Small Straight UV Paint Spaying and Curing Oven for Plastic Items

 

A small UV paint spraying tunnel oven is a compact, continuous baking device specifically designed for rapid curing (drying) of UV coatings or inks. It is particularly suitable for small- to medium-volume production, R&D proofing, and curing small workpieces after spraying.

Functions
* Rapid Curing: UV light of a specific wavelength is used to illuminate workpieces coated with UV-curable coatings, triggering a chemical reaction in the coating's photoinitiator, instantly curing the coating from a liquid state to a solid film within seconds to tens of seconds.
* Continuous Production: Workpieces are continuously fed into, passed through, and returned to the UV irradiation zone via a conveyor belt (mesh belt, chain, roller, etc.), enabling streamlined production and improving efficiency.
* Compact Design: Compared to large industrial tunnel ovens, its overall dimensions (length, width, height), internal irradiation area, and conveyor belt are all smaller, resulting in a smaller footprint and relatively low energy consumption. It is suitable for applications with limited space or low production requirements.

Main Components
Conveyor System:
Type: Mesh belt.
Drive: Variable frequency motor with variable speed control for precise control of conveyor speed (a key parameter for curing time). Material: Typically stainless steel mesh belt or high-temperature-resistant chain/roller, UV-resistant.
UV Light Source System (Core):

Lamp Type:
Medium-pressure mercury lamp: The most commonly used, relatively low-cost, broad spectral range (including UVA, UVB, UVC, visible light, and infrared), high curing efficiency, but also generates a lot of heat.

Number and Power of Lamps: Small furnaces are typically equipped with 1-4 lamps (or correspondingly rated LED modules), with power ranging from 2kW to 10+kW, depending on curing requirements and workpiece size.

Reflector: 
A high-efficiency aluminum reflector (such as anodized aluminum) focuses UV light onto the workpiece surface, improving energy efficiency.

Cooling System:
Air Cooling: A fan forces the lamps and reflector to cool, preventing overheating.

Structure of the oven:
Casing: Typically made of cold-rolled steel with a plastic-sprayed finish for an aesthetically pleasing and rust-resistant appearance.
Inner Chamber/Irradiation Chamber: Made of UV-resistant stainless steel or specially coated steel, this ensures effective and concentrated UV light on the workpiece. Inlet and outlet: Blackout curtains (usually made of PVC or silicone) are installed to prevent UV radiation from leaking out and harming operators and the environment, while also reducing heat loss.

Ventilation System:
Exhaust: Forced exhaust removes ozone (O3) produced by the UV lamp (which is harmful to the lamp and human body), as well as small amounts of volatile substances and heat that may be generated during the curing process. Small ovens are typically equipped with a small centrifugal fan.
Cooling (Optional): Some designs include a cooling air device at the outlet to accelerate workpiece cooling for the next process or removal.

Electrical Control System:
Core: PLC or microcomputer controller.

Functions:
Conveyor speed control (inverter control).
Temperature monitoring.

Operation status indication (operating, fault, lamp status).
Basic protection functions (overcurrent, overheating, conveyor jam, etc.).

Features of Small UV Paint Spraying Tunnel Oven:
* Compact and Efficient: Small footprint, allowing for quick integration into small spray lines. Energy-saving and environmentally friendly (especially LED): Compared to large-scale ovens and traditional thermal curing ovens, energy consumption is significantly reduced (especially with LED light sources). LEDs produce no ozone.
* Fast curing: Significantly shortens production cycles and improves efficiency.
* Improves quality: UV-cured coatings typically exhibit excellent hardness, abrasion resistance, chemical resistance, and gloss.
* Relatively simple operation: A moderate degree of automation makes operation and maintenance easy.
* Moderate initial investment: Significantly cheaper than large industrial ovens, suitable for small and medium-sized enterprises or startups.
* Flexibility: Parameters (speed, lamp power) can be easily adjusted to suit different coatings and workpieces.

Typical applications:
UV spray curing of small wooden furniture (chairs, small tables, handicrafts).
UV spray coating or printing of plastic parts (electronic product housings, toys, and daily necessities).
UV coating of small metal parts (hardware accessories and accessories).
Musical instruments (guitars and violin parts).
Curing solder mask or character inks on PCBs (requiring specific wavelengths).
UV curing of decorative coatings on materials such as glass and ceramics.
Prototyping and small-batch trial production in the R&D laboratory.