A thermal shock test chamber is common equipment used by many manufacturers and laboratories. It is widely employed for environmental adaptability testing of electronic equipment, automotive parts, aerospace components, military equipment, and other products. This article aims to provide you with relevant information about thermal shock chambers, helping you choose the right thermal shock test equipment.
What is a Thermal Shock Test?
The thermal shock test evaluates the extent to which composite materials and structures can endure rapid fluctuations between extremely high and low temperatures. This test assesses the chemical changes or physical damage caused by thermal expansion and contraction in a short period. Ultimately, it helps evaluate the reliability and stability of products under extreme temperature variations.
Differences between Liquid-to-Liquid Thermal Shock Chambers and Air-to-Air Thermal Shock Chambers
Temperature Control Medium:
Liquid-to-liquid thermal shock chambers utilize water or other coolant solutions as the temperature control medium, immersing the sample directly in high- and low-temperature liquid for testing. In contrast, air-to-air thermal shock chambers use compressed air as the temperature control medium.
Test Conditions:
Due to the superior thermal conductivity of liquids, liquid-to-liquid thermal shock chambers can achieve lower temperatures and faster temperature change rates, enabling them to meet more stringent testing conditions compared to air-to-air thermal shock chambers.
Scope of Use:
Testing with liquids can have a corrosive effect on certain products, which limits their applicability. As a result, air-to-air thermal shock chambers have a wider range of use.
Types of Air-to-Air Thermal Shock Chambers
Air-to-air thermal shock chambers are available in two-zone and three-zone options.
Two-Zone Thermal Shock Chamber
This chamber is divided into a high-temperature zone and a low-temperature zone. The sample is placed in a hanging basket, and the thermal shock effect is achieved by moving the basket between the high-temperature chamber and the low-temperature chamber. The two-zone thermal shock chamber has two structures: vertical and horizontal. If you want to save space, it is recommended to choose the vertical structure. Since the sample is directly switched between two chambers with extreme temperatures, this configuration closely simulates conditions that may be encountered in actual use. Therefore, the thermal shock effect of the two-zone thermal shock environmental chamber is more realistic.
Three-Zone Thermal Shock Chamber
This chamber is divided into a high-temperature zone, a test zone, and a low-temperature zone. The sample is placed in the test zone, where the temperature is changed by opening and closing the damper to achieve the thermal shock effect. The three-zone thermal shock environmental chamber is suitable for products that are sensitive to vibration.
How to Choose Thermal Shock Test Chambers?
Based on the previous introduction, most people now have a preliminary understanding of thermal shock test chambers. However, to find the most suitable test chamber, you should provide the following information to the environmental chamber manufacturer. This will enable them to recommend or design the chamber that best meets your needs.
- Sample Information
- Basket/Inner Chamber Size
- Outer Chamber Size
- Temperature Shock Range
- High-Temperature Chamber Temperature Range
- Low-Temperature Chamber Temperature Range
- Damper/Basket Conversion Time
- Temperature Recovery Time
- High-Temperature Exposure Time
- Low-Temperature Exposure Time
- Defrost (Number of Shocks)
- Defrost Recovery Time
- Structural Configuration Requirements
- Installation Site Information
（More details about How to choose an environmental test chamber.）
If you want to know more about thermal shock test chambers, please feel free to contact KOMEG.