‘Fly’ Safe With Primasonics Acoustic Cleaners!
We are all very well aware now of the ash clouds being emitted from the Eyjafjallajokull volcano in Iceland and the disastrous effects it has had and still is having on air travel.
There are three main reasons why aircraft should never fly into a volcanic dust cloud.
Firstly the dust cloud can restrict the visibility of the cockpit crew.
Secondly the particles are abrasive and therefore if sucked into the jet engines, can cause severe wear.
However it is the third reason which I wish to discuss and link to the ash produced within electrical power generation plants from the burning of fossil fuels such as coal and heavy oil.
Modern jet engines process enormous amounts of air. They pull air into the front of the engine and exhaust it out the rear. If volcanic ash is pulled into a jet engine it can be heated to temperatures that are higher than the melting temperature of the ash. The ash can melt in the engine and the soft sticky product can adhere to the inside of the engine. This restricts airflow through the engine and adds weight to the plane.
Volcanic rocks are named according to both their chemical composition and texture. Basalt is a very common volcanic rock with low silica content. Rhyolite is a volcanic rock with high silica content. Rhyolite has silica content similar to that of granite while basalt is compositionally equal to gabbro. Intermediate volcanic rocks include andesite, dacite, trachyte and latite. Pyroclastic rocks are the product of explosive volcanism. They are often felsic (high in silica). Pyroclastic rocks are often the result of volcanic debris, such as ash clouds.
This high silica ash is very similar in properties to Pulverised Fly Ash or PFA which is produced by the combustion of pulverised coal. PFA, or Fly Ash as it is widely known, has a Silicon Dioxide (SiO2) content of around 50%. Just like the volcanic ash in our atmosphere, fly ash can become very sticky at high combustion temperatures and can bake or ‘sinter’ onto the boilers heat tubes thus creating an insulating barrier which results in reducing the boiler’s thermal efficiency. The somewhat primitive means of trying to remove this baked on ash within boilers was to use steam soot blowers which ‘blast’ a combination of water and air at these heat tubes, in many cases causing fractures to occur and also not providing an ideal solution.
Primasonics have devised an innovative solution using Acoustic Cleaners which use sound waves to prevent the ash from building up in the first place. The result is immediate increased thermal efficiency, the prevention of ash blockages within the boiler and the elimination of any damage to the heat tubes. Take a look at this effective, innovative technology by following this link: http://www.primasonics.com/powergeneration_applications.htm
Just maybe Primasonics Acoustic Cleaners can find an exciting new application with jet engines!
There are three main reasons why aircraft should never fly into a volcanic dust cloud.Firstly the dust cloud can restrict the visibility of the cockpit crew.
Secondly the particles are abrasive and therefore if sucked into the jet engines, can cause severe wear.
However it is the third reason which I wish to discuss and link to the ash produced within electrical power generation plants from the burning of fossil fuels such as coal and heavy oil.
Modern jet engines process enormous amounts of air. They pull air into the front of the engine and exhaust it out the rear. If volcanic ash is pulled into a jet engine it can be heated to temperatures that are higher than the melting temperature of the ash. The ash can melt in the engine and the soft sticky product can adhere to the inside of the engine. This restricts airflow through the engine and adds weight to the plane.
Volcanic rocks are named according to both their chemical composition and texture. Basalt is a very common volcanic rock with low silica content. Rhyolite is a volcanic rock with high silica content. Rhyolite has silica content similar to that of granite while basalt is compositionally equal to gabbro. Intermediate volcanic rocks include andesite, dacite, trachyte and latite. Pyroclastic rocks are the product of explosive volcanism. They are often felsic (high in silica). Pyroclastic rocks are often the result of volcanic debris, such as ash clouds.
This high silica ash is very similar in properties to Pulverised Fly Ash or PFA which is produced by the combustion of pulverised coal. PFA, or Fly Ash as it is widely known, has a Silicon Dioxide (SiO2) content of around 50%. Just like the volcanic ash in our atmosphere, fly ash can become very sticky at high combustion temperatures and can bake or ‘sinter’ onto the boilers heat tubes thus creating an insulating barrier which results in reducing the boiler’s thermal efficiency. The somewhat primitive means of trying to remove this baked on ash within boilers was to use steam soot blowers which ‘blast’ a combination of water and air at these heat tubes, in many cases causing fractures to occur and also not providing an ideal solution.Primasonics have devised an innovative solution using Acoustic Cleaners which use sound waves to prevent the ash from building up in the first place. The result is immediate increased thermal efficiency, the prevention of ash blockages within the boiler and the elimination of any damage to the heat tubes. Take a look at this effective, innovative technology by following this link: http://www.primasonics.com/powergeneration_applications.htm
Just maybe Primasonics Acoustic Cleaners can find an exciting new application with jet engines!
posted by Don Cameron at
1:44 AM
