Climatic Chamber Configurator
Discover the Climatic Chamber Configurator
Our guide to choosing the climate chamber best suited to your needs.
As we often repeat on these pages, climatic testing plays a fundamental role in ensuring the quality and reliability of products, at all levels and for many industries.
For battery and storage testing, discover the FDM Battery Test Chamber, designed for testing under controlled conditions.
If we had to identify just one environmental parameter, the most essential for testing products and materials, it would undoubtedly be temperature.
There is virtually no product or material that does not continuously deal with varying temperatures, and this significantly affects its performance and durability.
A thermal chamber is the most essential laboratory instrument for performing temperature tests. Today we'll look at what a thermal chamber is and what it's used for.
What is a Thermal Camera?
The Thermal Chamber is part of the larger family of climatic chambers.
Environmental chambers are laboratory instruments consisting of a hermetically sealed vessel within which a series of environmental parameters can be altered, adjusted, and monitored.
Almost all climate chambers can alter two fundamental parameters: temperature andrelative humidity. Other types of chambers incorporate instruments that simulate the effects of sunlight or environmental precipitation.
On the other hand, the thermal chamber allows you to alter only one environmental parameter: the temperature.
However, like the more equipped climatic chambers, the environmental chamber also allows for the execution of both static and dynamic tests, as we will see shortly.
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What is the Thermal Chamber Used For?
The Thermal Chamber is used to conduct a series of environmental tests on samples of products and/or materials in order to verify their behaviour at certain temperatures or following progressive or sudden changes.
As we mentioned, it is difficult to name a product or material that does not have to deal with different temperatures throughout its life cycle.
For this reason, the thermal chamber is used in almost all industrial sectors, in specific temperature tests.
Among these, the electronics, automotive, construction, pharmaceuticals and food sectors stand out.
These industries depend on thermal chambers to test and validate the strength, durability, and performance of their products under normal or extreme environmental conditions.
The Most Common Thermal Chamber Tests
Thermal chambers are used in all those tests where temperature is the main factor to take into consideration.
Here are some of the most common:
- Thermal cycling tests: These are the dynamic tests we mentioned, i.e., tests in which the temperature varies in cycles of predefined regularity to test the behavior of products and materials in a variable environmental context. We discussed them here.
- Stability testing: Stability testing, on the other hand, is the most common static test. Essential especially in the pharmaceutical and food sectors, it is used to determine important information about a product, such as its storage conditions, expiration date, and so on. Read the article here.
- Thermal shock testing: Finally, we have thermal shock testing, which aims to identify the behavior of a material or product when subjected to thermal shock, i.e., a sudden change in temperature. Here's an in-depth article.
All these tests are regulated by a series of standards issued by internationally recognized bodies.
The best known are the ISO, the IEC and the ICH.
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The FDM Thermal Camera
For over 70 years, FDM – Environmental Makers has been a leader in the environmental testing.
Our thermal chambers are equipped to perform all the temperature tests described above, whether static or dynamic, thanks to two different systems: the stillFACE programmer revoFACE for dynamic tests.
For any further questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us.
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Reference Standards
- IEC 60068-2-1 — Test A: Cold (cold tests)
- IEC 60068-2-2 — Test B: Dry heat
- IEC 60068-2-14 — Test N: Change of temperature (thermal cycling)
- MIL-STD-810H Method 501.7 / 502.7 — High/Low Temperature operational tests
- ISO 16750-4 — Climatic loads (automotive range)
- ASTM E145 — Standard Specification for Gravity-Convection and Forced-Ventilation Ovens
Authoritative Sources
Thermal Imaging Camera Frequently Asked Questions
What's the difference between a thermal chamber, a climatic chamber, and a stove?
The thermal chamber controls only the temperature (typically -40°C/+180°C) without humidity. The climatic chamber controls temperature + relative humidity (typically 10-95% RH). The laboratory oven operates only above ambient (+40°C/+300°C) without active cooling. The choice depends on the application: thermal chamber for automotive/electronics thermal cycles, climatic chamber for pharmaceutical stability, or oven for cooking/drying.
Typical temperature ranges of a thermal chamber?
Three main classes: standard thermal chamber -40°C/+180°C (the most common, industrial thermal cycles); extended thermal chamber -70°C/+180°C (aerospace, military); rapid thermal chamber with change rates of 15-40°C/min (single-chamber thermal shock). For special ranges: -196°C cryogenic chambers with LN₂, +300°C high-temperature thermal chambers for composites and materials.
What is the required temperature uniformity?
Application dependent: ±2°C for standard industrial thermal chambers (IEC 60068), ±1°C for precision electronics testing, ±0.5°C for ICH Q1A pharmaceutical stability chambers, ±0.3°C for metrology calibration chambers. Uniformity is measured with 9-27 probe mappings arranged in a grid according to IEC 60068-3-5, under steady-state conditions and with payload.
How is a thermal chamber certified?
With IQ/OQ/PQ (IQ/OQ/PQ qualification) protocol: IQ verifies installation (material and component certificates); OQ performs vacuum thermal mapping with ACCREDIA-calibrated probes; PQ performs payload mapping with a real mission profile. Certificates are valid for 12-24 months for GxP applications, 36 months for standard industrial applications. Some customers also require ISO 17025 environmental testing with an accredited laboratory.
Speak directly with our engineers
Do you need to pass a regulatory test or are you looking for a chamber designed to your test protocol? Tell us your needs: the FDM technical team will respond to you, without intermediaries.