Heating with infrared lamps
As it is well known, heat propagation occurs in three different and diverse ways: by conduction, convection and radiation.
While with conduction physical contact between the two bodies exchanging heat is necessary, with convection there must be a moving fluid carrying the heat. On the other hand, radiation is the only heat-transmitting mean only based on electromagnetic waves.
In our daily lives, we deal with many electromagnetic waves that perform different functions. Visible light, radio waves and the microwaves with which we cook food are all examples of electromagnetic waves that differ in frequency and wavelength.
The frequency of a wave consists in the number of oscillations it makes in one second and is measured in hertz [Hz]; on the other hand, the wavelength is the linear distance between two consecutive points at which the wave assumes the same value.
There is a close link between wavelength and frequency and therefore, depending on the different fields of application, one or the other is usually referred to.
In common jargon, discussions frequently consider wavelength. For this reason, infrared lamps are divided into short wave, fast-medium wave and long wave lamps.
Art-Eco offers its specialist services to support the customer in the choice of the most suitable product based on the specific needs.
All too often, advertising material and websites show demonstration images suggesting the use of infrared lamps to heat customers in outdoor areas of bars, restaurants and other venues, without however specifying heights and installation distances. This can cause hazardous conditions for those exposed.
We will now discuss the characteristics of this heating technology and the applications of the different types of lamps.
Excellent energy yields without heat loss; simple powering
The advantages of radiant heating
Infrared heating lamps have many advantages over other conventional heating systems, which is why Art-Eco recommends them to its customers for both commercial and industrial applications.
Infrared heating is becoming increasingly popular throughout the country, mainly because it is proving very effective for heating industrial sheds, production areas, outdoor spaces in bars, restaurants and other work and gathering places. In fact, localised heat creates a pleasantly warm microclimate during the winter season, allowing winter use of spaces exposed to cold or the outdoors.
We are talking about units that operate with a simple connection to the mains without the complications and risks associated with combustion, such as the production of fumes and unpleasant smells, the need for checks by the fire brigade, and fuel supply and storage related issues.
Moreover, infrared rays are able to transfer heat, with great energy efficiency, directly to the solids they encounter in their path without significantly heating the surrounding air. This minimises heat loss and allows to achieve great energy performance levels.
However, Infrared lamps are not all the same and their heating bulbs are divided into short-wave emitters, medium-wave emitters and long-wave emitters. Each of these three categories of lamps has different technical characteristics and we believe a brief comparison between them may be useful to help choose the infrared heater best suited to your actual needs.
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Short-wave IR-A emitters have an almost immediate heating effect and very high heating power
Short-wave IR-A emitters have an almost immediate heating effect and very high heating power
Infrared lamp types based on wavelength
As already indicated, the infrared wavelength must have values between 700 nm and 1 mm. However, within this range there are emitters with different wavelengths.
This means that we can have IR-A short-wave emitters with wavelengths between 700 nm and 1400 nm, IR-B medium-wave emitters with values between 1400 nm and 3000 nm, and finally long-wave emitters with wavelengths between 3000 nm and 1 mm.
Of these three types of infrared radiations, the most widely used for heating is certainly the short wave. In Heating lamps using this section of the infrared spectrum the bulb must reach very high temperatures of more than 1000 °C and their heating effect is almost immediate once switched on, with a penetration rate of around 97%.
The cost of these types of infrared lamps is also very competitive. However, one must remember that the heating effect disappears shortly after the lamp is switched off and that smooth surfaces with light colours can reflect these waves and prevent heating.
Fast medium-wave lamps with IR-B emitters are used very little due to their poor penetration capacity and high cost, while long-wave infrared heaters, characterised by ceramic plates, are only used when the surfaces of objects in already partially heated rooms need to be heated (to be further investigated).
Art-Eco infrared heaters are all equipped with the most efficient and cost-effective short-wave IR-A emitters, both for commercial and industrial applications. Given the extreme efficiency of this type of heating lamps, their positioning in the location to be heated and their sizing must be assessed by experts in this type of design, to avoid over-heated or under-heated areas.
Also for this reason, the optimal solution for the best results in your field is to turn to the professionalism of Art-Eco with confidence in this area but as regards to all other cooling and heating needs.
