Month: May 2016

Ionizing Points: A Good Solution in an Air Ducting System for Textile Processing

Published on by John BallLeave a comment
Model 8299 Ionizing Point
Model 8299 Ionizing Point

Static is all around us. It is caused by non-conductive materials having their electrons “rubbed” from one atom onto another.  With the proliferation of engineered plastics throughout industry static is generated more readily and issues will start to appear when the static voltage gets large enough.  EXAIR has a Static Eliminator product line with many solutions to help solve process issues.

Companies build systems using blowers and fans to generate air flows for various processes. Because of the high noise level normally associated with blowers and fans, they are generally mounted outside or away from the production floor.  To bring the air to the work area, they use ductwork. Systems that involve plastic, wood, glass, or other types of non-conductive material, have a potential for developing static problems.  The Ionizing Points are designed to remove static in small tight areas as well as in air duct systems that already have air moving through them.

I spoke to a customer recently who had a dust collection system in a room where an adhesive is applied to a fabric. The “openness” of the fabric allowed some adhesive to penetrate and land on a 36 inch (0.9 meter) wide conveyor belt.  After the fabric was sprayed, it was conveyed into another room for further processing.  The conveyor belt had to be cleaned continuously to support new fabric as it was being brought in.  The conveying system was long enough to allow the adhesive to dry before it was to receive the next round of material.  The conveyor belt material was such that the adhesive did not stick to it.  (Or so they thought!).  As the adhesive dried, it would “ball up” and harden on the belt and would need to be removed.  To remove the particles, they used a push-pull cleaning method, blowing air through the duct and onto the belt surface to push the dried adhesive into a vacuum hood which pulled the particles into the dust collection system.

The customer started having issues with the contamination level within their fabric. From the nature of how the contamination was acting within the application, the customer had a strong suspicion that static  was causing the contamination issue. The air through the duct could not generate enough lift on the particles for the vacuum system to remove them.  The result was that dried adhesive was transferring onto the fabric.  The customer was concerned that he would have to upgrade his complete push-pull system to continue his production.  He contacted EXAIR for a solution.

Duct mounting
Duct mounting

In reviewing his room parameters, the customer did not have any compressed air lines going into this room.  This narrowed my search in our Static Eliminator product line to our Ionizing Points, which do not require compressed air. He could place them along the end of the duct to generate ions which will eliminate any static charge present and release the adhesive particles.  He purchased eight Ionizing Points and mounted them 4 inches (10 cm) apart.  As the air was exiting the 36 inch (0.9 meter) wide ductwork, it would pick up the ions, remove the static from the conveyor belt and adhesive, and allow the vacuum flow to lift the particles.  The adhesive remnants could then be picked up by the vacuum system as designed.

If your application already has blower or fan systems and you need to remove static, inserting one or more of the Ionizing Points through the duct wall could be a low cost solution to enable reasonable static elimination. If you have an application that you would like to discuss, contact an Application Engineer for help.

John Ball
Application Engineer
Email: johnball@exair.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_jb

Using EXAIR Cabinet Coolers to Replace Fans

Published on by Lee EvansLeave a comment
3050 with qs
Which device is causing the overheating condition?

When an electrical device mounted inside a control panel goes offline due to an overheating condition, it can be difficult to determine which component in the panel is the root cause.  There may be an intermittent heat load from a variable frequency drive that isn’t present when troubleshooting, making things appear to be OK.  Or, the overheating condition may only happen during peak operation on days with high ambient temperatures.

Fortunately, no matter the root cause, an EXAIR Cabinet Cooler can maintain temperature within the enclosure at a desired set-point, eliminating overheating conditions and lost throughput due to downtime.

IMG_3052
We investigate to determine what is housed inside of our customer’s electrical control panels.

When calculating heat load, EXAIR Application Engineers consider the components within the control panel.  We inquire with our customers regarding devices such as VFD’s, which may lead to temperature spikes, or fans, which actively remove heat (albeit that they often force dirt and debris into the enclosures they’re designed to be cooling).

IMG_3053
To accurately calculate heat load, we require the diameter of any fans installed on the enclosure.

Fans can be particularly important, because with the installation of any EXAIR Cabinet Cooler, all external fans will need to be removed, and their openings will need to be sealed (internal fans can remain in place).  So, this means we have to account for any heat the fans may already be removing from the application, even if it isn’t enough to keep the enclosure cool.

IMG_3051
Measure any fans used to bring ambient air into the enclosure.

In order to determine the amount of heat a fan is removing from an application, we consider the diameter of the fan, which corresponds to a typical air flow volume in CFM (cubic feet per minute).  We then consider that 1 BTU/hr. is the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one pound of water by 1 degree Fahrenheit, and it is also the amount of heat needed to raise/lower the temperature of one cubic foot of air by 1 degree Fahrenheit in one minute.  This means that for every CFM the fan is moving, we are reducing the temperature of the air by 1°F .  To put it another way, we remove 1 BTU/hr. for every °F * every CFM the fan is moving.

As an example, a 3″ fan will move 22 CFM.  In an enclosure with a current temperature differential of 15 degrees Fahrenheit, this fan is removing 330 BTU/hr.

15°F * 22 CFM = 330°F*CFM

15°F

 x 22 CFM X 1 Btu/hr = 330 Btu/hr

CFM °F

The fans holes should be covered up with sheet metal using rivets, caulk/sealant, duct tape or other ingenious methods you know of. But please cover and seal the cabinet as well as you can.

Using the Cabinet Cooler Sizing Guide and the experience of the EXAIR Application Engineers, we can accurately calculate heat load of an overheating electrical control panel.  When you need help with determining which Cabinet Cooler to use, contact an EXAIR Application Engineer.  We’re here to help.

Lee Evans
Application Engineer
LeeEvans@EXAIR.com
@EXAIR_LE

 

A Unique Application For An Air Knife? – Our Custom Solutions Have You Covered

Published on by Russ BowmanLeave a comment

The EXAIR Super Air Knife is the best compressed air operated blow off product ever made. That’s a bold statement, but we can stand behind it:

*They’re the quietest and most efficient on the market. We’ve tested them rigorously, and have verified data from actual users who have replaced competitors’ product with them.
*They come in (16) sizes, from 3 inches to 9 feet in length.  And they can be coupled together for even greater lengths.
*We make them in different materials:

  • Durable, lightweight aluminum for a variety of general purpose applications
  • Type 303 Stainless Steel for environments subject to chemically corrosive elements; also good for temperatures to 800F (427C)
  • Type 316 Stainless Steel for even higher corrosion resistance and strength. Ideal for food, pharmaceutical and surgical product applications.
  • PVDF (with PTFE shims & Hastelloy hardware) for the most aggressive environments: electroplating, solar cell manufacturing, lithium ion batters, caustics, brines, etc.

*We have them in inventory, ready to ship quickly. All of them.

As the title intimates, calls regarding “unique applications” are fairly common, and the Super Air Knife provides a great solution to many of them.  Consider these situations:

*A machine builder had to fit an air knife in a 43″ channel.  We had it covered: we made them a custom (non-stock) 43″ 303SS Super Air Knife and shipped it in three days.
*A user needed 15″ (and only 15″) of air flow.  A Model 110018 18″ Aluminum Super Air Knife, off the shelf, would provide an “overflow” which would disturb product in the vicinity of the blow off.  We had it covered…a custom shim can be made to provide 15″ (and only 15″) of air flow out of an 18″ Super Air Knife.  It only takes a couple of days to get the special shim. We can make shims to center the airflow, keep it all on one side of the knife, have it come out two separate areas etc.

We’ve also made a variety of special Air Knives, when more than just length is a consideration.  So, even if your application is “Unique” (with a capital “U”,) it’s very likely that we still have you Covered (with a capital “C”.)  If you don’t believe me, give us a call.  We’ve got you covered.

Russ Bowman
Application Engineer
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Time is running out…

Published on by exaircorpLeave a comment

Traditional electrically powered vacuums have unreliable motors that wear out over time. When this occurs, the vacuum is rendered useless and needs to be replaced. With EXAIR’s Industrial Housekeeping Products being compressed air operated, there are no motors or moving parts to wear out, so provided you are supplying clean, dry air, the units are virtually maintenance free.

For liquid handling applications, we offer our Reversible Drum Vac Systems and Chip Trapper Systems. Also available in our High Lift versions, providing higher suction lift, up to 180″ H2O.

When it comes to solids handling applications, we offer the Chip Vac and Heavy Duty Dry Vac Systems. The Heavy Duty Dry Vac is constructed of a hardened alloy to provide superior abrasion resistance.

In dusty applications we recommend our Heavy Duty HEPA Vac providing filtration meeting HEPA requirements of 99.97% filtration at 0.3 micron.

As the month of May is quickly coming to an end, so is our current promotional offer. From now through May 31, 2016 if you purchase one of our Industrial Housekeeping Products, we’ll include a FREE Vac-u-Gun with your order! (remember to use the promotional model number)

FREE Vac-u-Gun

The Vac-u-Gun is a useful, handheld tool that can be used to vacuum dry media and deliver it to a collection bag or to transfer material from one location to another area or collection device. If you would rather blowoff the material from a surface, you can do that too as the unit features a nozzle insert that can be quickly reversed which will change it from a vacuum gun, to a powerful blow gun all while using just a fraction of compressed air when compared to other handheld air guns at only 13 SCFM @ 80 PSIG supply. There are no moving parts to where out or electricity required so the unit is virtually maintenance free.

Vac-u-Gun
For vacuuming and/or blowoff in a single, handy tool.

Here is a short video showing how the Vac-u-Gun operates:


To take advantage of this offer and get this FREE useful tool, you can call in your order to 800-903-9247, email your order to orders@exair.com or order online at http://www.EXAIR.com. Just remember to use the promotional model number when ordering.

Justin Nicholl
Application Engineer
justinnicholl@exair.com
@EXAIR_JN