Phil Uses New Steel For Hot Slag Truck Bodies

Philippi-Hagenbuch Inc. (Phil) has selected new SSAB Hardox HiTemp steel in its customized hot slag truck bodies — part of the Peoria, Ill., company’s lineup of specialty HiVol truck bodies. The new steel is specially designed to withstand extreme temperature environments. The company said it reduces necessary plate thickness while maintaining the product’s service life for increased productivity in processing applications.

“As a true custom manufacturer, every Phil product is designed to excel in a specific application,” said Josh Swank, vice president of sales and marketing for Phil. “In the past, steel mill clients requested a unique HiVol truck body to haul hot slag. Our engineers responded with the hot slag body. Now, with the new HiTemp steel from SSAB, we can provide the same strength and durability with less steel, maximizing payload potential and providing our clients with a better product.”

The new body is comprised of two components — an exoskeleton superstructure, which does not come in contact with molten material, and load containing pieces that do. These pieces form an overlapping structure that is loosely strapped around the body of the exoskeleton to contain the hot slag during operation. The design allows for differential expansion and contraction, where a traditional body would buckle under such extreme heat, said the company. When transporting molten material, the pieces expand and contract without breaking welds, binding up or warping. When a piece is damaged or worn out, it can simply be replaced without any structural welding requirements.

The new HiTemp material improves the wear-resistant properties of a 450 Brinell steel, currently used in the hot slag body, while providing the same impact, welding and machining properties as the Hardox 450 material preferred by Phil for heavy-duty applications. It is capable of transporting materials in excess of 1200 degrees F (648.9 degrees C).

This allows Phil to use a thinner plate without jeopardizing the product’s service life, providing more payload when fully loaded. Additionally, the thinner plate lowers the overall weight of the truck when traveling empty.

Phil has used Hardox material in its range of products — including truck bodies, water tanks and trailers — since 1983. As technology has advanced in SSAB’s steel-making process, the company said it was able to employ harder versions of the Hardox material — starting with Hardox 400 and moving to Hardox 450 in 2000, standardizing on one specific grade along the way.