An Experimental Investigation for Agglomeration of Aerosols in Alternating Electric Fields

Electrostatic precipitators have a relatively low efficiency for the collection of submicron particles. One way to increase their efficiency is to enforce the agglomeration and thereby form larger particles. In this work, a study has been initiated for enhancing the agglomeration between oppositely charged particles by using an alternating electric field to increase the relative motion between such particles. A simple first order computer model was developed for establishing the magnitude of agglomeration and for characterizing the interdependence of different parameters of importance. A laboratory experimental unit was established for studying various practical configurations for agglomeration in alternating electric field, using finely dispersed limestone powder. For the measurements of particle size distributions, a Berner Low Pressure Impactor was used. The preliminary results have shown a 50% reduction in the mass concentration of submicron particles, for oppositely charged particles in an alternating electric field. On the other hand, no agglomeration was measured by the use of a quadrupole field.