Here are some hints
on how to approach this process
1.
Maximize bag life:
This is a
simple process of “due diligence” or “doing the little things well”.
q There are 3 fundamental issues to
maximizing bag life:
q Minimizing the required amount of dust
cake on the bag surface needed to operate efficiently.
q Managing the construction or physical
profile of the dust cake.
q Minimizing the length of time the dust is
in the baghouse wherever possible.
ü
Keep the hoppers empty in the baghouse:
q Do not allow product to build-up more
than 25% of the vertical height of the hopper at any 1 time.
q Remove any heavy dust product build-up
from baffles, walls, and the hopper side of the cell plates.
q This build-up acts like a “base-surface”
for dust particles to grow on. Clumped or bridged product can lead to dust
backing up into the bags.
ü
Make sure the dust discharge system is operating efficiently:
q Holes in rotary valves; screw conveyors;
flap gates; etc could allow air to be drawn back into the baghouse hopper and
impede the dust discharge process.
q Allowing a heavy product build-up/dust
cake on the filterbags before cleaning them down could “flood” or overload the
dust discharge equipment.
ü
Make sure that the clean side of the baghouse cell plate is
spotless at all times:
q Floor is nice and shiny. No dust
at all:
q Vacuum; scrape; blast; do whatever you
have to do to get is as clean as possible.
q After any major overhaul or even after
spot changing of bags, clean the cell plate off!
q If there is no access to the clean side
(most often in bottom access pulse jet systems)…make one.
q Cut a hole in the side or roof and make
an easily accessible door or hatch.
q Plenum walls and ceiling should not be
allowed to become severely corroded:
q Large flakes of corrosion or matted dust
“sheets” could fall into the bags, or against the bags, and cause physical
damage.
q Make sure there are no air/water leakages
around doors or wall seams.
ü
Keep the ducting free of major dust build-up:
q Plugged duct runs could change the
particle size of the dust going into the baghouse:
q When a duct run plugs, open runs could
have their airflow increased. This could cause excess air to be drawn from a
“fine particle” producing part of the system.
q Make sure there are no holes in the
ducting:
q Holes can allow moisture, oil, or other
contaminates to enter the system and cause an unwanted deposit on the bags.