Water filtration snuffs hazards of industrial dust
The potentially explosive dust resulting from metal finishing operations is a major concern among fabricators today, not only due to safety hazards but also because recent changes in NFPA regulations have toughened compliance.
The grinding and sanding of metal work pieces produces fine metallic dust that – even after filtration – can be exposed to sparks and result in smoldering, catching fire or even a dust explosion in circumstances when ordinary dry dust collection methods are used. The situation becomes even more hazardous when the dust from certain metals is “mixed” in a dry collection system. Mixing aluminum and steel dust, for example, is an accident waiting to happen.
Combustible metals that are common in manufacturing and machining operations include aluminum, lithium, magnesium, niobium, tantalum, titanium, zirconium and even cold rolled steel.
By switching to wet collectors, many companies are upgrading their protection against dust fires and also improving air quality for workers at the same time. Some wet collection systems can also be customized to improve ergonomics for workers by positioning work pieces at more comfortable levels or facilitating access of hoisting equipment that eliminates the need of workers to lift heavy items. Such improvements may also lead to improved production flow.
Another advantage of many wet dust collection units is that they filter explosive dust directly into water in-plant, thus eliminating another potential hazard site at the duct. These devices comply with federal regulations (NFPA and OSHA) without interfering with manufacturing processes.
“We switched most of our dry dust collectors to wet ones,” says Terry Graham, Equipment Engineering Specialist at Bell Helicopter, Fort Worth, TX. “Because we work with a variety of materials, including metals like steel, titanium, magnesium and aluminum, the wet collectors will improve our protection against any smoldering material or fire.”
Graham says his plant has two major machine centers, one has six stations and the other has eight. Most of them have now been outfitted with downdraft wet collectors.
“Although the NFPA doesn’t specify the installation of a wet collector, there is a higher risk of fire with a dry filter,” says Mike Sweezy, of Filter 1, a company that specializes in off-the-shelf and custom dust collection systems. “The old school approach would be to replace the cartridges and put a fire suppression device on the dry collector if it catches on fire. But why take the risk when a wet collector can eliminate the problem altogether? Plus, if the equipment can be customized to fit the operation, then the ergonomics and productivity at the workstation can be improved at the same time.” Wet collector protection In order to ensure compliance and cut excessive upkeep requirements, Midwest Products and Engineering (MPE), a Milwaukee-based designer and fabricator of enclosures, carts and consoles used by the medical and electronics industries, decided to take a new look at its dust collection system requirements.
The main dust concern at MPE was handling that generated fine dust during the metal finishing (grinding and sanding) of regular cold rolled steel. Due to the more hazardous situation of combining dust from aluminum grinding with that from steel, the aluminum metal finishing area is located in a completely separate part of the shop.
“The steel that we’re grinding turns into a form much like steel wool lint,” explains Teresa Stortz, MPE Process Improvement Engineer. “The hazard occurs when that lint is hit by grinder sparks, it could smolder and ignite. Of course, that is a situation that we absolutely must prevent. In addition, we want remove as much of the very small dust particulate from the air as is possible and these units seem more than capable of helping us on both fronts.”
MPE decided to go with the seven Filter 1 Hydrotron wet downdraft tables. This system purifies air through a combination of centrifugal force and violent mixing of water and contaminated air. As the air stream passes the fixed baffles, particulate is separated by a heavy, turbulent curtain of water created by high velocity air. The centrifugal force caused by the rapid changes in airflow direction forces the dust particles to penetrate the water droplets and become entrapped. Contaminated water is then removed from the airstream by special mist filters. Dust, as sludge, settles to the collector bottom, and the water is reused. Customizing for comfort and productivity Many industrial applications are better served by a customized dust collection system, rather than an off-the-shelf model. Popular custom design elements include making systems fit into tight spaces, or integrating special features such as a crane slot, adjustable up-and-down tables, multiple hoppers and wet spark traps. A choice of fan designs may also be important to optimizing performance and providing high-energy efficiency to applications with high-pressure requirements.
“I believe these new [Hydrotron] wet collectors improve the working environment for employees who occupy these machine stations,” adds Graham of Bell Helicopter. “There have been ergonomic improvements with the wet new collection systems. The units are configured so that the work surfaces are more in the worker’s power zone. Where there are stations that work on heavy parts, the filters have slots so that the crane can move a part inside the booth and load the part on the table. The improved ergonomics benefit seems to speed up production and also help employee morale as well as making it less likely that workers will be off due to an injury.” Mixed dust applications David Creaser at Elite Manufacturing Technologies, Inc. (Bloomingdale, IL), a leading sheet metal fabricator, says his company recently installed a 30-foot-long wet “control booth” to facilitate the safe collection of metal dust from the company’s grinding operation.
“We work in a variety of metals, including steel, galvanized stainless and aluminum, for example,” says Creaser. “We decided on the wet type of collection booth for our grinding operation primarily because of the hazards that can come from the dust from dissimilar metals, particularly aluminum and stainless steel.”
Creaser explains that in the process of researching the most effective form of dust collector, he realized that the only type that would enable us to work with a variety of metals without having a separate booth for each type of material was a wet booth.
“The Hydrotron booth we chose enables us to set up the work tables and equipment used for the grinding operation,” says Creaser. “It provides us with a cleaner work environment because it is arresting all this particulate matter in the air and then blows back over the workstations, which also provides a cooling effect.”
Ed Sullivan is a Hermosa Beach, CA-based writer. He has researched and written about high technologies, healthcare, finance, and real estate for over 25 years.
For more info, contact Filter 1 Clean Air Consultants at 2525 National Drive, Garland, TX 75041; Phone: 972-278-2664, 800-289-0189; Fax: 972-278-1810; Email info@filter-1.com; or visit the web site www.filter-1.com.
The grinding and sanding of metal work pieces produces fine metallic dust that – even after filtration – can be exposed to sparks and result in smoldering, catching fire or even a dust explosion in circumstances when ordinary dry dust collection methods are used. The situation becomes even more hazardous when the dust from certain metals is “mixed” in a dry collection system. Mixing aluminum and steel dust, for example, is an accident waiting to happen.
Combustible metals that are common in manufacturing and machining operations include aluminum, lithium, magnesium, niobium, tantalum, titanium, zirconium and even cold rolled steel.
By switching to wet collectors, many companies are upgrading their protection against dust fires and also improving air quality for workers at the same time. Some wet collection systems can also be customized to improve ergonomics for workers by positioning work pieces at more comfortable levels or facilitating access of hoisting equipment that eliminates the need of workers to lift heavy items. Such improvements may also lead to improved production flow.
Another advantage of many wet dust collection units is that they filter explosive dust directly into water in-plant, thus eliminating another potential hazard site at the duct. These devices comply with federal regulations (NFPA and OSHA) without interfering with manufacturing processes.
“We switched most of our dry dust collectors to wet ones,” says Terry Graham, Equipment Engineering Specialist at Bell Helicopter, Fort Worth, TX. “Because we work with a variety of materials, including metals like steel, titanium, magnesium and aluminum, the wet collectors will improve our protection against any smoldering material or fire.”
Graham says his plant has two major machine centers, one has six stations and the other has eight. Most of them have now been outfitted with downdraft wet collectors.
“Although the NFPA doesn’t specify the installation of a wet collector, there is a higher risk of fire with a dry filter,” says Mike Sweezy, of Filter 1, a company that specializes in off-the-shelf and custom dust collection systems. “The old school approach would be to replace the cartridges and put a fire suppression device on the dry collector if it catches on fire. But why take the risk when a wet collector can eliminate the problem altogether? Plus, if the equipment can be customized to fit the operation, then the ergonomics and productivity at the workstation can be improved at the same time.” Wet collector protection In order to ensure compliance and cut excessive upkeep requirements, Midwest Products and Engineering (MPE), a Milwaukee-based designer and fabricator of enclosures, carts and consoles used by the medical and electronics industries, decided to take a new look at its dust collection system requirements.
The main dust concern at MPE was handling that generated fine dust during the metal finishing (grinding and sanding) of regular cold rolled steel. Due to the more hazardous situation of combining dust from aluminum grinding with that from steel, the aluminum metal finishing area is located in a completely separate part of the shop.
“The steel that we’re grinding turns into a form much like steel wool lint,” explains Teresa Stortz, MPE Process Improvement Engineer. “The hazard occurs when that lint is hit by grinder sparks, it could smolder and ignite. Of course, that is a situation that we absolutely must prevent. In addition, we want remove as much of the very small dust particulate from the air as is possible and these units seem more than capable of helping us on both fronts.”
MPE decided to go with the seven Filter 1 Hydrotron wet downdraft tables. This system purifies air through a combination of centrifugal force and violent mixing of water and contaminated air. As the air stream passes the fixed baffles, particulate is separated by a heavy, turbulent curtain of water created by high velocity air. The centrifugal force caused by the rapid changes in airflow direction forces the dust particles to penetrate the water droplets and become entrapped. Contaminated water is then removed from the airstream by special mist filters. Dust, as sludge, settles to the collector bottom, and the water is reused. Customizing for comfort and productivity Many industrial applications are better served by a customized dust collection system, rather than an off-the-shelf model. Popular custom design elements include making systems fit into tight spaces, or integrating special features such as a crane slot, adjustable up-and-down tables, multiple hoppers and wet spark traps. A choice of fan designs may also be important to optimizing performance and providing high-energy efficiency to applications with high-pressure requirements.
“I believe these new [Hydrotron] wet collectors improve the working environment for employees who occupy these machine stations,” adds Graham of Bell Helicopter. “There have been ergonomic improvements with the wet new collection systems. The units are configured so that the work surfaces are more in the worker’s power zone. Where there are stations that work on heavy parts, the filters have slots so that the crane can move a part inside the booth and load the part on the table. The improved ergonomics benefit seems to speed up production and also help employee morale as well as making it less likely that workers will be off due to an injury.” Mixed dust applications David Creaser at Elite Manufacturing Technologies, Inc. (Bloomingdale, IL), a leading sheet metal fabricator, says his company recently installed a 30-foot-long wet “control booth” to facilitate the safe collection of metal dust from the company’s grinding operation.
“We work in a variety of metals, including steel, galvanized stainless and aluminum, for example,” says Creaser. “We decided on the wet type of collection booth for our grinding operation primarily because of the hazards that can come from the dust from dissimilar metals, particularly aluminum and stainless steel.”
Creaser explains that in the process of researching the most effective form of dust collector, he realized that the only type that would enable us to work with a variety of metals without having a separate booth for each type of material was a wet booth.
“The Hydrotron booth we chose enables us to set up the work tables and equipment used for the grinding operation,” says Creaser. “It provides us with a cleaner work environment because it is arresting all this particulate matter in the air and then blows back over the workstations, which also provides a cooling effect.”
Ed Sullivan is a Hermosa Beach, CA-based writer. He has researched and written about high technologies, healthcare, finance, and real estate for over 25 years.
For more info, contact Filter 1 Clean Air Consultants at 2525 National Drive, Garland, TX 75041; Phone: 972-278-2664, 800-289-0189; Fax: 972-278-1810; Email info@filter-1.com; or visit the web site www.filter-1.com.
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