the company has carved a path for itself far from the beaten track , excelling in the exceptional .
Solid tubesheet in Alloy 800H , dimensions 3210 × 255mm thick .
www . heat-exchanger-world . com Heat Exchanger World October 2022
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