Continuous Annealing
Continuous annealing methods are especially adapted to high volume production. They can be used effectively to either stress relieve or process anneal electrical steels.
As in batch annealing, adequate precautions must be taken to assure proper atmosphere control. Because continuous annealing furnaces are apt to have leaks, they must be adequately flushed with protective atmo- sphere to prevent oxidation. Usually, oil can be removed from stampings and cores by burn-off in the pre-anneal chamber. Although individual charges are not as large as those used in batch processes, care should be taken in loading and stacking to prevent the possibility of distortion. This is especially important if stampings are stacked on edge.