TPT January 2010

T echnology U pdate

Air pollution regulations drive deployment of flexible solutions

Next Generation Orbital Welding Equipment

TO ADDRESS the growing complexity of air pollution regulations, which have to address a multi-tiered array of local authority, national and international requirements, AirProtekt of Cambridge, UK, is offering a total package air pollution service that embraces process assessment, project design, supply of the air pollution equipment, installation and commissioning. Many air pollution applications call for highly flexible abatement systems to be designed and deployed, especially where there is a requirement for batch based production runs. Low running costs together with the ability to run the abatement at low process flow rates are vital. A quick start up system also offers major benefits. AirProtekt’s flexible, total package approach to providing engineering solutions means that the company is capable of combining and tailoring modular equipment to meet exacting air pollution requirements in a cost-effective way. For the majority of abatement applications catalytic oxidation is more expensive than thermal oxidation at low flow rates. However, the reverse is often the case for high flow rates. Thermal oxidation abatement solutions tend to be more economical at very high VOC concentrations whereas catalytic oxidation is typically more economical at moderate VOC concentrations. AirProtekt recognises that no two applications are the same, and each requires careful assessment before a value for money solution can be implemented. For example, although an alternative solution to a catalytic oxidation could be the use of a thermal oxidation system, this may result in high running costs because natural gas would have to be brought into the factory area. A thermal oxidation approach in certain cases can prove inflexible, because if production demand dropped to low levels the abatement plant still would need to be kept running. A reliable Honeycat Air Pollution Control System offers a catalytic oxidation solution that provides an expected availability of more than 99% and can be equipped with a superior performance catalyst to ensure environmental emission limits can be easily handled. “One of the most cost-effective Honeycat Air Pollution Control System solutions we offer features a compact skid mounted oxidiser designed to minimise on-site installation times, which makes the unit ideal for batch production runs,” explained Trevor

Lawton, AirProtekt’s managing director. “Our engineering team often specifies an electrically pre-heated abatement system to provide processors with a very low maintenance solution. We also aim to offer systems that operate very quietly to ensure that any nearby residential properties are not disturbed by 24-hour operations.” The industrial air pollution control catalysts favoured by AirProtekt comprise thin-walled honeycomb supports coated with a fine dispersion of Platinum Group Metals, impregnated into a high surface area washcoat. The catalysts, which form the heart of AirProtekt’s catalytic oxidation system, are derived from proven autocatalyst technology and offer benefits that include a long effective life (typically five to seven years), and the ability to withstand high temperatures and temperature cycling (maximum 650°C continuous and peaks to 725°C). A range of high poison resistance catalyst types are available from AirProtekt, which include a standard VOC oxidation catalyst; a chlorinated VOC catalyst; an LHC catalyst for methane, ethane, propane as well as a sulphur-resistant catalyst. AirProtekt’s systems are also capable of running at low catalyst operating temperatures to minimise running costs, thermal stress and ensure a

ORBIMAT 165 C A dvanced - Single dial operation - Graphical operator guidance - Auto programming BUP Control sectional control of inside purge pressure Flow Force reduces gas filling time of closed weld heads down to 10 sec Compatible with all ORBIMATIC weld heads: Visit us in Hall I Booth 229

long operating life. AirProtekt – UK

Enclosed weld heads

Email: sales@airprotekt.co.uk Website: www.airprotekt.co.uk

Open arc weld heads

A catalytic combuster

Tube to tubesheet weld heads

ORBIMATIC Orbitalum Tools GmbH Germany Phone: +49 6408 9026 0 orbimatic@t-online.de ORBIMATIC Ireland & UK Office Phone: +44 1733 555 285 info@orbimatic.co.uk www. o r b i ma t i c . c om

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J anuary 2010

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