A continuous heating furnace includes a furnace main body, a conveyance unit configured to convey a baking object W in the furnace main body, a plurality of heating sections heated by combustion, each having a first radiation surface configured to be heated by combustion and transfers heat to the baking object conveyed by the conveyance unit and arranged in the conveyance direction of the baking object in the furnace main body, and a cooling preheater having a second radiation surface configured to receive radiant heat from the baking object when being opposite to the baking object conveyed by the conveyance unit and a gas flow path configured to preheat a gas used for combustion in the heating section by the heat from the second radiation surface.

A thermal process device for heat treating a product or plurality of products includes a thermal processing chamber having opposed distal ends and at least one controllable heating zone. At least one buffer zone disposed is at each of the distal ends, the buffer zones and at least one heating zone of the thermal processing chamber forming a heating element assembly having an inner and outer surface. At least one layer of insulating material is disposed along the at least one buffer and heating zones of the thermal processing chamber and forming part of the heating element assembly, the at least one layer of insulating material having a controlled efficiency being applied non-uniformly across an axial length of the heating assembly.

A continuous heating furnace (200) includes a conveyance body (210) stretched in an endless shape and configured to convey a burning target, a furnace main body (212) partially or entirely surrounding the conveyance body to form a burning space, and a roller (214) configured to support a portion of the conveyance body in the furnace main body. The continuous heating furnace (200) further includes one or more closed gas heaters having an introduction hole configured to introduce a fuel gas into a heater main body, a combustion chamber in which the fuel gas is combusted, a discharge section to which an exhaust gas is guided, a radiation surface heated by the exhaust gas flowing through the discharge section or combustion in the combustion chamber and configured to transfer radiant heat to a burning target, and an exhaust hole configured to exhaust the exhaust gas that heats the radiation surface to the outside of the heater main body, and disposed in the furnace main body, and an exhaust pipe (216) in communication with the exhaust hole of the closed gas heater and through which the exhaust gas is guided. In addition, the exhaust pipe enables heat exchange between the exhaust gas flowing through the exhaust pipe and the roller.

A continuous heating furnace includes one or a plurality of closed type gas heaters each having a combustion chamber, a guide section that guides an exhaust gas, an exhaust hole that discharges the exhaust gas and a first radiation surface that extends in a direction perpendicular to a baking object conveyance direction wherein the first radiation surface is heated by combustion in the combustion chamber and heat from the guide section and transfers radiant heat to the baking object. The continuous heating furnace also has at least one exhaust heat transfer unit that is juxtaposed with a corresponding closed type gas heater in the conveyance direction, wherein the at least one exhaust heat transfer unit has a second radiation surface that communicates with the exhaust hole of a closed type gas heater and is heated by the exhaust gas, and a heat transfer acceleration unit that accelerates heat transfer from the exhaust gas to the second radiation surface in a direction perpendicular to the conveyance direction of the second radiation surface.

An object of the present invention is to stably support steel sheets for hot stamping accommodated in a far-infrared radiation multi-stage type heating furnace over a long period of time using steel sheet support members having a small projected area and inhibited from thermally deforming. The far-infrared radiation multi-stage type heating furnace of the present invention includes: heating units and a ceiling unit arranged in a vertical direction with multiple stages to accommodate steel sheets for hot stamping that are aluminum-coated steel sheets or zinc-coated steel sheets; and far-infrared radiation heaters disposed within the heating units and the ceiling unit to heat the steel sheets for hot stamping to a temperature ranging from the Ac.sub.3 transformation temperature to 950 C. Steel sheet support members are mounted to the heating units to support the steel sheets for hot stamping by point contact or line contact with the steel sheets for hot stamping. The steel sheet support members are supported so as to be expandable and contractible in a longitudinal direction by thermal expansion or thermal contraction.

A radiant heating tube device with a fuel-heated burner and a flame tube located inside the radiant heating tube often shows an undesirable increase in temperature in the area of the closed end of the radiant tube. This temperature rise can be reduced by installing an additional tube or other flow body in the area of the end of the flame tube. This achieves a more uniform radiant tube surface temperature.

A method for heating a furnace including radiant tubes and being able to thermally treat a running steel strip including the steps of: i. supplying at least one of the radiant tubes with H.sub.2 and O.sub.2 such that the H.sub.2 and the O.sub.2 get combined into heat and steam, ii. recovering the steam from the at least one of the radiant tubes, iii. electrolysing the steam to produce H.sub.2 and O.sub.2, and iv. supplying at least one of the radiant tubes with the H2 and O2 produced in step iii, such that they get combined into heat and steam.

A radiant element for heating an oven is disclosed. The radiant element comprises a first end; a second free end; a radiant structure between said first end and second end; a conduit for an energy feed inside said radiant structure; a first attachment leg for mechanically coupling the radiant structure to a support, a first coupling means comprising a first portion arranged to be stationary with respect to said support, and a second portion stationary relative to said first leg, the first portion and the second portion being mechanically coupled via a first interface so as to allow a relative displacement between the first portion and second portion.