The pharmaceutical industry has unique requirements that normal industrial applications do not have. Whether it’s the strict FDA rules or the flexibility of batch production, normal industrial practices and equipment don’t always apply. Even with continuous production becoming more popular, pharmaceutical applications are different than standard industrial applications.
This is the case in dust control. FDA rules require drug companies to account for products and normal dust collectors (baghouses and cartridge collectors) retain a portion of the dust in the filters. This prevents accurate batch reconciliation. Standard cyclones are tall bulky units that don’t easily fit inside the building, let alone a clean room. Cyclones do offer a great way to collect exhaust dust for batch reconciliation without contamination and loss.
Aerodyne has just the sort of cyclone that the pharmaceutical industry needs. The GPC cyclone is a compact design that may allow it to be installed indoors or even inside clean rooms. The GPC has six sizes under 8 ft3 (maximum airflow 2100 ACFM). Per NFPA-654 7.13.1.1.2 (2), air separators with a dirty side volume less than 8 ft3 can be located indoors. Aerodyne offers carbon steel and stainless steel cyclones, with options such as polished welds, electro-polishing, and quick-clean flanges.
Aerodyne also offers a bag in/bag out airlock valve for dust collectors. The valve allows for easy batch reconciliation, especially when located inside the clean room, near production. That way the operator doesn’t need to clean and change clothes to gather the dust.