To understand the multi-faceted benefits of an industrial dust collection system, consider the example of a recent installation at a hardboard plant. Hardboard, also known as high-density fiberboard, is a an engineered wood product commonly used to make furniture and construction materials. Hardboard manufacturing involves breaking down wood into fibers and then reassembling the pieces to form hard panels. To break down the fibers, the manufacturer must first soften the wood chips by steaming them and then grind the chips between abrading discs to rip apart the wood fibers. During the grinding process, an industrial dust collection system is needed to reclaim airborne wood particles that can be used for other products. Industrial dust collection also helps control potentially harmful particulate emissions from stacks at the plant. In fact, each of the plant’s six cyclone dust collectors safely handles from 5,000 to 22,500 cfm of dirty gas. View our online industrial dust collection demo to see how this technology works.

With increasingly stricter environmental air laws and growing health concerns, plant managers are implementing industrial dust collector systems to keep their facilities up and running—and under budget. A recent article from the Chicago Tribune announced the shutdown of an Indiana-based coal –fired power plant that wasn’t making enough money to support an upgrade that would have maintained its operations in compliance with the federal Clean Air Act. According to the U.S. Environmental Protective Agency’s (EPA) website, “this law authorizes EPA to establish National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) to protect public health and public welfare and to regulate emissions of hazardous air pollutants.”

A double dump valve is an excellent, cost-effective choice for discharging free-flowing material from dust collection equipment, baghouses and hoppers. As its name implies, a double dump valve has two identical chambers that alternate to collect or dispense material. It is specially designed to open only when its internal flap is sealed—thereby maintaining the pressure of your dry material handling system. For applications that require processing relatively large, fibrous or abrasive materials, a double dump valve is a reliable, durable alternative to a rotary valve or knife gate valve that may become jammed or wear out prematurely. The GatorGate double dump valve is constructed of heavy duty carbon steel and because of its simple design, the double dump valve requires little maintenance and has a lower total cost of ownership than many other valves on the market.

When processing dense, free-flowing material like candy powder or granules, many manufacturers may be unaware of how a trickle valve can be a cost-effective replacement of a rotary valve that offers additional benefits. During the mixing and batching processes, some of the sugary powder may become airborne. This sweet particulate is captured by a dust collection system and emptied by a trickle valve where it can be reused or discarded. This type of valve consists of a simple rubber sleeve that requires no lubrication or power source, and has no controls or moving parts. In order to continuously dispense material properly, the trickle valve needs to have a vacuum present in the system. Unlike a rotary valve that has internal components that would be prone to excessive wear during candy production, a trickle valve reliably dispenses the dense material with very little maintenance or human interference required throughout its operational life. And best of all, you can purchase a trickle valve for a fraction of the cost of a rotary valve. To learn more about how a trickle valve works, view our free animated demo.

A knife gate valve is an ideal material handling valve for facilities that process slurry, a thick liquid mixture containing solid particles. At coal-burning power plants, a slurry comprised of pulverized limestone and water is sprayed on smoke emissions to control pollution. To control the flow of limestone slurry, a knife gate valve uses linear motion to move its blade to open or close the passage. The knife gate valve is specially designed to maintain system pressure while closed. Better than a rotary valve in this application, the knife gate valve can effectively handle the abrasiveness of the limestone particles and cut through thick slurry to interrupt flow when needed. According to an article published by GlobalSpec, even when knife gate valves are open, “the diameter through which the process fluid passes is essentially equal to that of the pipe. Hence, they tend to have minimal pressure drop when opened fully.” The StopTight™ Knife Gate Valve from Aerodyne is an excellent choice for handling slurry and a variety of other materials.

Process engineers involved in spray drying must select a reliable material handling valve to maintain smooth, efficient operations. Spray drying is a standard industrial process that involves using heated air to dry materials from a free-flowing fluid until a powder is created. Facilities that handle materials such as food, chemicals, ceramics and pharmaceuticals use this powder to make products for consumers, manufacturers and distributors. During the last stage of spray drying, high-efficiency dust collection equipment is required to gather the powder discharge. Instead of using a traditional rotary valve, consider the following benefits of using a powder-release material-handling valve like the Vacu-Valve® Platypus or Vacu-Valve® Armadillo:

Rotary valve technology is an integral part of the food production industry, especially when processing lightweight, free-flowing material that is in the form of a fine powder or grain. A prime example of this would be food starch, a carbohydrate derived from a variety of grains including corn, wheat, tapioca, rice and potatoes. Among its many applications, food starch is often used by food and beverage manufacturers to improve texture, act as a binding agent, improve stability during processing or extend a product’s shelf life. Plant managers should select a reliable rotary valve for the conveyance or transportation of food starch during manufacturing. A rotary valve is specially designed to effectively dispense collected material without disturbing the vacuum environment of your dust collection system. Its motorized vanes allow food starch to pass through without creating a direct opening between the inlet and outlet sides of the valve. Among the variety of rotary valve options available, the Rhino Rotary R Valve offers exceptional durability, quality and flexibility at a great value.

Dust collection equipment is one of the most important ways to protect the health of expectant mothers and their unborn children. According to a recent article on Baghouse.com, the increased awareness of environmental/industrial pollution coupled with an increased knowledge of fetal health issues has put families on high alert to the dangers of dust pollution. At the highest risk for health problems are pregnant women whose jobs bring them in regular contact with dust particles containing toxic chemicals or heavy metals such as mercury or lead. Exposure to these substances could initiate developmental or behavioral problems in their unborn children that are manifested later in life. Even men who are frequently exposed to air pollutants may take in carcinogens that negatively impact their fertility. To help create the healthiest environment for women of childbearing age and their partners, choose reliable dust collection equipment that is proven to efficiently control and remove harmful dust particles. The SplitStream™ dust collection system uses centrifugal force and unique counter-cyclonic action to efficiently separate out a variety of industrial dust particles. Visit our free online demo to see how this dust collection equipment works.

When most people open a big bag of charcoal briquettes in preparation for a summer barbeque, few probably think about the importance of cyclone dust collectors in the manufacturing process. The briquettes are produced by combining fine granules of charcoal with a natural binding agent and water. Then, the material is extruded to form cylindrical, square or hexagonal shapes. To complete the binding process, the newly formed briquettes must be dried to significantly reduce their moisture content, and then cooled completely before packaging and shipping to distributors. During mixing or extrusion, charcoal dust may become airborne. (Dust may become airborne even earlier in the process when carbonized wood (char) is pulverized during charcoal production.)

A recent discussion on LinkedIn emphasized the value of cyclonic dust collector technology for recovering highly valuable materials in production. The example given was from the manufacturing of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) through drying systems. Using a bag or cartridge filter for this application could result in contamination problems and product hold-up. However, a counter-cyclonic dust collector is specially designed to collect fine, low-density particles with exceptional efficiency and reliability. If you increase the efficiency of your product reclamation—especially when the material is expensive— you dramatically boost the bottom line. An additional economic advantage results because a cyclonic dust collector has no major moving components and requires minimal maintenance. The unique design of the SplitStream™ counter-cyclonic dust collector ensures that a minimal amount of particulate comes in contact with the interior walls, which eliminates excessive wear and makes your investment last longer. The SplitStream can be configured vertically or horizontally, offering additional versatility and ease of installation. To view a free online demo of this innovative, money-saving technology, please visit http://www.dustcollectorhq.com/dustcollectors-demo.html .