Foundations of Electroheat unifies an extremely diverse area of electricity utilisation in a coherent and concise reference. From laser welding to plasma furnaces for waste treatment and induction heating for forging to radio frequency drying textiles, the various topics that comprise electroheat are presented as a whole. The unified approach concentrates on three major themes:
* Electromagnetic heating, embracing direct resistance, induction heating of metals and radio frequency and microwave heating of dielectrics
* The ionised state, dealing with laser processing, plasma torches and furnaces, glow discharges for nitriding and arc furnaces for melting scrap
* Heat and mass transfer
The impact of computers on electrotechnology is explored by considering topics such as expert systems, neural networks and computational electromagnetics. Featuring industrial applications and case studies, as well as worked examples of the principles involved, this text is essential reading for the engineering student of electroheat. Professional engineers, scientists and technologists interested in the efficient utilisation of electrical energy will also find this an invaluable reference.