A diesel engine manufacturer will use a custom industrial oven designed by Gruenberg to remove moisture from exhaust filters used in diesel truck engines after the filters have undergone an environmentally friendly cleaning process to remove particulate matter. Insulated, stainless steel and cordierite-ceramic filters are dipped in a liquid-acid cleaning solution to remove the particulates before drying at 1200°F.

Gruenberg is part of Thermal Product Solutions, New Columbia, Pa.

The unit has a high-volume, 18,000-cfm, compound, horizontal-air-circulation system and offers 144 ft3 of internal workspace. The natural gas-fired oven accommodates two three-tiered stainless steel hand trucks, each carrying 12 filter assemblies for a total product load of 24 filters and more than 1,400 pounds. Before drying, each filter assembly weighs approximately 60 pounds.

With a full product load, the oven ramps from an ambient air temperature of 70°F to the customer’s chosen operating temperature of 1200°F in three hours. The filters soak at that temperature for one hour before the oven cools the product load to 125°F with the help of an exhaust system that operates at 2,000 cfm.