Fans That Are Applied to the Cement and Asphalt Industry
Fans are vital pieces of equipment that are used in various structures, facilities, warehouses ,and even homes. These machines, which usually possess shafts that hold certain kinds of blades around it, are built to rotate at a certain speed or velocity to create a steady flow of air ata standard level of pressure. This current of air is then used for a variety of purposes–from cooling, heating, drying, to ventilation, and many more.
Fans are built in different designs to cater to an extensive range of purposes and tasks. Because of their efficiency and versatility, it isn’t just homes and offices that need fans–major industries do, too. You name it–from food processing, chemical, manufacturing, engineering, agricultural, electrical, mining, heating, to ventilation–most warehouses and processing plants nowadays around the world are never without their fans.
Among these key industries are the cement and asphalt industry, which requires several industrial and process fans built precisely for certain kinds of tasks. Hence, the cement and asphalt industry has become one of the biggest markets for fans.
The Cement and Asphalt Industry
The cement and asphalt industry is massive through out the world, because of the material, mixtures, and binders it creates. Its popular product is asphalt concrete or pavement, which is a very important material used for the benefit of the public. Asphalt concrete is a composite material used to provide surface to roads, lots, construction projects, building foundations ,airports, dams, sidewalks, pathways, and the like.
Asphalt cement is a combination of asphalt and mineral aggregates, such as stone or sand. Asphalt, on its own, is a semi-solid form of petroleum, found in natural deposits or a refined product. These products and different mixtures are in high demand by other industries, because of its permanent binding, sealing and surface-providing capabilities. Some of these industries include engineering, transportation, road construction, public highways and works, and even private institutions. Hence, it is safe to say that the cement and asphalt industry is vital in the progression of society and the betterment of the public’s lives.
Fans in Cement and Asphalt Industry
As mentioned, the cement and asphalt industry has always greatly needed fans in their day-to-day work processes. In this kind of industry, a lot of collecting, sifting, mixing, binding, pouring, and molding processes are done every day, every hour, in multiple batches simultaneously, so naturally, heavy-duty equipment is needed to quicken, facilitate, and simplify these tasks, as well as provide safety and security to the industry’s workers.This is why high-quality fans are one of the first pieces of machinery the cement asphalt industry actively seeks out when putting up their manufacturing facilities, no questions asked.
The heavy-duty fans used are usually built to perform two main and basic jobs: to supply a gust of air, or to remove any exhaust, toxic gases, or material in the air. Hence, the fans needed in the cement and asphalt industry are usually of the cooling, combustion, heating, ventilation, or exhaust types.They also are used to dry materials and control any unwanted emissions or fumes.
Purposes of Fans in This Industry
Aside from the tasks already mentioned, the fans used in the cement and asphalt industry also provide another important purpose–to keep the plant and its workers in tip-top, healthy shape.
One very important thing to note about the cement and asphalt industry is that through its multi-step cement manufacturing processes, a lot of byproduct solid, liquid, and even gas waste is produced. Most of this is dust and matter particles, which are found in the air that workers breathe, causing air pollution. Severe air pollution is very hazardous to one’s respiratory health in the long and short run, especially if exposed to it regularly.
Fans–especially the exhaust and ventilation kinds–help filter the air from air pollution, working together to build a trusted filtration system. This not only benefits the workers, but the environment as well.
Fans also come in handy in providing a comfortable, temperature-standard,working environment that makes the long hours of road and construction work more bearable. Proper ventilation and cooling care of these fans will increase comfort, productivity, and efficiency within the working environment, as well as provide safety, because of the toxic gases and aggregate particles it can remove from the air (a lot of fumes and materials are emitted from the cement and asphalt industry, because of the materials it handles daily).
The cement and asphalt industry also needs specialized types of fans to move materials from one station to another, as well as heavy-duty ones to finely grind and crush tough materials ready for mixing, and to preheat all kinds of mixtures at certain temperatures, with a specific amount of pressure.
Kinds of Fans in The Cement and Asphalt Industry
What are some of the specific fans most commonly used by the cement and asphalt industry?
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Combustion fans
Combustion, by definition, is a chemical process where heat is emitted due to a reaction of oxygen with another substance (usually fuel). A combustion fan’s purpose comes into play when material or aggregate is needed to dry as quickly and as evenly as possible, which the combustion fan does in no sweat.
Combustion fans are usually used with a burner or as part of a boiler’s burner system. The amount of oxygen taken in by the boiler is controlled by the fan’s louvers(horizontal shutters that allow a certain amount of air in), inlet guide vanes and speed drives, among other parts.These will determine if the fan will deliver high volume or high pressure, which are two important factors that determine a stable, efficient, and safe airflow needed for the right amount of heat.
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Induced draft fans
Induced draft fans’ main purpose is to minimize as much waste and air pollution as possible.They do so as part of a baghouse system, using their power to collect any fine particles, dust,dirt, grains, or sand found in the air. The fan sucks them through the baghouse collectors, and then returns the lost particles back to the asphalt mix, which is used to create pavement.
These fans are usually centrifugal fans with radial, forward-curved, or backward-inclined blades.They are able to do their job because they are built to create a negative air pressure space–thus inducing a draft in the air. They are usually located at the downstream of a boiler to pull out the gases, dust, and ash out of the system and into the baghouse system, which is also known as the dust filtration system.
They are known to be crucial in any fuel-firing process, which the cement and asphalt facility is all about–adding more fuel to the fire for a more efficient workflow.
The way it works is that these fans, using the draft they induce, generate more power in a coal plant as the coal burns, sometimes on its own or in combination with another biomass fuel starter like wood. This is done in a boiler, which creates steam. This steam is taken into the fan’s turbine, creates power, is cooled, and then condensed into water, then the process repeats.
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Cooling fans
Some very hot materials and mixtures need to be cooled down before being transported or used, which is where cooling fans come in. They are built to blow a gust of cold air and circulate the air within a machine or structure, not just to cool materials, but to keep other factory equipment from overheating, too.
Cooling fans are also specifically built to cool down the clinker, which is any stony residue from a burner, furnace, or burned coal. Clinker is usually produced when materials like limestone,chalk, or clay are mixed/fused together using heat treatment during the cement kiln stage.
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Raw mill and raw mill exhaust fans
Raw mill fans, which are usually centrifugal fans, are in charge of carrying gas and raw meal.Raw meal is what crushed aggregates become after they are dried. They move the raw product(which is usually made with clay or limestones) into the grinder, to be crushed into particles.The size of raw mill fans and the pressure needed for it to do its job depends on the type and amount of material it has to grind.
Raw mill exhaust fans, on the other hand, are what may also be called as “de-dusting fans.”They’re responsible for handling the exhaust gases and excess dust particles emitted by the raw mill fans as the crushing process ensues.
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Coal mill fans
These fans are in charge of supplying the specific amount of air needed for coal to be burnt. It is actually a multi-purpose machine, as it also exhausts any of the toxic fumes and gases emitted after the coal is burnt. A coal mill fan usually provides an extra boost to the flame, causing astronger, bigger, and hotter fire needed by most cement and asphalt industry work processes.
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