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Live Your Life. Create Your Destiny.: Department of Chemical, Metallurgical & Materials Engineering

The document provides an overview of gas cyclones including their description, flow characteristics, efficiency of separation, scaling up, range of operation, and applications. It describes how gas cyclones work by subjecting particles to centrifugal forces that move them outwards against the inward gas flow allowing particles to separate on the inner surface. The efficiency of separation depends on factors like the critical particle diameter and cut size, which is the particle size with 50% collection efficiency. The document presents equations for calculating total efficiency and grade efficiency and provides a theoretical analysis of particle motion within cyclones.

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Portia Shilenge
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40 views

Live Your Life. Create Your Destiny.: Department of Chemical, Metallurgical & Materials Engineering

The document provides an overview of gas cyclones including their description, flow characteristics, efficiency of separation, scaling up, range of operation, and applications. It describes how gas cyclones work by subjecting particles to centrifugal forces that move them outwards against the inward gas flow allowing particles to separate on the inner surface. The efficiency of separation depends on factors like the critical particle diameter and cut size, which is the particle size with 50% collection efficiency. The document presents equations for calculating total efficiency and grade efficiency and provides a theoretical analysis of particle motion within cyclones.

Uploaded by

Portia Shilenge
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Lesson 8

Live your life. Create your destiny.

Department of Chemical, Metallurgical & Materials Engineering

Chapter 9: Separation of Particles from a Gas: Gas Cyclones


Introduction
During processing and handling of particulate solids, separation of particles from suspensions in a gas may be required. In any application, the size of the particles to be removed from the gas determine, to a large extent, the method to be used for their separation. Generally speaking, particles larger than 100 m can be separated easily by gravity settling. For particles less than 10 m more energy intensive methods such as filtration, wet scrubbing and electrostatic precipitation must be used.

Gas cyclones are generally best suited as primary separation devices and for relatively coarse particles. An electrostatic precipitator or fabric filter may be used downstream to remove very fine particles.

Objectives of this lesson Study and describe gas cyclones. Flow characteristics of gas cyclones. Fundamentals of efficiency of separation. Scaling up of gas cyclones. Range of operation of cyclones. Applications, problem solving, and design of cyclones.

9.1. Gas Cyclones Description


The most common type of gas cyclone is known as the reverse flow type.

Particles in the gas are subjected to centrifugal forces which move them radially outwards, against the inward flow of gas and towards the inside surface of the cyclone on which the solids separate. The direction of flow of the vortex reverses near the bottom of the cylindrical section and the gas leaves the cyclone via the outlet in the top (the solids outlet is sealed to gas). The solids at the wall of the cyclone are pushed downwards by the outer vortex and out of the solids exit. Gravity has been shown to have little effect on the operation of the cyclone.

9.2. Flow Characteristics


Rotational flow in the forced vortex within the cyclone body gives rise to a radial pressure gradient. This pressure gradient, combined with the frictional pressure losses at the gas inlet and outlet and losses due to changes in flow direction, make up the total pressure drop. This pressure drop, measured between the inlet and outlet, is usually proportional to the square of gas flow rate through pressure drop p to a characteristic velocity v:
(1)

where f is the gas density.

The characteristic velocity v can be defined for gas cyclones in various ways but the simplest and most appreciated definition is based on the cross-sectional of the cylindrical body of the cyclone, so that:
(2)

Where q is the gas flow rate and D is the cyclone inside diameter. The Euler number represents the ratio of pressure forces to the inertial force acting on a fluid element. Its value is practically constant for a given cyclone geometry, independent of the cyclone body diameter.

9.3. Efficiency of Separation


In order to know a cyclones efficiency, the following have to be defined:
The critical particle diameter. The cut size. The overall cyclone efficiency.

Critical Particle Diameter


Particle size that will be completely removed from the air flow (100% collection efficiency).

Cut Size
Size for which 50% collection is obtained and is much better value for stating the efficiency of cyclones. To determine a cyclones cut size, grade efficiency curves are worked out by systematically operating a cyclone with a uniform particle size.

Overall Cyclone Efficiency


Is obtained when handling a product of definite size distribution. Knowing the grade efficiency curve of the cyclone and the product size distribution of the powder passing the cyclone, the overall efficiency can be calculated.

9.3.1. Total Efficiency and Grade Efficiency


Let us consider a cyclone to which the solids mass flow rate is M, the mass flow discharged from the solids exit orifice is MC (known as the coarse product) and the solids mass flow rate leaving the gas is MF (known as the fine product). The total material balance on the solids over this cyclone may be written as:
(3)

and the component material balance for each particle size x (assuming no breakage or growth of particles within the cyclone) is
(4)

where, dF/dx, dFF/dx and dFC/dx are the differential frequency size distributions by mass (i.e. Mass fraction of size x) for the feed, fine product and coarse product, respectively.

F, FF and FC are the cumulative frequency size distribution by mass (mass fraction less than size x) for the feed, fine product and coarse product, respectively. The total efficiency of separation of particles from gas, ET, is defined as the fraction of the total feed which appears in the coarse product collected, i.e.
(5)

The efficiency with which the cyclone collects particles of a certain size is described by the grade efficiency, G(x), which is defined as:
(6)

Using the notation for size distribution described above:


(7)

Combining equations (7) and (5), we find an expression linking grade efficiency with total efficiency of separation:
(8)

From equation (3) (7), we have


(9)

In cumulative form this becomes


(10)

9.3.2. Simple Theoretical Analysis for the Gas Cyclone Separator


Consider a reverse flow cyclone with a cylindrical section of radius R. Particles entering the cyclone with the gas stream are forced into circular motion. The net flow of gas is radially inwards towards the central gas outlet. The forces acting an a particle following a circular path are drag, buoyancy and centrifugal force. The balance between these forces determines the equilibrium orbit adopted by the particle. The drag force is caused by the inward flow of gas past the particle and acts radially inwards.

Now, consider a particle of diameter x and density p following an orbit of radius r in a gas of density f and viscosity . Let the tangential velocity of the particle be U and the radial inward velocity of the gas be Ur. If we assume that Stokes law applies under these conditions then the drag force is given by:
(11)

The centrifugal and buoyancy forces acting on the particle moving with a tangential velocity component U at radius r are, respectively:
(12) (13)

At this point:
(14)

and so
(15)

Now for a rotating solid body, U = rw, where w is the angular velocity and for a free vortex Ur = constant. For the confined vortex inside the cyclone body it has been found experimentally that the following holds approximately: hence
(16)

Assuming uniform flow of gas towards the central outlet, then we are able to derive the radial variation in the radial component of gas velocity, Ur:
(17)

hence
(18)

Combining equations (16) and (18) with equation (15), we find


(19)

where r is the radius of the equilibrium orbit for a particle of diameter x.

Assuming that all particles with an equilibrium orbit radius greater than or equal to the cyclone body radius will be collected, then substituting r = R in equation (19) gives:
(20)

UR and UR may be found from a knowledge of the cyclone geometry and the gas flow rate.

This analysis predicts an ideal grade efficiency curve

9.3.3. Cyclone Grade Efficiency in Practice


In practice, gas velocity fluctuations and particle particle interactions result in some particles larger than xcrit being lost and particles smaller than xcrit being collected. Consequently, in practice the cyclone does not achieve such a sharp cut-off as predicted by the theoretical analysis above. In common with other separation devices in which body forces are opposed by drag forces, the grade efficiency curve for gas cyclones is usually S-shaped. For such a curve, the particle size for which the grade efficiency is 50%, x50, is often used as single number measurement of the efficiency of the cyclone. x50 is also known as the equiprobable size since it is that size of the particle which has 50% probability of appearing in the coarse product. This also means that, in a large population of particles, 50% of the particles of this size will appear in the coarse product.

x50 is sometimes simply referred to as the cut size of the cyclone (or other separation devices).

9.4. Scale-up of Cyclones


Scale-up of cyclones is based on a dimensionless group, the Stokes number. It characterizes the separation performance of a family of geometrically similar cyclones. The Stokes number is defined as:

Where is gas viscosity, p is solids density, v is the characteristic velocity and D is the diameter of the cyclone body. Physical significance of the Stokes number is that it is a ratio of the centrifugal force (less buoyancy) to the drag force, both acting on a particle size x50. For large industrial cyclones the Stokes number, like the Euler number defined previously, is independent of the Reynolds number.

9.5. Range of Operation


One of the most important characteristics of gas cyclones is the way in which their efficiency is affected by pressure drop (or flow rate). For a particular cyclone and inlet particle concentration, total efficiency of separation and pressure drop vary with gas flow rate.

Theory predicts that efficiency increases with increasing gas flow rate. In practice, the total efficiency curve falls away at high flow rates because re-entrainment of separated solids increases with increased turbulence at high velocities. Optimum operation is achieved somewhere between points A and B, where maximum total separation efficiency is achieved with reasonable pressure loss. Position of B changes only slightly for different dusts. Correctly designed and operated cyclones should operate at pressure drops within a recommended range; and this, for most cyclone designs operated at ambient conditions, is between 500 to 1 500 Pa. Within this range, the total separation efficiency ET increases with applied pressure drop. Above the top limit the total efficiency no longer increases with increasing pressure drop and it may actually decline due to reentrainment of dust from the dust outlet orifice.

It is, therefore, wasteful of energy to operate cyclones above the limit. At pressure drops below the bottom limit, the cyclone represents little more than a settling chamber, giving low efficiency due to low velocities within it which may not be capable of generating a stable vortex.

9.6. Design Considerations


9.6.1. Effect of Dust Loading on Efficiency
High dust loadings (above about 5 g/m3) lead to higher total separation efficiencies due to particle enlargement through agglomeration (caused, for example, by the effect of humidity).

9.6.2. Cyclone Types


Reverse flow cyclone designs available today are divided into two main groups:
Stairmand High Efficiency Stairmand High Rate

Stairmand High Efficiency


High recoveries. Small inlet and gas outlet orifices.

Stairmand High Rate


Lower total efficiencies. Low resistance to flow. Higher gas capacity. Large inlets and gas outlets, and are usually shorter.

NEXT WEEK MONDAY (28/10/2013)


APPLICATIONS EXAMPLES AND CLASS EXERCISES

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