HEATING INFRARED
How was it created?
Thanks to the invention of the spectrometer in 1800 by William Herschel, it was possible for the first time to study the amount of energy emitted by waves of various lengths. It was then that red light was discovered and found to be the light that changed the temperature of the object subjected to its influence to the greatest extent. It was quickly noticed that red light transfers energy in the form of heat to other objects without the need of heating the air, i.e. without an intermediate carrier, which minimizes energy losses. To confirm this fact, it has been proven that thermal energy is also transferred in a vacuum. Despite such a breakthrough, the technology was not used until 1938. It was only the use of radiators for instant hardening of varnishes and paints in the production of military vehicles popularized the IR technology, and in the mid-1950s, manufacturers of automobiles and agricultural machines followed the lead of defense producers, who began to use infrared to harden paint coatings on bodies of civil vehicles and on tractors.
How the heat is produced?
The task of IR heating is to convert electrical energy into wave heat energy. The element that produces heat is an electric radiator. Radiators can be found in the form of a light bulb or ceramic and metal heating elements. Regardless of the appearance of the heater and its type, it is always equipped with a filament. The filament works on the principle of a rod placed in old type light bulbs, with the difference that in the light bulbs the resistance wire is heated in a vacuum to such a temperature that it emits visible radiation (light), and in the IR emitter, by appropriate selection of the filament resistance and its thickness, it heats up from about 5 ° C to 700 ° C, which produces electromagnetic radiation in the range of infrared waves, invisible to the human eye but giving a feeling of warmth. The task of the radiator is to transform the energy supplied to it as heat in the maximum amount.
How is the room heated?
Waves emitted from infrared heaters are absorbed by all objects within its range. When using ceiling heating panels, we obtain the highest efficiency due to the fact that mainly the floor and all horizontal surfaces of furniture and other objects are heated. With this heating model, the heat is transferred with maximum efficiency, which results in a very quick achievement of the set temperature in the room. With proper placement of the radiators, we are able to achieve 86% efficiency in obtaining heat from the absorbed energy. In perfectly designed conditions, the efficiency of the radiators can reach up to 95%. At the moment, no heating system has even come close to this value. After many studies and experiments, it was concluded that it is possible to achieve 100% efficiency, but today we do not know materials that could be characterized by 100% absorption of infrared waves. This is the only limitation to achieving an ideal heat yield.
When does an IR heating installation pay off?
IR heating is very efficient and effective, provided that we create the right working conditions. First of all, installing IR heaters in buildings with poor thermal insulation will expose us to high costs. Due to the fact that IR radiation penetrates through materials with low thermal resistance, we can lead to a situation in which the efficiency of the system drops dramatically. In order to maintain the set temperature, the system will consume large amounts of electricity, which will not translate into a thermal effect in any way. Not only will we not heat up the thermally permeable partitions in the room, but the absorption of heat by other objects will not cover the demand for heat generation needed to obtain the expected conditions. It is true that IR heating is recommended for historic buildings, but only because of its drying properties, which guarantees that the building is kept in a proper technical condition. The costs of such heating are very high. It is also not recommended to use IR heating in buildings with high thermal inertia. It is true that the heat in such buildings remains for a long time after turning off the heating, but we have to heat the building beforehand. With changing weather conditions, it is very difficult to obtain constant, comfortable conditions suitable for people’s stay. With a sudden inflow of thermal energy from the outside, in the form of insolation of the rooms, they often overheat, which causes considerable discomfort for users. When building houses using our technology, we pay a lot of attention to ensuring proper thermal insulation. When using our solutions, the IR heating system works best and is very efficient. Minimal building inertia and very low heat transfer coefficients through partitions guarantee considerable savings. Hence the idea to offer such heating to our customers.
Influence of IR heating on humans?
We can say with certainty that IR heating has no harmful effects on humans. The use of radiators producing the so-called Far infrared causes the body to absorb heat quickly without any side effects. Of course, low and medium infrared can cause damage to health, but the emissions of these waves are used only in industry. Manufacturers of IR heating only install far-infrared heaters in their panels. The heaters should not be installed close to the places where we are. IR heating works remotely, so we do not have to install them directly next to the users. It should be remembered that although IR lamps work like the sun, they do not support the production of vitamin D in the body. Radiant heaters are not a substitute for the sun, they only heat up in a similar way. Allergy sufferers will certainly feel the relief. Infrared heating does not cause the so-called picking up dust, which allows allergic people to avoid discomfort resulting from air movements in the rooms.