The image above shows one step in the process of disposable diaper manufacturing.  In this step of the process, the absorbent material is ground through a mill on the top of the “bunker” where it falls down a shaft and onto a mesh screen.  Once on the mesh screen, the material is repressed into the proper size and shape for placing into the diapers.

This manufacturer contacted one of our Russian distributors about the application because the milling of the absorbent material was creating static.  This static caused the material to adhere to the walls of the bunker chute and to unevenly distribute onto the mesh.  This unevenness leads to holes in the pressed/shaped absorbent material which translates to a reject rate of ~1 out of every 20 diapers.

The ideal solution in this case needed to eliminate the static within the chute to allow for proper distribution on the mesh below and proper material placement into the diapers.  An Ion Bar was originally desired by the customer, but material accumulation on the emitter points was a concern so this solution was removed from consideration.

An Ion Air Cannon, however, was able to provide the desired solution by mounting outside of the chute and feeding a low volume of ionized air to remove the static.  The ionized airflow from the Ion Air Cannon is strong enough to permeate the full volume of the application, but low enough to not disturb the absorbent material within the process. Using an Ion Air Cannon allowed this manufacturer to eliminate defects and wasted materials, increase their throughput, and improve the quality of their products.  Defects dropped from 1/20 diapers to less than 1/1000.

If you have a similar application or similar needs, contact an EXAIR Application Engineer.

Lee Evans
Application Engineer
LeeEvans@EXAIR.com
@EXAIR_LE