UV Curing worked example

UV Heat Load on Substrate with lamp electrical input power of 20 kW: a worked example

What does the result look like when lamp electrical input power reaches 20 kW? The full calculation is worked below with real intermediate numbers. Use it during process design when the substrate is heat-sensitive (thin film, electronics, low-Tg polymer) and the cure cell needs cooling fixtures sized correctly.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Lamp electrical input power: 20 kW (raised for this scenario; the documented default is 8)
  • IR fraction reaching the part: 0.55 x (unchanged)
  • Lamp-on duty fraction per hour: 0.6 hr / hr (unchanged)

Working through the calculation

  • Applying the documented formula (Estimated heat to part (kW) = lamp electrical input × IR fraction × exposure time fraction) to the inputs above produces each figure below.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 11 BTU / hr to part for total load, the number this scenario is built around.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 18.33 BTU / hr to part / hr for hourly equivalent.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 20 BTU / hr to part for input load.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 0.55 x for load factor.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where lamp electrical input power sits at 8 kW and the headline result is 4.4 BTU / hr to part, this scenario comes in 150% above the baseline at 11 BTU / hr to part.
  • A figure at this level is achievable when lamp electrical input power is genuinely sustained, not just peaked for a shift. It is a first-order estimate; actual heating depends on substrate absorptivity, distance, dwell time, airflow, and reflector condition, none of which are modeled individually.

Results at a glance

  • Total load: 11 BTU / hr to part (headline result)
  • Hourly equivalent: 18.33 BTU / hr to part / hr
  • Input load: 20 BTU / hr to part
  • Load factor: 0.55 x

Run it with your numbers

  • Every input above is editable in the live UV Heat Load on Substrate calculator, which recalculates instantly and can be shared with the inputs intact.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.