Current regulations, environmental pressures, and changing demands on coal-fired power plants and require a strategic partner that is knowledgeable about the requirements and all the levers that can be pulled to address challenges in your baghouse.

Fabric filters, or baghouses, have been used to capture particulate from combustion processes for more than 50 years. They grew popular in the power generation industry in the 1970s, after the first installation of a reverse-air style fabric filter. Pulse-jet, another type of fabric filter, was also implemented on coal-fired power generation applications in the early 1970s, with the first actual utility installation taking place in the early 1990s. We have been active in engineering new medias, filters, and providing complete solutions for your baghouses throughout this period.

PPS (Polyphenylene sulfide) non-woven filter media has become the workhorse in pulse jet fabric filter systems in the power industry. Filters made with PPS are often an economical and effective choice. These filters control off-gas from coal-fired boilers and downstream equipment because of their effective control of acidic gases (SOX, HCL, NOX) and good mechanical properties at high temperatures (maximum temperature rating of 375 degrees Fahrenheit).

However, there are limitations to the use of PPS filter bags. Exposure to NO and O2 for a long period can deteriorate the mechanical properties, especially at the high end of temperature. We conducted a seven-year study of life expectancy under both normal and upset process conditions and the effects on the filter media to better assist in applying PPS filters and understand potential failure modes.

It is critical to understand the effects of gases at various temperatures (and process conditions) to assist in determining life expectancy or analysis of failure modes of PPS filter media. Detailed technical information and various gas concentrations are available from your Parker representative.

Contact us today and learn more about our media options for coal-fired boilers and industrial power plants and how to manage your dust cake, outage planning, and more to ensure optimum productivity, sustainability, and profitability. In many situations, we can extend filter life with an evaluation of your system.