How to keep them performing at a high level while maintaining your regulatory obligations.
Industrial operators will often rely on industrial dust collectors so they can keep employees and the working environment to meet regulatory compliance and, more importantly, keep employee working conditions as safe as possible. In this article, we are are going to explore the many ways that we can make sure that the dust collector operation is functioning as expected and performing at a top safety level. We will be talking mainly about deflagration and how to manage them.
Use deflagration protection on the industrial dust collectors
In cases where an installed dust collector will be handling dust that is deemed combustible, it must be noted that the dust collector have to be equipped with deflagration protection. A passive, commonly used and efficient way is by venting. It will be assured that a vent made especially for explosions will open when significant pressure is reached inside the collector. The pressure have to be predetermined and the protection adjusted as part of its installation. This vent will allow the excessive pressure and any fires that it brings along with it from the deflagration to exit harmlessly towards a safe area.
The parts of the flameless vent will consist of a casing that will include a panel of extreme heat resistant mesh that will absorb the blunt of the heat and flame. The setup will be deployed over a an explosion vent following a strict standard that the regulatory institutions will impose. Should a flaming explosion occur, these vents are designed to open to release the pressure due to the rising temperature and fireball into the casing. The layers of mesh installed along with it will divert the the heat and flame onto itself and allow a part of the pressure wave to harmlessly pass back into the working environment without endangering any of the workers’ lives of the equipment. The installation will give the option of traditional venting to be done while inside the industrial building where it could not endanger any of the working personnel and prevent any further explosions due to secondary ignitions. It is worth noting however that in the context of industrial dust collection, other modes of protection does exist. It is best to have experts take a look at your setup so they can recommend you with the product that best suits your needs.
Keep a keen eye on pressure capacity
To understand the pressure capacity of the dust collector is vital in the choosing of the correct vent size. To compare the strength of venting vessel to the strength of deflagration and vent burst pressure is the important factor that needs to be figured for an effective deflagration protection.
The ductwork needs protection
The authorities behind fire protection will often require industries to protect the ductwork and other safety processes out of the industrial dust collector. You have to ensure that ducting will be equipped with a flow activated isolation valve that can protect downstream work vicinity and processes from the possible scattering flames and any rise in pressure through the intake duct when fires and explosions occurs in a dust collector.
Should deflagration occur inside the dust collector, an unavoidable pressure wave will lock up the valve and prevent any passage of fires or smoke to areas beyond the working area of the valve. The valve will close shut and will then have to be manually opened by personnel. If initialized, the components of the valve may suffer significant damage and to proceed, a thorough inspection have to be performed. This is all necessary before to returning the valve back into operation.
Keep dust off the hoppers
An industrial dust collector hopper must never be used to accumulate dust. The hopper’s only intended purpose is to direct process dust to a storage bin that is designed for that purpose. The dust that is stored in a hopper will build up and can be a potential fire hazard or high deflagration risk. Additionally, the dust in the hopper can also deteriorate the collector’s performance by impeding the system and stopping the pulse-cleaning from doing performing its job. Some hoppers have the ability to “self-dump” which may prove useful by allowing an easy way to dispose dust while keeping any unwanted dust leakage between the collector and hopper.
Install pulse-cleaning controls
An industrial dust collector cleaning system is designed to work specifically with a filter design. There are ways wherein a selective cleaning control will provide an easy, maintenance friendly way to keep filters free from dirt.
There are instances when continuous cleaning will be more suited for dust that are considered porous. This instance includes dust that are imbued with minerals such as silica. Other possible occurrence may include high dust loading applications like thermal spray or plasma cutting, or lighter dust such as paper fines and fumed silica.
Spot cleaning may be a relevant option for most dust types. The standard setting will monitor the pressure variations across the section with clean air and the section with dirty air that will then be filtered by the collector. This will allow the industrial personnel to input a small range of pressure difference to initialize or stop the cartridge cleaning process. The setting will use a minimal amount of pressurized air and will provide an optimum filter cleaning efficiency and will allow the filter stay at operation longer.
When the industrial dust collector is currently shut down, cleaning will allow for a period based pulsing at the end of a plant shift. After which, the completion of the batch processes after an upset condition may affect the filter’s ability to catch dust. When the cleaning period is already done, the unit will have to be completely shut off. This is vital for the operation simply because when the cartridges are over-cleaned during operation, it will cause higher emissions, shorter cartridge life and less efficiency because of the overuse of pressurized air.