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A baghouse dust collector is a simple but efficient device designed to extract dust
particles from an airstream and to collect those particles in order to recycle or discard
them.
Dust
Laden
Air
Clean
Air
Dust
Collector
Dust
To extract the dust from the airstream, a fabric bag is used. As the dust laden air
encounters the fabric bag the dust is stopped and starts to collect. The dust free air
then continues to pass through the collector. The dust is then cleaned off the bags in
various ways to be recycled or discarded.
Dusty
Gas
Clean
Gas
There are 3 major types one could encounter in cement plants. They are the pulse-jet,
reverse-air and shaker. The shaker is a collector which mechanically shakes the bags
clean. These are becoming rare and therefore will not be discussed.
A1
A pulse jet collector (figure 1) typically consists of a one compartment bag house with a
specific number and size of bags. The number and size of bags depends on the area to
be vented. An I.D. fan provides the air flow. A tube sheet which divides the collector
into an upper and lower section, a blow pipe cleaning mechanism and diaphragm valves
that are controlled by an electronic control module. This type uses blasts or pulses of
compressed air to clean the bags.
A1.1 Tube Sheet and Bags
The upper and lower halves are divided by the tube sheet, which also serves as
the mounting plate for the collector bags. The upper half is the clean air side and
the lower half is the dirty air side. In the pulse jet collector the bags are
suspended from the tube sheet. A snap band is designed into the bag to hold the
bag in place, (different suppliers will have different designs). A wire cage is
installed inside the bag to prevent if from collapsing inward. Especially on older
models (pre 1990), the clamping method to the tube sheet is the weakest point in
the design. Many leaks occur here. Newer designs pay a lot of attention to
reinforcing this area.
Dirt laden air is drawn into the collector by the air flow created by the I.D. fan.
The dirty air enters in the lower half of the collector and is cleaned as it is drawn
up and through the bags. As the dirt is collected on the outside of the bags it
forms a dust cake. As the cake builds up on the bag it creates an air flow
resistance, and for this reason the bags need to be cleaned.
The baffle plate is important since it is there to knock down as much dust as
possible before reaching the bags. It will also help prevent the incoming dusty air
from wearing holes in the bags nearest the intake.
Close attention should be paid the assembly quality or condition of the cages.
Burrs, sharp edges, weld flashings, etc. will quickly abrade holes in the bags.
Bags are usually made from polyester, glass or Gortex felts. Felts normally work
best in pulse-jet collectors and can be supplied with a variety of surface
treatments (teflon, singed, etc.). The type best to used depends of the
temperature, dust type, duty and dust loading. Note it is strongly recommended
for bags used in fuel system dust collectors that they have a grounding wire sewn
into them.
Exhaust
Solenoid Valve
Compressed Air Manifold
Tube Sheet
Bllow Pipe
Diaphram
Valve
Venturi
Timer
Wire Cage
Filter Bag
Inlet
Discharge Hopper
Diffuser Plate
Airlock Seal
tube sheet. The difference between the two sides or the resistance to air flow is
calculated and gives the D.P., or the pressure drop across the tube sheet.
The second type is called a photohelic. It is located adjacent to the magnehelic,
but is capable of controlling the D.P., by setting a high and low point. The
general range is 2" low and 6" high. What this does is keeps a constant measure
of the D.P. and starts the cleaning cycle by activating the electronic control
module. As the D.P. reaches the high set point it activates the control module,
this is turn starts the cleaning cycle. It continues to clean until the D.P. reaches
the low set point at which time it shuts off the controller. Once it is initiated, rows
of bags are sequentially pulsed until all rows have been cleaned. This system is
particularly useful in minimizing compressed air consumption and increasing bag
life. However it is not recommended for use on units where the fan must regulate
a pressure setpoint.
The third type of is an electronic differential pressure regulator. This does the
same job as the photohelic but has no gauge or visible way to read or change the
set points. The set points are pre-set by the electronics department in the plant.
Ideally the differential pressure across a dust collector should be about 4" WC.
However one should check with the manufacturer if a particular unit is rated
differently.
A1.3 Cleaning Process
The electronic control module activates a diaphragm valve which sends a pulse
of compressed air through the blow pipe. Between the diaphragm valve and the
control module is a copper or plastic bleed off tube, which allows pressure to
equalize between the diaphragm valve and the control module. Once the
pressure has equalized the diaphragm releases and sends a blast of compressed
air down the blow pipe.
The blow pipe is placed in line at a horizontal position typically about four inches
above the row of bags. The blow pipe has a hole about 1/4 to 3/8th's of an inch
in diameter located over the center of each bag, (this depends on the design).
The top of the wire basket has a venturi in it. As the pulse of air enters the
venturi it draws in some surrounding air. This is referred to as induced secondary
air. The duration of the pulse is approximately 1/10th of a second, and the effect
is that of shock rather than bag inflation. One can observe this as a bulge which
travels with the shock wave. When the shock impacts the bag, most of the dust
cake is knocked loose and begins to fall toward the bottom of the collector, but
since the duration of the shock is so short, the dust returns to the outside of the
bag, only after it has fallen just a few inches. The dust near the bottom of the
bag falls into the discharge hopper and is either returned to the system or
discarded. An air seal device is located at the discharge point to prevent outside
air from entering into the collector.
Note, it is a common but mistaken belief that pulsing the dust collector after the
system is down will purge the dust collector bags clean. If the fan is off, some
dust may fall off after the first pulse but it has been shown that very little will
come off afterwards. To purge a pulse jet dust collector the fan must be left
running while the collector pulses. The normal air flow holds the bag against the
cage which allows the shock wave to bulge the bag. This is the most effective
cleaning.
Air pressure is very important because it is the force that cleans the bags. The
amount of pressure required depends to some extent on the specific application,
fineness of dust, density, etc., but for most applications the minimum pressure is
90 PSI. This compressed air is also dried by an air dryer which is located
between the compressor and the collector. The compressed air used must be
dry otherwise moisture can cause dust to cling and blind the bags.
Blowpipe
Compressed Air Blast
Induced Secondary Air Flow
Venturi
Cage
Fabric Bag
Dust Layer
Bag bulges
outward, shaking
the dust layer off
Shock Wave
Pulse or
bulge travels
downward
with the
shock wave
air purge helps some but on early models it really doesn't do much, (this is
reportedly much better on the latest but very expensive models). The following
graph shows a typical pulse pressure profile as measured in the blow pipe. The
best shock and hence cleaning occurs by attaining the highest peak pressure in
the shortest time. At the very minimum this should be 40 psi although 60 to 70 is
more ideal (for 100 psi air supply pressure). The rest of the pulse draws in purge
air through the venturi but as mentioned, on early models, this is wasted
compressed air. Since most units come equipped with electronic solenoid timers,
it is possible to adjust the pulse span. This should be adjusted to get the
sharpest "thud" but no more. If you have a new model check to see where the
pulse length should be set. Also the frequency of pulsing can be adjusted to get
more or less cleaning. Too high of a setting just wastes compressed air.
Typical Blowpipe Pulse Profile
Pulse Pressure in Blowpipe, psig
50
Peak Shock Pressure
40
Wasted Air
30
20
10
(pulse durations vary depending on design)
0
1
4
5
6
Time milliseconds
10
How to get more cleaning (and more flow through the dust collector)
a)
Check that the cross sectional area of the blowpipe is greater than or
equal to the sum of the area of all holes in each blowpipe. If it is less then
the cleaning shock will be too low. You can increase this ratio to get better
cleaning but only up to a point, (which = supply pressure - pressure losses
across fittings).
b)
Check that all fittings and valves feeding compressed air into the blowpipe
are larger than the blowpipe diameter. The larger the better since the
pressure loss across these fittings can be very high. Any restrictions will
drop the shock pressure.
c)
Occasionally the venturis must be replaced due to wear. Be sure that the
replacement has the largest possible throat diameter. (different suppliers
will give you venturis that fit your cages but have different throat
diameters). The smaller the throat, the smaller the cleaning shock
pressure and the higher the resistance to normal flow.
For example at one plant the dust collector was using blowpipes made from
standard 3/4" sched. 40 pipe and each were fitted with a 1/2" shutoff valve.
Changing the valve to 3/4" improved cleaning which allowed them to increase
airflow by 8%. Then they took the step of changing the blowpipe size to 1" dia.
as well as the diaphragm valves, shutoff valves, couplings, nipples etc. Cleaning
improved again and they were able to increase airflow by another 10%.
New designs, we have observed employ 6" diaphragm valves feeding 2" diameter
blowpipes and double venturis. The venturi fitted to the cage is the same
diameter less the thickness of the metal casting, (in other words it has the largest
possible throat). Cleaning is claimed to be so much more effective that plants are
able to reduce compressed air requirements.
A1.5 Troubleshooting - Pulse jet collector
Condition:
1. Check main air supply and dryer for proper operation. If not O.K. refer to
equipment troubleshooting guide.
2. If O.K. check air pressure at manifold, which should be 90-100 PSI. If the
PSI is to low, check for leaks in the air lines. If leak is located attempt to
repair or notify Mechanical Maintenance.
Low D.P.
1. Make sure all doors are closed and there are no holes in the piping.
A1.6 Safety - Pulse jet collector
1. Never work inside a collector without another employee present.
2. Make sure related equipment is locked out or turned off, such as fans,
collector screw if equipped, compressed air supply and rotary feeders and
dampers.
3. Use respirators and goggles when necessary.
2. Look through the windows (where applicable), installed on the clean air side
of the collectors that have them, for dusty conditions.
3. Check the D.P. gauge; it should read between 2" and 6".
4. Listen for air leaks along the solenoid valve manifold.
5. Listen to the solenoid valve (s) go through the pulse cycle, to ensure that all
valves are working properly.
6. Check the pulsing air pressure; it should be no lower that 90 PSI.
7. Check for leaks around doors, seams and on the piping.
8. Check discharge hopper points for leaks around the air seal.
A2
A reverse air collector (figure 1) consists of a bag house containing two or more
compartments each fitted with an equal number of bags. Size and quantity of bags
depends on the amount of venting to be done. An I.D. fan creates the air flow, and a
tube sheet which divides the collector into an upper and lower half. Dampers are in
place to direct air flow, and a timer to control the dampers operations. Discharge
hopper or hoppers with various mechanisms to take dust away, and an air seal to
prevent outside air from entering the collector through the discharge end.
of the bags with the air flow and falls into the collector hopper. The dust in then
discharged by various ways and put back into the system (figure 2).
Since whole compartments at a time are purged clean, reverse air units will be
much larger than pulse jet units processing the same amount of gas.
Exhaust Plenum
Clean Air
Flow to Fan
Main Shutoff
Damper
Reverse Air
Damper
Dust collects on the
inside of each bag
Tube sheet
Hopper
Dust discharges
through airlock
Reverse Air
Flow
Reverse Air
back flushes
dust
This compartment
remains in normal
cleaning mode
An air seal of various sorts is located at the discharge point to keep outside air
from flowing back into the collector. The cleaning cycle is repeated on each
compartment until the entire collector has been cleaned and then repeats over
and over. Only one compartment at a time should be cleaning.
1. Check for proper draw. If not proper, check duct work for plugging conditions
and clean obstruction.
2. If not plugged, check fan for proper operation, refer to fan troubleshooting
guide.
3. Fan's operational - check collector hopper. If full, check discharge screw to
inspect if running properly, or refer to screw troubleshooting guide.
4. Hopper's okay, screw running, but collector still not venting; check off/on
switch for each compartment - inspect tagged compartments.
Open compartment doors for visual inspection - seam leaks in the tube
sheet; dirt build-up on the tube sheet; down, ripped or full bags. If needed,
shake bags down. If unable to clean bags or bags are down or ripped, shut
compartment off and notify mechanical maintenance.
Condition:
Condition:
Contact
If all of the above check out okay, notify mechanical maintenance to check
bag permeability or process technician to check collector pressure drop.