Induction heaters can make conductive objects very hot by generating eddy currents in the metal. They are used in various industrial processes, from furnaces to welding machines, and even heat treatment. [Schematix] proposed his own design and completed its steps on the bench.

The problematic build is a fairly compact design, about the size of a shoebox when fitted with a six-turn coil. Running at any voltage from 12 V to 48 V, the heater has a huge power output of 1.4 kW in the test. At this power level, high current consumption causes the power traces to heat up enough to melt the solder and eventually burn out. [Schematix] plans to rebuild the heater by adding copper wires along these traces to support higher power levels without failure.

The heater can quickly heat ferrous metals, but cannot meaningfully transfer power to aluminum during the test. This is not surprising, because non-ferrous metals mainly generate Joule heat through induction, and give up the hysteresis part of heat transfer due to non-magnetic properties. However, for those who desire to use non-ferrous materials, design modifications can improve performance.

We have seen some induction heaters before, which have a variety of uses, such as welding and casting. Video after the break.

Aquarium pumps and ice buckets for coils, notebook blowers for electronic products. Or buy ready-made units from the usual suspects at half the price.

There is enough space on the PCB for wider traces. I think it is possible to build this project without soldering additional wires on the traces.

Great design and presentation. Great video!

Finally, I can make one! Since I discovered them when I was a teenager, I wanted one of them. If I have it, I can use it for forging immediately, and heat-treating oil-hardened steel is also easy.

I would love to see people post different sizes of coils and grades to effectively heat different materials

p=ei 14400/48 = 30A 14400/24 ​​= 60A 14400/12 = 120A

You need a considerable power supply to run it at this power level. It’s not something you want to run away from wall warts.

If the load changes or disappears during operation, you may also encounter the problem of heater explosion. Your garden variety induction stove has a microcontroller to supervise it. This is why if you put a copper-bottomed pot on it or remove an iron pot from it, instead of letting smoke come out of the power switchgear, you will get an error.

Check the HP server PSUs people use for Crypo mining and where a lot of electricity is needed. I have some voltages that generate 12V at 100A. Very suitable for stepper motors and servo motors. https://www.ebay.com/itm/HP-Proliant-G6-G7-Server-1200W-PSU-Power-Supplies-438202-001-440785-001/233669400236?epid=21025371484&hash=item36acfhash=item36csfcfcfcfc

Good information for both of you

There is another way. Build a linear power supply around a buck/boost transformer. By rectifying the buck/boost circuit to DC, you can obtain a high-surge, high-current DC power supply. Now you only need a high-current rectifier circuit. It can also avoid any high frequency chopping interference.

I like self-oscillation design. However, using PCBs for tank circuits and switches is a bad idea. Just use the point-to-point connection of 1mm thick copper tape and PCB as the driving part of the circuit...

Just curious. Where do you find 1mm thick copper tape?

I will not call it tape, but a metal plate. But I also have 2mm (by 10mm) thick copper "tape"-I will call it a rail or a rod :-)

When I saw the video and the guy tinning his insignificant traces—compared to the beautiful copper pipe—I immediately thought: "This is not a good idea." The conductivity of solder is 1/10 pf of copper, so the only way is to use copper on the trace, and not too little. Solder some thick wires on the trace, at least 4mm² or 6mm²

> Non-ferrous metals mainly generate Joule heat only through induction, and give up the hysteresis part of heat transfer due to non-magnetic properties

This is crucial. I don't know that hysteresis loss is so important for ferrous metals. So, even different steel alloys will be heated differently?

Yes, this is why heavy-duty stainless steel pots and pans without a piece of iron integrated into the bottom cannot work on induction heating plates.

I have always wondered why-thanks!

So it will run on 12v? If I wind the copper coil in a different way (flat), can I make an induction cooker for my car or camper?

It runs at 12V, but the power is much lower. For 12V operation, you should probably lower the impedance of the tank circuit.

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