Thermal Deburring

The process of deburring using heat is called thermal deburring yet another option when it comes to deburring equipment available. The material being finished is placed into a chamber and the oxygen and fuel in the chamber is ignited which deburrs or deflashes the material within. This deburring system is one of the gentlest methods around. The defects in the object are removed with no damage to the product at all. Tumbling machines can occasionally leave burrs behind or if you are working with extremely delicate parts can leave scratches or defects behind.


This method of deburring is used with most, but not all, metals. It does not take much time for this process to be completed and it is safe for the metal to be oxidized in this way.


One of the best reasons to use heat deburring is that all parts of the material being worked on is finished at one time. The heat is not only on the surface but gets to all the small and difficult to reach areas. As technology advances and parts become smaller and more intricate in order to achieve the smoothest product thermal deburring is often the best way to go.


When the oxygen and other flammable gases fill the chamber they are then ignited which sets off a wave of heat which will clean most metal objects of burrs because they are normally very small and thin they are oxidized before the object on which they are on is damaged. The temperature of the item that is going through the process goes up some but very little in comparison to the temperature of the thermal chamber.


The temperature of the chamber gets upwards to 7000 degrees and in 30 to 35 seconds the part is finished and burr-free.


There are many other methods available, such as tumble or vibratory deburring, but few if any of these can actually get into the tight internal spaces that are sometimes required. Other systems work great if you are dealing with a lot of flat surfaces but they can leave burrs in slots and cuts of the part being worked on.


A nice little acidic cleaning and your part will then be ready to go.


Thermal deburring has an expensive start up cost if you are interested in having an in house system but the improvement in quality and the speed at which parts can be completed will help to recover those costs. If the volume done does not lead to purchasing the equipment there are many shops that do finishing and they can be located easily.