Super-thin basalt fiber

Article Index
Super-thin basalt fiber
Super-thin basalt fiber. Technologies and equipment
Equipment for production of heat-insulating materials
All Pages

Super-thin basalt fiber – Materials. Staple-thin basalt fiber - Heat-insulating materials. Properties and benefits.

Super-thin and thin basalt fibres and materials

Базальтовое супертонкое волокноSuper-thin basalt fiber (STBF) is a layer of staple fibers of 1 - 3 microns in diameter, tangled and bound with each other taking the form of a felt. This is high quality basalt wool felt.
Staple-thin basal fiber (TBF) is layer of staple fibers of 4 - 9 microns in diameter, and 10 – 80 mm in length.

On the basis of STBF and TBF felts heat- and sound-insulating materials (mats, needled mats, cardboard, soft and rigid plates) are manufacturing.

Properties	Measurement unit	STBF felt	TBF felt
Fiber diameter	μm	1 - 3	4 - 9
Fiber length	mm	10 - 50	10 - 80
Density	kg/m3	18 - 25	26 - 36
Thermal conductivity, at 300°К	W m°С	0,035–0,036	0,037 - 0,041
Application temperature	°С	–200… +600	–200… +600

Advantages of super-thin and thin basalt fibers

1. Basalt fiber is made exclusively from basalts without admixtures of other minerals.
2. They have good thermal-insulating properties.
3. Material is noncombustible, has a high heat resistance. Continuous temperature is up to + 600 °C. Temperature of Low single (short-term) application – up to 1000 °C.
4. They have a high chemical resistance and long operation life.
5. High sound-insulating properties and vibration resistance.

Sound-insulating characteristics and vibration resistance

Material density – ρ =15 kg/m3; Material thickness – 30 mm. Gap between the material and insulated wall is 0.0 mm.
Frequency range, Hz	100 - 300	400 - 900	1200 - 7000
Normal sound absorption coefficient	0.05 – 0.15	0.22 – 0.75	0.85 – 0.93
Material density – ρ =15 kg/m 3; Material thickness – 30 mm. Gap between the material and insulated wall is 100 mm.
Frequency range, Hz	100 - 200	300 - 900	1200 - 7000
Normal sound absorption coefficient	0.15	0.86 – 0.99	0.74 – 0.99

6. STBF materials are made without using the binding agent or inorganic binders.
7. STBF materials does not release toxic substances due to heating or exposing to an open flame.
8. Low hygroscopicity; it is in 8 times lower than that of glass fibers.
9. High operation life even in humid environments.

Staple-thin basalt fibers rank below in quality of super-thin basalt fibers. Their main advantage is low production costs, 3-4 times lower than the cost of STBF production.

Production cost of staple-thin basalt fibers using gas-melting furnaces is quite low compared to other types of furnaces.

Production of materials, such as soft, rigid plates, and cardboard; are performed according to NS-1B binder spraying technique that determines the low moisture of the mat. Therefore, the energy consumption for drying the plates and cardboard is minimal.

The proposed technologies and equipment are determined low production costs of staple-thin basalt fiber, and materials based on such fiber.

Super-thin basalt fiber. Materials

Super-thin basalt fiberSTBF felt
Felts are a layer of tangled super-thin staple fibers bound by force of natural cohesion.
They are intended to manufacture heat- and sound-insulating materials with very high quality for industry and construction.

Needled MBPa and MTPB mats
The mats are made on the base of super-thin basalt fiber enclosed in fiberglass fabric (MTPB) or not enclosed (MBPa) and needled with fiberglass roving or basalt roving.

Application. MBPa and MTPB mats are used as heat insulation in high and low temperatures for pipelines of industrial equipment, shipbuilding and for other means of transportation as well as in construction works for insulation of walls, partitions, floor structures.

Heat- and sound-insulating mats TM-19-20, ATM-10C-20, ATM-10K-20
The mats are made on the basis of ultra - and super-thin fiber on both sides encapsulated in fibreglass or silica fabric and needled with fibreglass or silica yarn.

Sound-absorbing mats BZM
Mats are made on the basis of STBF with acoustic transparent shell made from fiberglass.
Application. Mats are used as sound-absorbing filler in noise-insulating structures of the equipment (aircraft and marine engines) and other devices.

Felt woolen board TK-1, TK-4
The board is made of STBF felts based on the inorganic binder.
Application. The board is used for heat insulation of industrial equipment, household appliances (gas and electric stoves, ovens). It is an effective, environmentally safe substitute of asbestos board.

Heat-insulating plates PMTB
Plates are made of basalt super-thin fiber based on the inorganic binder.
Application. The plates are used for heat, sound insulation of ships, and industrial equipment within the range – 260°C – +700°C, and withstand long-term heat and flame load up to 1100°C.

Staple thin basalt fiber. Heat-insulating materials. Heat-insulating plates

TBF felts TBF plates based on NS 1 inorganic binder Board. Suspended ceilings. TBF plates

Staple thin fiber felt.  Needled felts.  

Soft plates PTMB NS 50 – 70.
Rigid plates PTB NS 100 – 140. Board Tk-10 NS, Tk – 12NS, Tk-15NS.

Specification of materials based on staple basalt fibers

Specification	Measurement unit	Size
Elementary fiber diameter	μm	4 - 8
Fiber length, min.	mm	30 - 90
Volume density	kg/m3	26 - 36
Thermal conductivity (at 25°С)	W m°С	0,037 - 0,041

Soft plate PTMB NS 50 – 70

Specification	Measurement unit	Size
Volume density	kg/m3	45 - 70
Compressive strength at 10% of deformation	MPa	0.0042
Thermal conductivity:      at 25°С                                       at 125°С                                       at 300°С	W m°С	0,041 - 0,055 0.07 – 0.076 0.8 – 0.09
Long-term application temperature, up to	°С	600
Plate size	mm	500 х 1000
Plate thickness	mm	40 - 60

Rigid plate PTB NS 100 – 140

Specification	Measurement unit	Size
Volume density	kg/m3	100 - 140
Compressive strength at 10% of deformation	MPa	0.012
Thermal conductivity:      at 25°С                                       at 125°С                                       at 300°С	W m°С	0,044 - 0,054 0.07 – 0.076 0.8 – 0.09
Long-term application temperature, up to	°С	600
Plate size	mm	500 х 1000
Plate thickness	mm	40 - 60

Board Tk-10 NS, Tk – 12NS, Tk-15NS

Specification	Measurement unit	Size
Volume density	кг/м3	150 - 160
Compressive strength at 10% of deformation	МПа	0.025
Thermal conductivity:      at 25°С                                       at 125°С                                       at 300°С	Вт м°С	0.045 - 0.054 0.07 0.09
Long-term application temperature, up to	°С	700
Plate size	мм	500 х 1000
Plate thickness	мм	40 - 60

Materials based on basalt fibers and inorganic binders NS-1B are noncombustible in heating and exposing to an open flame, and do not release harmful substances, and smoke.

Thin and super-thin basalt fiber. Scope of application

Scope of application of heat-insulating materials made of staple thin basalt fibers.

Due to the low production costs, the staple thin basalt fiber materials are widely used.
Industrial civil engineering – insulation of walls, ceilings, roofs, facade heat insulation of buildings.
Fire protection systems buildings, metal constructions.
Insulation of steam lines and heating mains.
Industrial insulation - furnaces and thermal equipment.

Application of super-thin basalt fiber and STBF materials

Power engineering – nuclear, thermal power plants, turbines, heating plants, steam boilers, heating mains; heat and sound insulation of thermal equipment.

Fireproof materials for fire protection systems: firewalls, protection of critical metal structures, fire doors, passages, etc.

Manufacture of ceramics, porcelain, building materials – insulation of furnaces and equipment in manufacturing the ceramic and porcelain products (dishes, vases, sanitary products, etc.), furnaces for brick manufacture, ceramic tiles.

Machine-building – insulation of thermal equipment, heating and hardening furnaces, heating mains.

Aircraft industry – heat- and sound-insulating mats, enclosed in waterproof fabric for heat and sound isolation of engine and fuselage. STBF is used for "Soyuz" spaceship. The high quality of materials has been proven. 

Shipbuilding – heat-insulating panels based on the inorganic binder for heat and sound insulation of ship plants, equipment, ship hulls, bulkheads.

Cryogenic machinery and equipment – insulating material in production of liquefied gases, liquid oxygen, etc.

Metallurgy – materials for insulation of different kinds of process furnaces and thermal equipment, regenerators, recuperators, pipelines, and communications.

Chemical and petrochemical industry – insulation of thermal equipment, heating furnaces, drying chambers, steam boilers, steam pipelines, heating mains; nonflammable, fire-resistant materials for fire protection of the equipment and facilities.

Production of constructional materials and structures – heat insulated panels for prefabricated buildings and structures, floorings; suspended ceilings, fire walls, fire doors, constructional plastics.
Filters. STBF is widely used for manufacture of filtering materials and products, fine filters for air and liquids, high-temperature filters.
STBF made at 1400 - 1500°С is an excellent material for hydroponics in cultivating the bacterial cultures, seedlings of plants, etc.

Household appliances - heat insulation of gas and electric stoves, gas and electric ovens.

More information see
Technology and equipment for production of super thin fiber
Processing equipment for manufacturing of heat-insulating plates

Super-thin basalt fiber. Technologies and equipment

In brief, conventional technology of STBF production consists of the following processes:

• Loading crushed basalt rock in the furnace;
• Basalt melting and melt homogenization in the furnace;
• Production of basalt melt from furnace feeder through a bushing assembly in the form of continuous primary fibers ( filament);
• Blowing of primary fibers with burner into staple super-thin fibers;
• STBF felt formation at the corresponding conveyor.

STBF production installation Melting furnace of the STBF installation

Pulling of the primary fibers from bushing assembly of the STBF installation Fiber blowing chamber of the STBF installation

Forming chamber STBF fiber felt at the receiving conveyor

STBF production technology - by extracting the primary fibers and blowing them with high-temperature gas flow. For a long time, STBF installations work at many plants. Structure of conventional STBF plants is developed more than 30 years ago and during that time, it has not been changed.

The Company experts developed a new generation of STBF plants with enhanced performance, and low power consumption.

 

Company’s offer - a new generation of STBF plants

Supply, installation, and commissioning of the equipment for production of STBF and STBF materials.
BCTF 20M plants. The plants series BSTF is operationally proven and modified based on operating experience.

Technological equipment of new generation - the plants of series BSTF - BSTF 20 and 40. BSTF plants provide a significant reduction of energy consumption.

BSTF 40 – the plant with improved performance and low power consumption. Performance of BSTF 40 plant is increased twice compared with the conventional plants.

Equipment for production of STBF and STBF materials.

BCTF 20M plants.
BCTF 20M plant is proven its reliability for more than nine years of operation.

Some peculiarities of BCTF 20М plant. Considering operating experience BCTF 20M plant was modified as follows: rock-melting furnace, the unit of bushing assembly installation, gas burners, the fiber blowing chamber and recuperator.
* The bushing assembly is made from heat-resisting steel.

BCTF 20M plant main specification

№	Specification	Measurement unit	Value
1.	Plant capacity	kg/hour tons/hour	16 -18 140 - 160
2.	Natural gas consumption, max., depending on the gas calorific value	m3/hour	55 – 60
3.	Electric power consumption: installed capacity, consumed power, max.	кВА кВт/час	90 45
4.	Compressed air for fiber blowing, pressure	MPa	0,1–0,15
5.	Cooling water (circulating), flow	m3/hour	0,5
6.	Parameters of forming felt: width density	mm kg/m3	1000 18 - 23
7.	Overall dimensions: length / width / height;	m	8 / 6 /4.5

Specific consumption of energy resources to produce 1 kg of STBF: natural gas - 3.1 m3, electric power - 2.4 kW/hour.

The plants of a new series BSTF: BSTF 20 and BSTF 40

Установки BSTF 20 и BSTF 40 предназначены для производства холста БСТВ.

BSTF 20 and 40 BSTF plants are designed to produce BSTF felt.

The main features of the new generation BSTF plants is usage of new proved developments and technical solutions: gas burners and blowing chambers, rock melting furnace and its feeder, recuperator, bushing assembly, water cooling system. To manufacture the plant, modern components and systems were used: transformer of bushing assembly, high-pressure fan, fiber extractor, control and monitoring equipment. Plant configuration was changed that provides better efficiency of the operators, smaller dimensions, and weight of the plant.

Basic technical solutions have been tested practically and showed good results. BSTF 20 plant was successfully tested, confirmed its performance during operation.

Main technical characteristics of BSTF plant are given in Table.
BSTF 40 plant represents two paired BSTF 20 plants installed on the same production site and working to the one receiving conveyor. The capacity of one BSTF 40 plant can replace two conventional BSTF plants.

BSTF plant main specification

№	Specification	Measurement unit	BSTF 20 Value	BSTF 40 Value
1.	Plant capacity	kg/hour tons/hour	18 -19 150 - 170	36 -38 290 - 300
2.	Natural gas consumption, max., depending on the gas calorific value	m3/hour	35 – 40	70 – 80
3.	Electric power consumption: installed capacity, consumed power, max.	kVA kW/hour	76 40	130 75
4.	Compressed air for fiber blowing, pressure	MPa	0,1–0,15 (1- 1.5)	0,1–0,15 (1- 1.5)
5.	Cooling water (circulating), flow	m3/hour	0,2	0,4
6.	Parameters of forming felt: width density	mm kg/m3	1000 18 - 23	1000 18 - 23
7.	Overall dimensions: length / width / height;	m	8 / 4 /4.5	8 / 5.5 / 4.5

Specific consumption of energy resources to produce 1 kg of STBF is:
natural gas – 2.0 - 2.1 m3; electricity - 2.1 kW/hour.

BSTF 20 and BSTF 40 peculiarities

During plant development, some innovative technical solutions were made allowing in comparison with conventional BSTF production plants:

• to halve the electricity and gas consumption;
• to reduce by 1.5 - 2 times labor costs per unit production;
• to reduce by several times the cooling water consumption and, thus, thermal losses;
• to improve stability and performance of the plant;
• to ensure the quality of the produced STBF.

BCTF 20M, BSTF 20, BSTF 40 are equipped with monitor and control systems of process parameters, providing the production process stability as well as the usability of operators and maintenance personnel at the plant.

Manufacturing process management of STBF and its material

Общий вид установок БСТВ г.НытваIt is economically feasible to organize a site (shop) with a completed STBF production cycle and manufacture of materials from STBF. Economic calculations show that in the future the number of BSTF 20M, BSTF 20 plants in the shop should be not less than five, and BSTF 40 – not less than three. The table presents the STBF production volume at BCTF 20M, BSTF 20, BSTF 40 plants.             

General view of the installations STBF, Russian Federation, Nytva town.

Объемы производства БСТВ

Plant Identity	Number	Plant capacity, kg/hour	Plant capacity, kg/day	Plant capacity, tons/year
BCTF 20М	1	16 -18	410	140 - 160
BCTF 20М Line	5	80	2050	700-800
BSTF 20	1	18 -19	440	150 - 170
Линия BSTF 20	5	90	2200	750-850
BSTF 40	1	36 -38	870	290 - 300
BSTF 40 Line	3	100 - 110	2600	900

As distribution area of the products is increased, it is possible to place a larger number of the plants.

Production equipment of STBF materials

STBF process equipment	Produced material
UPKh-10 plant for felt production	Heat insulation felts
MP - 10 machine for needled mat production	Needled heat-insulating mats
Special sewing equipment	Enclosed heat- and sound-insulating mats
Board production process line	Board, thickness of 5 to 10 mm
Slab production process line	Heat-insulating slabs

Production facility requirements

Basic requirements to production facilities on site location (shop) of STBF production.
Placement of five BSTF 20M, BSTF 20 or three BSTF 40 plants: width - 20 m, length - 40 m (placing the plants in a line), height - not less than 7.5 m, required shop height is 8 m.

Utilities:

• middle pressure gas (0.03 - 0.04 MPa or 0.3 - 0.4 kg/cm2), flow rate - 350 m3/h;
• electricity 3x380V, 50 Hz; installed capacity is 600 kVA (including two-fold reserve);
• compressed air – 60m3/min, pressure – 0.12 MPa (1.2 kg/cm3);
• water supply – up to 5 m/h (recycling supply from cooling towers), water pressure – 0.3 MPa;
• sewerage for domestic needs of the staff.

Production facilities should be equipped with aeration lantern, plenum system, overhead-track hoist or other lifting devices to install equipment and lift basalt raw materials. Weight-carrying capacity of overhead-track hoist – 400 - 1000 kg. The site should have a number of utility areas: a basalt raw material storage area of 100 - 200 m2, storage area for finished products - 300 - 400 m2. The manufacturing site should be equipped with household premises for personnel, premises for technical personnel (section foreman, production foreman, electricians, and automation technicians), repair room (should have fitter work place, welder work place). Minimum distance to the nearest dwelling houses is 200 meters.

Production management of STBF materials

Installation and commissioning of STBF plants on the site will be carried out by stages: installation and commissioning of the first plant, then the next plants – in every 2 - 3 months each.

Installation and commissioning of process equipment for STBF production and its materials are carried out on turnkey basis including commercial production batch, customer’s personnel training.

The customer is responsible for preparation of the manufacturing areas to place the equipment and supply the communications (gas, electricity, compressed air, water), for mounting smoke exhaust system (air ducts, smoke stack).

Staple thin basalt fiber - Equipment for production of heat-insulating materials

Thin basalt fiber - Technologies and Equipment

In brief, conventional technology of production of staple-thin basal fiber (TBF) and TBF slabs consists of the following processes:

• Loading basalt rock to the furnace;
• Basalt melting and melt homogenization in the furnace;
• Receiving the basalt melt from furnace feeder through a bushing assembly in the form of streams of melt;
• Blowing the primary fibers with blowing head into staple fibers, applying binder onto the fibers in the forming chamber;
• Forming and drying the slabs at the production line;
• Cutting and packaging the slabs.

Process equipment for production of staple-thin basalt fibers and its materials

Purpose. Process equipment is intended for production of staple thin basalt fiber and materials based on it: soft slabs with density of 50 - 70 kg/m3, rigid slabs with density 100 - 140 kg/m3, cardboard with density of 150 - 160 kg/m3.

Process equipment configuration

Equipment for production of staple-thin basalt fiber

• Rock melting furnace.
• Production unit of staple fiber from the melt - blowing unit.
• Forming chamber with conveyor.

Equipment for production of NS-1V inorganic binder

• Dispensers of the components.
• Reactor-mixer. Storage and supply container.
• Binder supply system into forming camera.

Soft salb process line

• Inorganic binder NS-1V spraying unit.
• Drying chamber.
• Cutting slab unit.
• Packing slab unit.

Rigid slab and board process line

• Inorganic binder NS-1V application unit.
• Cutting slab unit.
• Drying chamber.
• Packing slab unit.

General process equipment are:

• Equipment for staple-thin basalt fiber production: melting furnace; unit for production of staple fiber from the melt; forming chamber with a conveyor and binder application unit.
• Equipment for NS-1V inorganic binder production.
• Section drying chamber.
• Cutting slab unit.
• Packing slab unit.

Distinctive features of the process line

1. Usage of rock melting furnace with low specific gas and electricity consumption per production unit. Application of new basalt melting technologies, specific gas burners and heat recovery system of exhaust gases.
2. Usage of NS-1V inorganic binder for slabs and boards (without using the clays for fiber binding) that allows to provide the quality of materials and reduce their production cost.
3. The equipment is based on the principle of a single process line for production of basalt fiber materials. For production slabs, and boards, some general basic units of equipment of the process line are used.

Process equipment main specifications

Equipment specification	Unit of measurement	BTV -200 plant	Soft slabe line	Rigid slab line	Board line
Capacity	per hour per day	(200– 250) kg 4.5–6.0 t	2.0–4.0 m3 1.0–2.0 m3	1.0–1.5 m3 1.0–2.0 m3	1.0 m3 1.0–2.0 m3
Natural gas. Gas flow per production unit	m3/hour m3	30 - 40 0.4 /kg	+ 5 0.5 /m3	+ 10 – 12 0.5– 1 /m3	+12 - 15 0.6–1.2 /m3
Electric power Flow rate per production unit	kW/hour  kW	48  0.6– 0.65/kg	+ 10   1.0/m3	+15 1.2/m3	+15  1.2/m3
Number of personnel	persons	2	+2	+2	+2
Equipment dimensions: height/width/length	m	9.5/ 5.0 /8.0	3.5/ 3.2/ 9.0	3.5/3.2/ 16	3.5/3.2/ 16.0

Manufacturing process of staple basalt fibers and materials

Loading of loosened basalt rock into the melting furnace – melting and homogenization of the melt – producing the fibers – injection of inorganic binder into forming chamber – formation of felt of basalt fibers with binding – prepressing the felt – forming the slabs – drying the slabs – packaging the slabs.

Features and benefits of technologies.

Production of soft slab materials is carried out by NS-1V binder spraying technology technologies in the forming chamber.
Manufacture of rigid slabs and board are performed by combined inorganic binder spraying technology and direct injection into the basalt fiber mat.

Benefits of the proposed technologies

• Technology provides uniform distribution of the binder, and thus quality of the slab.
• In manufacturing the soft and rigid basalt slabs, impregnation of the mat with NS-1V binder is performed by the combined method.
• Technology excludes the slurry preparation procedure based on bentonite clay binder resulting to negative factors – destruction of fibers and considerable moisture of the slabs.
• The basalt fiber mat has no high humidity that reduces the energy consumption for drying the slabs and boards.
• Production of basalt fiber materials is performed as a common operating procedure on basic process equipment.

Production cost of TBF materials

Production cost of staple-thin basalt fibres using gas-melting furnaces is quite low compared to other types of furnaces.

Production of materials (soft, rigid slabs, and board) are performed according to NS-1V binder spraying technique that determines the low moisture of the mat. Therefore, the energy consumption for drying the slabs and cardboard is minimal.

The proposed technologies and equipment are determined low production costs of staple-thin basalt fiber, and materials based on such fiber.

Picture of processing line for manufacturing of heat-insulating slabs

Rock melting furnaceStream of basalt melt

Forming chamberDrying unit

Cutting slab unitBinder preparation site

Production facility requirements

Basic requirements to production facilities to place the Process equipment for production of BTF and BTF-based materials.
At the installation site of the melting furnace, height is 10 m; width – 12 m, length – 40 m.

 Utilities:

• middle pressure gas (0.03 - 0.04 MPa or 0.3 - 0.4 kg/cm2), flow rate - 350 m3/h;
• electricity 3x380V, 50 Hz; installed capacity is 600 kVA (including two-fold reserve);
• compressed air – 60m3/min, pressure – 0.12 MPa (1.2 kg/cm3);
• water supply – up to 5 m/h (recycling supply from cooling towers), water pressure – 0.3 MPa;
• sewerage for domestic needs of the staff.

Production facilities should be equipped with aeration lantern, plenum system, overhead-track hoist or other lifting devices to install equipment and lift basalt raw materials. Weight-carrying capacity of overhead-track hoist – 400 - 1000 kg. The site should have a number of utility areas: a basalt raw material storage area of 100 - 200 m2, storage area for finished products - 300 - 400 m2. The manufacturing site should be equipped with household premises for personnel, premises for technical personnel (section foreman, production foreman, electricians, and automation technicians), repair room (should have fitter work place, welder work place). Minimum distance to the nearest dwelling houses is 200 meters.

Production management of STBF materials

Installation and commissioning of process equipment for STBF production and its materials are carried out on turnkey basis including commercial production batch, customer’s personnel training.
The customer is responsible for preparation of the manufacturing areas to place the equipment and supply the communications (gas, electricity, compressed air, water), for mounting smoke exhaust system (air ducts, smoke stack).