Abstract
A PAPER on "Infra-Red Radiation and Equipment: their Application to Industrial Processes", read recently by Mr. R. Maxted before the Illuminating Engineering Society, emphasizes that the technique of radiant heating depends on direct experiment rather than upon an understanding of wave-length effects, properties of materials, etc., although a knowledge of the spectral characteristics of the materials is necessary if optimum combinations of wave-bands and materials are desired. Transformation into sensible heat is one effect of the absorption of radiant energy, and radiant heating depends entirely upon this effect, the energy absorbed by the material being instantly converted into heat upon exposure to radiation. The incident energy is partially reflected, transmitted and absorbed when any substance is irradiated, the magnitude of each effect ranging throughout the electromagnetic spectrum with any given material. The direct effect of absorption is that energy is re-radiated at longer wavelengths, change of structural state takes place, or sensible heat is produced within the absorbing substance.
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Infra-Red Radiation in Industry. Nature 149, 192 (1942). https://doi.org/10.1038/149192a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/149192a0