Here on the EXAIR Blog you’ll often find a host of applications and discussion centered around static electricity during the fall and winter months. The reason for this is that during periods of lower humidity, it’s much easier for static to build up and pose problems for a variety of industrial processes. During the summer, higher levels of humidity “coat” the atoms of a molecule and reduce the amount of static buildup.
With that being said, just because it’s right in the middle of summer where humidity levels are rather high doesn’t mean all static problems go away. Some applications generate such a high level of static that they require a solution year-round. Such was the case for a recent customer that manufactures a wide variety of various styles of cans and cups used by the food industry.
For a new process for one of their customers, they apply a wax to the coil stock using an electrostatic waxer in front of their cupper lines. The waxers run at -20Kv to charge the atomized wax particles to attract to the positive charge on the coil stock. The coil stock then carries a residual charge as high as 18Kv and in less than a minute would immediately cling to their cupper die press. Without a solution for removing the static, they were unable to run this machine.
The coil stock width ranges from about 33-34” and carried a charge on either side of the material. The recommended solution was to install (2) of our Model 112036” Super Ion Air Knives just in front of the material’s entry into the cupper die on top and bottom of the coil stock. They were up against a firm deadline to get material completed and to their customer. A delay in other components had pushed them right up against their commitment to deliver finished cans to their customer, something we’re all becoming all to common with nowadays.
Fortunately for them, EXAIR had the parts available and in stock. We shipped them out the very same day for next day early AM delivery. They had them up and installed before lunch and production was resumed. At a time where it seems everything is out of stock for a number of reasons, EXAIR is still shipping orders out same day. If you need a solution, and you need it fast, give us a call.
Tyler Daniel
Application Engineer
E-mail: TylerDaniel@EXAIR.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_TD