Continuous Conveyor Sand Core Drying Oven for a Turkish Foundry Line
A Turkish foundry required a continuous sand core drying system with stable residence time, controlled multi-zone heating and reliable conveyor handling. ZonHoo engineered a dual-belt conveyor oven around the customer’s actual core size, production rate and drying process.
Project Introduction
A customer in Turkey was planning a continuous drying system for sand cores used in foundry production. The required equipment needed to support stable core handling, controlled drying conditions and repeatable throughput. For the broader process context, see our sand core and mold drying solutions and foundry conveyor oven applications.
The project required two conveyor belts, independently controlled heating sections and a downstream cooling section. Based on these requirements, ZonHoo developed an industrial conveyor oven system configured around the customer’s product dimensions, production rhythm and drying requirements.
- Location: Turkey
- Industry: Foundry production
- Application: Sand core drying
- Oven Type: Disk-shaped sand cores and similar products
- Loading Design: Continuous conveyor tunnel drying oven
- Chamber Feature: Three-shift continuous operation
Main Challenge: The project required a long continuous drying chamber with two independently controlled conveyor belts, stable 160°C working temperature, fast heat-up performance, natural gas heating, recipe control, and enough engineering data for layout, capacity, gas consumption, electrical requirements, delivery time, and FOB quotation review.
Customer Technical Requirements
The customer clearly requested a continuous tunnel oven industrial conveyor oven instead of a batch-type oven.The main requirements were based on sand core and mold drying,controlled conveying speed, multi-zone heating, and a cooling section after the drying process.
| Drying Product | Sand cores, including disk-shaped sand cores and similar foundry products. |
|---|---|
| Production Mode | Three-shift continuous production operation. |
| Conveyor System | 2 conveyor belts, each with 700 mm belt width and independent variable frequency control. |
| Loading Height | Maximum loading height: 500 mm. |
| Belt Speed | Adjustable speed range: 0–2 m/min. |
| Heating Layout | 4 heating zones with an approximate total drying length of 20 meters. |
| Cooling Section | Additional cooling section of approximately 4 meters after heating. |
| Heating System | Natural gas burner heating with circulating hot air system. |
| Temperature Requirement | Working temperature: 160°C. Maximum temperature: 200°C. |
| Heat-Up Requirement | From ambient temperature to 160°C within approximately 15–20 minutes. |
| Control System | PLC control, touch screen HMI, recipe management for temperature, time, and residence time. |
| Recipe Storage | At least 10 sets of process recipes. |
ZonHoo Solution Direction
ZonHoo reviewed the project as a continuous thermal drying system rather than a standard catalog oven. Because the sand cores required stable support, repeatable movement and independently controlled thermal sections, the conveyor and oven structure were engineered together around the production process.
The system would combine drying length, belt speed, temperature setting, and product loading height into one production-oriented design. PLC and touch screen operation would allow operators to manage drying temperature, conveyor speed, residence time, alarms, and process recipes more conveniently during continuous foundry operation.For heavier cores, pallets or fixtures, a heavy-duty chain conveyor oven can also be considered, while more complex layouts and line interfaces may require custom conveyor oven engineering.
Loading
Sand cores enter through dual conveyor belts.
Zone 1
Initial heating and moisture removal.
Zone 2–4
Controlled hot-air drying across the tunnel.
Cooling
Approx. 4 m cooling section after drying.
Discharge
Dried sand cores leave for next process.
Design Focus
Dual-belt conveying, 4-zone heating, gas-fired hot-air circulation, 20 m drying length, 4 m cooling section, and stable operation for three-shift foundry production.
Control Focus
PLC + HMI control, independent VFD for each belt, recipe storage, temperature control, residence time adjustment, and production-friendly alarm management.
- Continuous tunnel drying oven layout for sand core production
- Independent variable frequency control for each belt
- 4 heating zones with approx. 20 m drying length
- Natural gas burner heating with circulating hot air
- Two conveyor belts with 700 mm width per belt
- Adjustable belt speed from 0–2 m/min
- Additional approx. 4 m cooling section
- PLC and touch screen interface for recipe control
Engineering Response Scope
For this type of project, the final technical proposal needs to be confirmed through engineering calculation and layout review. In addition to the oven structure, the customer requested key information for project comparison, including overall dimensions, heating zone quantity, gas consumption, electrical configuration, capacity explanation, delivery time, and FOB price.
ZonHoo’s engineering response would focus on converting the customer’s production requirements into a clear tunnel dryer specification. The final gas consumption, electrical load, capacity, and layout details should be calculated based on product weight, moisture content, loading density, ambient conditions, insulation design, and required residence time.Final engineering drawings, electrical documentation, shipment planning and modular delivery and commissioning support are confirmed during the project execution stage.
| Technical Proposal & Drawings | Preliminary equipment layout, tunnel structure, conveyor arrangement, heating zones, cooling section, and overall process flow. |
|---|---|
| Overall Dimensions | To be defined according to 20 m drying length, 4 m cooling section, conveyor layout, burner position, maintenance clearance, and site conditions. |
| Heating Zone Quantity | 4 heating zones as requested by the customer. |
| Natural Gas Consumption | To be calculated after confirming product load, moisture removal requirement, heat loss, operating schedule, and burner efficiency. |
| Electrical Requirements | PLC, HMI, conveyor drives, circulation fans, cooling fans, burner control system, safety devices, and auxiliary control power. |
| Capacity Explanation | To be calculated from belt width, belt speed, loading height, product spacing, drying residence time, and three-shift operation pattern. |
| Similar Project Reference | Related continuous drying oven and conveyor oven experience can be used as reference where applicable. |
| Delivery Time & FOB Price | To be confirmed after final technical scope, burner configuration, control brand, fabrication drawings, and export packaging requirements. |
Project Value
This project shows a typical foundry drying requirement where batch drying is not enough for the customer’s production rhythm. A continuous conveyor tunnel dryer can support more stable workflow, reduce manual batch handling, and make drying time easier to control through belt speed and zone temperature settings.
The value of the solution is not only the heating chamber itself, but the coordinated conveyor speed, gas-fired hot-air circulation, multi-zone temperature control, cooling stage and PLC logic. The complete system was developed through ZonHoo’s custom industrial oven manufacturing and engineering process.
Continuous Output
Sand cores enter through dual conveyor belts.
Controlled Drying
Initial heating and moisture removal.
Gas-Fired Efficiency
Controlled hot-air drying across the tunnel.
Project Images
