Air Products has licensed its proprietary cryogenic machining technology to MAG IAS, LLC, a leading machine tool manufacturer. The technology license agreement allows MAG to utilize Air Products’ patented cryogen delivery technology and proprietary cryomachining intellectual property—which are designed to mitigate heat generation during the cutting operation thereby enhancing tool life and increasing cutting speeds—along with MAG’s Minimum Quantity Cryogenics (MQC) technology.
“The technology license agreement grants global rights for the MAG family of branded equipment,” said Jeffrey Knopf, manager, Licensing and Technology Transfer at Air Products. “Air Products has retained the registered trade name ‘ICEFLY’ and will continue to market ICEFLY® Cryogenic Machining Technology, a technology that enables a controlled jet of liquid nitrogen (LIN) to an application point. Air Products will also continue to support existing cryogenic machining customers and explore new licensing opportunities outside of the MAG agreement.”
Air Products’ ICEFLY Cryogenic Machining Technology is currently used in the metals machining industry, where it supplies cooling to the cutting tool used to machine difficult materials, such as hardened steels and irons, thermal spray coatings, weld overlays, metal matrix composites, and powdered metals. By replacing dry machining or standard emulsion coolants with a small stream of LIN, ICEFLY Cryogenic Machining Technology can more effectively cool the cutting insert to enable longer tool life and higher cutting speeds, as well as provide a completely clean work environment. The technology can also be readily adapted to a broad range of automated or semi-automated machining operations.
An industry leader in cryogenic applications, Air Products has developed extensive knowledge and experience around low-flow cryogenic solutions for various metals processing applications.
Source: http://www.airproducts.com/