Facilities / Development

Standard test equipment

Development activity at Petrie is generally undertaken at our Test and Development Centre in Chorley, Lancashire, UK. This test facility offers a range of pilot scale equipment covering our entire standard product range and includes:

  • Pilot scale AMWA fitted with 6kW 2450MHz microwave generator, convection heating up to 150°C and tertiary steam injection.

  • Pilot scale ARFA oven fitted with up to 15kW radio frequency heating (50Ω, 13.56MHz) and convection heating up to 250°C.

  • 2 Zone (continuous) Radio Frequency Defroster, typically fitted with 15kW and 5kW 50Ω generators on zones 1 and 2 respectively.

  • BAMWA Oven – this is a full size commercial oven, electrically heated.

  • Pilot scale 2 zone RFCC fitted with 50Ω radio frequency generators, power output selected to suit the specific application.

  • Pilot scale induction heated ‘WOK’ hotplate fitted with a single 20kW power supply and capable of hotplate temperatures in excess of 350°C.

Although it is normal practice for at least the initial trials to be conducted at Petrie, often it is more practical to conduct test work at our customers premises. All of the above test equipment can be transported to our customer’s location for extended trial work following a period of training.

Bespoke development

We recognise that many client applications do not fall neatly within one of our standard product ranges but can often benefit from the process enhancements offered by our technology platform – be this microwave, radio frequency, induction etc. In these circumstances, development work is normally carried out in a staged approach. For example, this may include: