Filtration and loading characteristics of granular bed filters

The purpose of this study was to investigate the filtration and loading characteristics of granular bed filters. Stainless steel holders (diameter 71.6 mm, height 70 mm) were fabricated to accommodate 500 g of zirconium oxide (ZrO₂) beads, as the packed media of granular bed. Monodisperse ZrO₂ granules (0.3, 0.8, 2 and 4 mm in diameter) were used to demonstrate the effect of the granule size and packing geometry on both pressure drop and aerosol penetration. From the filter quality perspective, the selection of the ‘best” filter is complicated. Assuming a low face velocity (e.g., 0.58 cm/s), large granule size is more cost-effective because of the higher filter quality factor. The phenomenon implies that the gain in filtration efficiency due to larger surface area (of small granules in the filter) did not compensate for the increase in air resistance. After the cake formation point, the dust cake on glass fiber filter became compressed. This dust cake compaction caused the pressure to drop precipitously and intermittently. In contrast, the rate of increase in pressure drop of the dust cake formed on the granular bed filters decreased with time probably due to the pinhole channels in the increasing mass load. The size and density of the pinholes are determined by the granule size, the face velocity and the size of the challenge aerosols.     

Effect of Bi-Modal Aerosol Mass Loading on the Pressure Drop for Gas Cleaning Industrial Filters

The typical size distribution of emission particulates is bi-modal in shape with particles in the fine mode (< 2.0 w m) and the coarse mode. An experimental study of pressure drop across industrial gas cleaning filters has been conducted using a particle mixture of fine alumina and coarse Arizona dusts with a rotating aerosol disperser to generate the bi-modal test aerosol. Pressure drop increased linearly with increasing mass loading. The pressure drop was found to be strongly dependent upon the mass ratio of fine to coarse particles. The measured specific resistances of HEPA filters at a given face velocity of 5 cm/s were 1.18 2 10 6 , 5.89 2 10 5 , 4.67 2 10 5 , 2.65 2 10 5 , and 1.18 2 10 5 s -1 for the mass ratio of fine to coarse particles of fine only, 50%:50%, 25%:75%, 10%:90%, and coarse particles only, respectively. The pressure drop across the loaded filter increased with increasing face velocity. The larger the mass ratio of fine to coarse particles and the higher the face velocity are, the faster pressure drop rises. The fine particles and the greater inertia of the particle moving fast would cause a denser cake formation on the filter surface, resulting in a greater specific resistance to the gas flow.     

Performance of fibrous filters during nanoparticle cake formation

Fibrous filters are highly efficient in removing micrometer particles, but their performance in the nanometer particle range is still little known. The aim of this study was to evaluate pressure drop and collection efficiency during nanoparticles cake formation using commercial fibrous filters. The filter media used were High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) and polyester filters. The aerosols were generated by a commercial inhaler using a 5 g/L solution of NaCl and the particles produced were in the size range from 6 to 800 nm, with a peak at around 40 nm. A superficial velocity (v_s) of 0.06 m/s was employed. During the filtration, the maximum pressure drop established was ?P ₌ ?P_f +980Pa, where ?P_f is the initial pressure drop of the filter. The collection efficiency was determined for a clean filter and for intermediate pressure drops. The filtration curves obtained showed that the HEPA filter provided greater surface filtration, compared to the polyester filter. Comparison of the collection efficiencies for clean filters revealed that the HEPA filter was highly efficient, even in the absence of cake, while the polyester filter showed initial collection efficiencies of between 20 and 40% for particles in the size range from 100 nm to 1000 nm. However, after formation of the filter cake, the collection efficiencies of both filters were almost 100% during the final stage of filtration. This shows that the fibrous filter can be applied in several industrial processes with highly efficient nanoparticle separation, after the formation of a thin layer cake filtration.     

Collection efficiency of sintered ceramic filters made of submicron spheres

The performance of filters made of sintered submicron alumina particles was evaluated. The filter has a high collection efficiency and high pressure drop, requiring the development of a special measuring system for its evaluation. The system consists of a polydisperse NaCl particle generator, a differential mobility analyzer (DMA), an ejector to supply aerosols for testing filters with high pressure drop, and a mixing-type condensation nucleus counter (CNC) capable of obtaining a stable reading of very low concentration particles. Penetrations as low as 10⁻⁹ can be measured in the particle diameter range of 0.02-0.14 μm. Two filters made by sintering 0.60 and 0.84 μm alumina particles were evaluated. The experimental data collected served as the basis of theoretical development. Following the single fibre theory, the filter penetration is calculated by using a single sphere as the element. Both the diffusion and interception collection mechanisms were taken into account. The resulting equation gives a general trend of efficiency curves as a function of the parameters involved, e.g. the test aerosol size, packed particle size and filtration velocity. However, it is not sufficiently accurate for providing quantitative performance results.     

Modeling instantaneous pressure drop of pleated thin filter media during dust loading

In this paper, we present a modeling methodology for studying the effects of dust loading on the pressure drop across pleated filters. Our simulations demonstrate that there exists an optimum pleat count for clean filters at which pressure drop reaches a minimum regardless of the in-plane or through-plane orientation of the fibers. With the particle deposition included in the analysis, our results indicated that the rate of increase in pressure drop decreases with increase in the pleat count. We demonstrated that a higher pleat count results in a higher flow velocity inside the pleat channels causing more non-uniformity in the dust deposition across the pleat. Especially when particles are sufficiently large, the dust cake tends to form deeper inside the pleated channel when the pleat count is high. This effect is observed to be less pronounced when the pleats have a triangular shape. We also showed that if the dust cake permeability is higher than that of the filters fibrous media, the rate of increase in pressure drop does not always decrease with increase in the pleat count. Finally, by comparing filters having 15 pleats per inch, we observed that rectangular pleats are preferred over the triangular pleats when the particles are highly inertial, i.e., filtering high-speed large particles. When particle's inertia is small, our results indicate that triangular pleats cause less pressure drop, and so are recommended.     

A lab-scale study on the humidity conditioning of flue gas for improving fabric filter performance

A centrifugal separator was constructed to examine the effect of flue gas humidity on the adhesional force between fabric and collected dust. A lab-scale fabric filter sampling system (FFSS) was also manufactured by using a piece of flat fabric as a sample of bag material. In addition, an automatic control system for gas humidity was devised and installed in the FFSS, and, then, the following effects were studied: (i) the influence of gas humidity on the adhesional force between fabric and dust particles; (ii) the influence of gas humidity on the performance of fabric filter in terms of pressure drop, ΔP, dust removal efficiency, η, and specific cake resistance, K′₂; (iii) the variations in the composite-performance indices with gas humidity; and (iv) the influence of gas humidity on cleaning of dust-cake in terms of effective residual pressure drop. The main objectives were to determine the minimum and maximum values for the gas humidity range and to find the appropriate conditions for dust cleaning in terms of the critical value of effective residual pressure drop.     

颗粒沉积量对细颗粒层清灰力和清灰效率的影响

采用中径3.31 mm的细颗粒在PPS普通滤料和涤纶覆膜滤料表面形成不同沉积量的颗粒层,用缓慢增加反吹气流和低压脉冲清灰的方法进行清灰测试. 随着颗粒层沉积量增加,颗粒层低压脉冲清灰的效率均提高,缓慢反吹的清灰力也呈减小趋势. 涤纶覆膜滤料表面颗粒层沉积量从200 g/m2增长到401 g/m2时,平均清灰应力从350 N/m2降到100 N/m2,比PPS滤料低90 N/m2以上. PPS滤料上低压脉冲清灰效率随颗粒层沉积量的增加线性增加,涤纶覆膜滤料上颗粒层沉积量超过200 g/m2时非线性快速增加,缓慢反吹产生的颗粒层碎片均随着颗粒层沉积量增加而增大.     

Granular-bed filtration assisted by filter cake formation 3. Penetration of filter cakes by a monodisperse aerosol

For several types of granular solids (sands, silicon carbide and copper shot), penetrations have been measured for a monodisperse aerosol (1.1 μm Dow microspheres) passing through fly ash deposited upon horizontal surfaces of the solids. Fractional penetrations can run as low as 10⁻⁵. Pressure drop data for dust cake/granular medium combinations are also given. The data illustrate significance of dust autohesivitiy and dust/granular solid adhesivity for granular-bed filtration assisted by dust cake formation.     

Experimental investigation into compression properties of integrated coal gasification combined cycle fly ashes on a ceramic filter

The compression properties of IGCC (integrated coal gasification combined cycle) fly ash cake on a ceramic filter were carefully investigated under well-controlled conditions. Overall cake porosity and pressure drop of dust cake of three different particles of geometric mean diameters of 3.7, 6.2, and 12.1 Μm, and dynamic shape factors of 1.37, 1.57 and 1.65, respectively, were investigated, at face velocities of 0.02-0.06 m/s. Overall cake porosity was strongly dependent on face velocity, mass load, and particle size. The expressions for overall cake porosity, considering the compression effect, and pressure drop across the dust cake were developed with good agreement with experimental results.     

气固并流式轴向移动床过滤器的压降特性

通过冷模实验,改变移动床表观气速、颗粒循环速率、入口气体含尘浓度等操作参数,研究了轴向移动床过滤器的压降特性和合适的操作条件,结合移动床内气固两相运动特点,修正了Ergun公式,在加尘条件下分析了床内滤饼对压降稳定性的影响。结果表明,在无尘负荷条件下(“纯”移动床操作),颗粒的循环速率由0增至2.26 kg/(m2?s)时,设备的压降减小0.03 kPa。表观气速为0.126 m/s、入口气体含尘浓度为89.10 g/m3时,移动床内滤饼形成和破损呈动态平衡,过滤500 s后,压降可稳定在0.88 kPa,此时设备具有较高的除尘性能,粉尘捕集效率可达96%以上。     

Experimental Study on the Effect of Fiber Orientation on Filter Quality

Most filtration models assume that the air stream runs perpendicularly to the orientation of the filter fibers. However, cigarette filters remove aerosol particles apparently by a different filter configuration in that the fiber orientation almost parallels the air streamlines. To focus on the effect of fiber orientation, cellulose acetate filters were used in this work to facilitate the filter performance comparison. A piece of original round cigarette filter was molded to form a cube. The same piece of filter was used for both perpendicular and parallel orientations, to avoid the variability caused by the non-uniform filter media distribution. DOP aerosol particles used in the tests were generated by either a constant output aerosol nebulizer or an ultrasonic atomizing nozzle. A Po-210 radiation source was used to neutralize the challenge aerosols to the Boltzmann charge equilibrium. A scanning mobility particle sizer (for < 0.8 μm) and an aerodynamic particle sizer (for > 0.8 μm) were used to measure aerosol number concentrations and size distributions upstream and downstream of the cigarette filters. The results showed that parallel and orthogonal filters behave similarly. However, the pressure drop across parallel filter was lower than for the perpendicular filter, indicating that the airflow is more laminar passing through the parallel filters. Possibly for the same reason, aerosol penetration through parallel filter was higher than the orthogonal filter, although the difference may not be statistically significant. When a comparison of the fiber orientation is based on filter quality, orthogonal filter performs better than parallel filter, if face velocity is lower than 60 cm/s. Parallel filter performs better only when the particles are smaller than the most penetrating size and under high face velocity.     

Die Abscheidung von Partikeln aus Gasen in Faserfiltern

Particle collection by fibrous filters . Technically employed fibre filters can be classified according to their construction and application in two major groups: deep bed filters and fabric filters. Approaches to the calculation of the collection efficiency for both types of filters start from a clean nondusted filter layer. From this one examines only the initial state, which is especially critical, while the degree of collection as a rule becomes better with increasing dust accumulation. Various models are available for the calculation of the pressure drop. The initial pressure drop for deep bed filters can be calculated with the help of the resistance model. Especially important are those estimates, which for purification filters describe the pressure drop or the gas flow with increasing dust accumulation, because these equations can serve directly for the dimensioning of filter plants. Of courese, characteristic permeability values for filter fabric and dust layer must be determined beforehand. The possibilities and problems of these calculations, as well as open questions, will be discussed.     

Enhancing the performance of fibrous filters by means of acoustic waves

The influence of low-frequency acoustic waves on the operating time of fibrous filters was investigated experimentally. It was found that the application of acoustic waves can dramatically extend the operating time of fibrous filters. The experiments indicate that at frequencies of 50–1000 Hz and sound pressure levels of 110–130 dB the operating time of fibrous filters increases 2–10 times, as compared to filtration without acoustics. The effect is more pronounced at lower frequencies and higher sound intensities. A simple theoretical model shows that, because of secondary acoustic streaming, the aerosol particles moving toward the filter surface are deflected toward the deposited particles, resulting in increased voids and a more porous structure of the filter cake, which in turn leads to a lower pressure drop across the filter. This conjecture is supported by pictures of the filter cake surface.     

Penetration of Monodisperse,Singly Charged Nanoparticles through Polydisperse Fibrous Filters

The article presents experimental results and theoretical analysis of aerosol nanoparticle penetration through fibrous filters with a broad fiber diameter distribution. Four fibrous filters were produced using the melt-blown technique. The analysis of the filters’ SEM images indicated that they had log-normal fiber diameter distribution. Five kinds of proteins and two types of silica particles were generated by electrospraying and were then classified using a Parallel Differential Mobility Analyzer to obtain well-defined, monodisperse, singly charged challenge aerosols with diameters ranging from 6.3 to 27.2 nm. Particle penetration through the filters was determined using a water-based CPC. Experimental results were compared first with predictions derived from the classical theory of aerosol filtration. It is demonstrated that it is inappropriate to apply it to the arithmetic mean fiber diameter, as this results in turn in a huge underestimation of nanoparticle penetration. A better, but still unsatisfactory agreement is observed when that theory was used together with the pressure drop equivalent fiber diameter or when the Kirsch model of nonuniform fibrous media was applied. We show that the classical theory applied to any fixed fiber diameter predicts a stronger dependence of nanoparticle penetration on the Peclet number as compared to experimental data. All these observations were successfully explained by using our original partially segregated flow model that accounts for the filter fiber diameter distribution. It was found that the parameter of aerosol segregation intensity inside inhomogeneous filters increases with the increase in particle size, when the convective transport becomes more pronounced in comparison to the diffusive one.     

Effect of solid monodisperse particles on the pressure drop of fibrous filters

The increase in pressure drop across glass HEPA filters has been measured as a function of particle mass loading using polystyrene latex particles (PSL). PSL particles in several different sizes were generated as challenge aerosols. For each particle size distribution, the specific resistance (K₂) was calculated by measuring the mass of PSL particles loaded per unit area of filter and the pressure drop across the filters at a given filtration velocity. In all cases, the specific resistance of the filter cake increased as the aerodynamic mean particle diameter decreased at the same mass loading. This correlation equation was modified by using the lognormal conversion method suggested by Raabe [1971] for a polydisperse particle size distribution; then the modified equation was expressed as a function of geometric mean particle diameter and standard deviation which could be obtained by the measuring instruments (PDS 3603; TSI Inc.). The advantage of this approach over other methods is the use of a more convenient prediction of pressure drop, if we know the geometric mean particle diameter and standard deviation, which could be easily measured. The values of porosities, obtained from the pressure drop responses of loading in the filters using the Rundnick and First equation, were compared with other researches.     

Assessment of surface and depth filters by filter quality

This paper reviews the concept of filter quality (q_F) for dust filtration media composed of different structures: metal fiber beds (MFB), fabric filters (BF), and fly ash filters (FAF). Filter quality is a useful index of the filtration performance, which incorporates both pressure drop and filtration efficiency. Major parameters affecting the filter quality are filtration velocity in the range of 0.06-0.19 m/s, dust loading, porosity of the medium in the range of 75-93%, and internal structure of the medium. The experimental observation showed that filter quality decreased with increasing filtration velocity or dust concentration. A unique increase in filter quality during the initial stage of filtration appeared with the FAF as a result of the predominately surface filtration with less pore clogging. Nevertheless, the filter quality cannot be taken as an absolute indicator of filter performance, but rather it should be used just as a reference parameter depending on operating conditions. The results of this work show that fly ash filters are capable of providing more stable performance, particularly during the initial stage of filtration, and thereafter of a certain time filter quality initiates to decline as other filters.     

Clogging of fibrous filters by liquid aerosol particles: Experimental and phenomenological modelling study

Fibrous filters are the most common means used to separate liquid aerosol particles from an industrial gas stream. The pressure drop and penetration (=1-efficiency) are the most important performance criteria of the filter. In this study, experimental and modelling results describing the pressure drop and penetration evolution of a glass microfibre HEPA filter are presented. For the experimental part, the pressure drop and penetration evolutions of a HEPA filter are described as well as the influence of the filtration velocity on those evolutions. For the modelling part, the physical collection mechanisms taken into account and their mathematical expressions which are the basis of the phenomenological model are described in a first step. After that the experimental values are compared to their modelled counterparts. Different efficiency models from the literature have been tested in order to determine the one closest to the experimental values. The influence of the filtration velocity on the model is studied in the last part. The model presented here is capable of describing the pressure drop and penetration evolution of a HEPA filter over the whole filtration period.     

Performance characteristics of air intake pleated panel filters for internal combustion engines in a two-stage configuration

Previous numerical studies that have used computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and experimental software to address the effects of the geometric parameters of pleats on the pressure drop and air flow rate through a fibrous filter are analyzed. The analysis establishes that using a test dust with gradually smaller particle sizes (10, 5, and 1?μm) results in a more intense increase in the filter pressure drop, thus decreasing the service life of the filter. The benefits of using a multicyclone as the first stage of air filtration are discussed. Selecting the air filter by determining the active surface of the filter medium A_c based on the allowable filtration rate is not sufficient; to select the filter medium of a motor vehicle air filter, the dust mass retained per unit of filtration area (mass loading of dust k_m) must be known for a specific allowable pressure drop Δp_fdop. New methods and conditions for determining the mass loading of dust k_m for filter paper and non-woven fabric in single-stage and two-stage filtration systems are presented. The characteristics of the separation efficiency and filtration performance as well as the pressure drop of a filter set comprising a single cyclone and a filter element with a specific filter medium surface are determined. The effects of the particle size distribution of the dust in the air downstream of the cyclone on the mass loading of dust k_m of the filter paper and non-woven fabric in a two-stage filtration system are presented. The mileage of a truck fitted with a single-stage or two-stage filtration system in a “multicyclone–panel filter” configuration is estimated based on the calculated mass loading of dust k_m of the filter paper and non-woven fabric.

© 2018 American Association for Aerosol Research     

陶瓷过滤管表面粉尘层清除过程的图像分析

Based on the analysis of high-speed video images, the detachment behavior of dust cake from the ceramic candle filter surface during pulse cleaning process is investigated. The influences of the dust cake loading,the reservoir pressure, and the filtration velocity on the cleaning effectiveness are analyzed. Experimental results show that there exists an optimum dust cake thickness for pulse-cleaning process. For thin dust cake, the patchy cleaning exists and the cleaning efficiency is low; if the dust cake is too thick, the pressure drop across the dust cake becomes higher and a higher reservoir pressure may be needed. At the same time there also exists an optimum reservoir pressure for a given filtration condition.     

Distributions of age, thickness and gas velocity in the cake of jet pulsed filters—application and validation of a generations filter model

Different imperfections are observed with jet pulsed filters. They manifest themselves most obviously in the curve of the pressure drop versus time. A convex pressure drop curve indicates cake compaction. But jet pulsed filters frequently show a concave rise of the pressure drop curve. This phenomenon is due to a strongly nonuniform cake area load on the filter and it is generally attributed to incomplete cake removal. Incomplete cake removal takes place when only a fraction of the total filter area is cleaned at the end of a filter cycle or when patchy cleaning prevails. Patchy cleaning means that a jet pulse removes the entire filter cake of only a fraction of the exposed filter area except for a thin adhesive dust layer.In this paper a filter model is proposed in which the different classes of cake thickness are understood to result from different cake generations. A cake becomes one generation older when it survives the jet pulse cleaning at the end of a filtration cycle, although the area that is occupied by the cake on the filter medium is diminished by the jet pulse.This generations filter model can be used to find the distributions of age, thickness and gas velocities in the cake from steady-state operational data. The steady-state, periodic model provides a complete basis for the simulation of heterogeneous gas/solid reactions in the cake of jet pulsed filters.In the model intermediate cake build up during the cleaning procedure is considered. There redeposition of removed filter cake also takes place, and its extent is estimated. The model can also serve to determine from macroscopic process data, if the cleaning system of a filter installation operates in the undesirable mode of patchy cleaning.Experiments from a pilot plant for dry flue gas cleaning are presented and the generations filter model is validated with the experimental data.