Degassing unit pricing must be normalized to usable melt throughput, because treatment time, gas flow, rotor wear, and furnace size determine cost per ton more reliably than purchase price alone.
The relevant calculation covers aluminium and copper melt treatment, with published equipment data spanning batch sizes of 300–3,000 lb and rotary systems designed for transport ladles, crucibles, and furnaces [S3][S5][S6].
What Degassing Price Per Ton Means
A defensible degassing-unit price comparison requires a defined denominator: tonnes of metal treated per hour, tonnes per treatment cycle, or annual tonnes processed. The distinction matters because a 4,800 kg/h plastics line in [S1] is not a direct aluminium-degassing benchmark, while the published foundry systems cover 300–3,000 lb aluminium batches [S6].
For aluminium, the degassing unit uses a rotating impeller to distribute fine inert-gas bubbles through the melt. Nitrogen and argon are the usual gases, and the treatment objective is hydrogen removal, oxide and inclusion removal, melt homogenization, and controlled upgassing [S3][S5].
The cost per tonne should therefore be calculated as equipment capital, installation, rotor and shaft consumption, inert gas, treatment labour, maintenance, and energy, divided by qualified tonnes produced. A lower purchase price can produce a higher cost per tonne if treatment time is long, gas consumption is excessive, or the rotor erodes rapidly.
Published Capacity and Equipment Basis
Published systems span several capacity classes: FDU MARK 10 is intended for transport ladles or furnaces, FDU MINIDEGASSER is placed on a crucible or ladle, and FDU ROTODRIVE uses a battery-operated trolley for movement and treatment positioning [S5].
The same FDU range includes crane-transport or forklift-compatible machines, mobile and static configurations, and equipment for transport ladles and free-standing crucible furnaces. Rotor diameter and shaft length are selected to match melt geometry, with published graphite shaft options of 45 mm diameter and 700 mm length, 75 mm diameter up to 1,200 mm, and 95 mm diameter up to 2,300 mm [S5].
For comparison, an electric shuttle degassing system is marketed for aluminium batch sizes from 300 to 3,000 lb, or approximately 136 to 1,361 kg [S6]. This range is useful for preliminary sizing, but it is not a price quotation and does not disclose the treatment time, verified tonnes per hour, or total operating cost.
Rotary, Lance, and Batch-System Comparison
Rotary systems, lance treatment, and batch-cleaning equipment should be compared against four criteria: capital cost, melt throughput, process repeatability, and consumable demand. Rotary equipment uses a submerged rotor and hollow shaft to create fine bubbles and strong stirring, whereas lance methods are simpler but generally provide less controlled gas dispersion and melt homogenization [S4].
Rotary equipment has the highest operating-control potential because a drive unit, gas regulator, PLC, temperature sensor, flow sensor, and optional flux module can be coordinated as one process [S4]. Its cost penalties are rotor wear, gas use, treatment time, and the need to match shaft length and rotor diameter to ladle or furnace geometry [S5].
Batch or shuttle systems can suit smaller aluminium batches, with the published 300–3,000 lb range indicating a different operating scale from large rotary installations [S6]. Automated rotary systems are the stronger choice for repeatable high-volume foundry treatment, while smaller or variable-volume operations should verify whether treatment time, labor, and melt-loss reduction justify the capital and consumable burden.
Price Drivers for Degassing Capacity
Capital cost is driven by the mechanical frame, drive and gearbox, hollow shaft, rotor assembly, gas-control package, PLC controls, fume capture, and optional flux injection. Units designed for crucible furnace treatment must also satisfy the vessel geometry, lifting arrangement, access route, and installation envelope; a mobile or static configuration can therefore change the quoted price more than a simple scale factor [S5].
Consumable cost is driven by shaft and rotor selection. Graphite is common in aluminium treatment, but oxidation causes erosion in high-production service. FDU rotors include XSR and FDR designs, while XDR and FDDR variants use greater rotor height to improve efficiency and can reduce rotor speed; ceramic DIAMANT consumables have reported service-life increases above 200% versus graphite in demanding applications [S3].
Volume tier changes the unit economics. A system justified by a high annual melt rate spreads fixed capital over more tonnes, while a unit running only a few batches per week may remain underutilized. Trial performance must include qualified melt output, not nominal furnace capacity, because furnace size, holding time, and treatment scheduling determine the tonnes actually reaching the degassing station.
Operating Cost Per Tonne
The major operating variables are rotor speed, inert-gas flow rate, treatment time, melt temperature, alloy composition, and rotor geometry. The SMARTT process-control module determines rotor speed, gas flow, and treatment time from ambient conditions, melt temperature, rotor design, and alloy composition, allowing treatment parameters to be transferred to the unit before processing [S3].
Energy is not a universal line item because gas-fired and electric foundries have different energy exposures. In one study of EN AC 46000 aluminium, removing rotary degassing reduced the temperature drop and reheating requirement by up to 75% in a 1,500 kg casting furnace, equivalent to 124,000 kWh less annual energy and about 1,500 kg less CO2 for that furnace [S2]. That result does not justify eliminating degassing, because the same study found negligible degradation of final casting mechanical properties under its specific conditions.
For procurement, the total-cost calculation should separate treatment energy from avoided casting defects, dross reduction, machining recovery, and scrap avoidance. Inert gas, flux, rotor replacement, operator time, and maintenance must be measured over the same qualified output basis as the capital charge.
Verification and Procurement Test
A supplier should provide at least three operating points for the proposed melt: batch mass, treatment time, gas flow, rotor speed, melt temperature, and verified tonnes per hour. This is more useful than a headline capacity number because FDU treatments are automated but still require commissioning, treatment-parameter optimization, and operator training [S3][S5].
Trials should confirm hydrogen removal, oxide or inclusion control, melt homogenization, and the effect on casting porosity and inclusions. The FDU system is designed to reduce gas porosity and hard inclusions, improve mechanical and physical-property consistency, and reduce machining costs, but those benefits must be tied to the alloy and casting being evaluated [S5].
The closest related comparison is graphite versus ceramic degassing rotor wear life, because consumable replacement is one of the clearest variables separating low operating cost from an attractive purchase price. Track gas consumption per tonne, rotor hours per tonne, dross mass per tonne, and qualified cast output per treatment cycle.
No defensible numerical price-per-ton range can be published from the available material because none of the sources provides a complete equipment price, installed cost, treatment cycle, and verified throughput combination. A valid comparison requires a supplier quotation and a process trial on the intended alloy, melt temperature, and vessel geometry.