Calling All Industrial Manufacturers! Are you treating the Symptom and not the Cause?
Ask Filter Man
if not taken seriously -- can significantly impact your Profits. And,
not in a positive way.
Practically every day I am contacted by a company that is struggling
with their equipment either breaking down or has less than stellar
end-product. Most of the time the guilty party is the unwanted raw
material particles migrating thru their production line. This causes
havoc on the end-product as well as unsuspecting equipment along the
way.
My first response is Are you treating the Symptom and not the Cause?
Most likely, yes.
Therefore, I am going to publish the basic steps -- a Filtration 101
course -- that you can reference when all else fails. Or better yet,
before all else fails. A pro-active approach is always better, however
could-a, would-a, should-a has no place here. We're here to learn!
To begin, Selecting filtration equipment is the combined result of
many considerations. In addition to removing the undesirable material
from a liquid stream, the filtration method selected must also satisfy
other requirements.
· Initial capital cost must be weighed against operating costs.
· Environmental issues along with waste disposal costs must be
considered.
· Is continuous flow a requirement of the application, or can the
filtration equipment be operated intermittently?
· Safety! Will your employees be exposed to the process liquid during
operation or when cleaning or replacing the filter media?
These and other factors must be weighed when selecting the right
filtration method for an application.
The products being removed from a liquid process stream are as widely
variable as the types of filters designed to remove them.
Products being removed in potable water treatment applications are
often molecular in size. However, many other filtration applications
are concerned with the removal of specific trace solids from a liquid
process stream. Surface-type filters using fibrous cartridges of mesh
screens made of woven wire or fabric are often used in these
applications.
The following analysis will focus on the removal of these trace solids
that typically are in the range of 1 Um to 300 Um, rather than the
entire scope of liquid filtration.
Filtration Methods:
There are three basic filter types to consider when specifying a liquid
processing filter:
· Bag filters
· Cartridge filters
· Self-cleaning filters
Each one has advantages and disadvantages when compared with the
others, and the different types are appropriate for different
applications.
Self-Cleaning filters are typically most appropriate for applications
where:
· Flow rates are high
· Filter media replacement costs are high
· Exposure of the process liquid to workers or the environment is
undesirable.
They can be used to remove suspended solids of approximately one micron
and larger from all types of liquid process streams.
Bag and Cartridge filters can both remove suspended solids for
applications with lower flow rates, where:
· Capital costs outweigh the concerns of the ongoing costs associated
with disposable filter media.
· Exposure to the process liquid is not a problem
· Lower volumes of solids must be removed.
Bag and Cartridge filters are roughly equivalent in price. And,
although Self-Cleaning filters/CIP systems tend to be more cost
initially, the return on investment (ROI) is typically within one year.
And better yet, the ongoing cost of these filters is nominal, if any.
Consequently, users should consider the total operating costs of the
filtration system, not merely the initial purchase price. Media
replacement, disposal costs, labor costs, and downtime should all be
included when evaluating filtration systems.
Factors to Consider:
When selecting a filter for a particular application, the following
criteria should be considered:
· How large is the process volume? What is the flow rate?
· Is it a continuous or batch process?
· What are the material characteristics of the solids being removed?
Such as:
- How large are the particles?
- Is the material hazardous?
- Can the material being removed be recycled back into the process
stream at another point?
· What are the waste disposal costs? Such as:
- How often do bags or cartridges need to be replaced?
- Can the waste volume be reduced or eliminated by switching to an
automatic, self cleaning filter?
· What are the labor and downtime costs for filter or cartridge
replacement? Such as:
- Can production rates be increased by switching to a different
filtration method?
Once determined which filter would work best for your application, you
need to keep in the forefront the need to maintain the integrity of
your CIP fluids. In addition, it is important to catch the unwanted
particles at the beginning of the process. Therefore, a lesser known
tactic is to filter the raw material before it goes into your facility.
Yes, I'm recommending that you filter the product as it is coming out
of the raw material tanks.
If this is done several things most likely will happen. First, you
will be able to catch particles that have no business being in your
product stream. How did they get there? I've found that many times the
source of this material is actually Your Source. The unwanted particles
that are within your raw materials are the ones that are created during
transport of the fluids.
Yes, transport on the way to your facility.
Therefore, if you are able to catch this unwanted material from the
beginning, you can go back to your raw material Source and fix the
Cause. This way you will not be on the Re-active end of the spectrum.
You will be on the Pro-active side -- which is dealing with the Cause
rather than the Symptom.
And, you will be able to maintain the effectiveness of your beginning
raw materials and the end-product.
by Ask Filter Man
For questions about industrial filtration, please visit the Ask Filter
Man forum at http://www.rpaprocess.com/Ask-Filter-Man-Blog.asp.
If you would like to discuss this filtration solution with one of our
highly trained Applications Specialists, please Contact Us at
http://www.rpaprocess.com/ContactUs/Contact-Us.asp.
If you would like to read more published real-world documented case
studies about how our industrial filters have helped customers improve
their bottom line,
please visit the Where in the World is Ask Filter Man forum at
http://www.rpaprocess.com/Where-In-The-World-Is-Ask-Filter-Man.asp.