Abb Air Preheater Inc.

The Air Preheater Company, Inc.

Kent E Ritter

Harlan E Finnemore

Gary C Goetschius

James U Fernando

Danny K Hall

Robert J Rausa

Alan G Marshall

A rotary air preheater has a rotor, at least one seal disposed proximate to the rotor, a drive for reciprocally driving a portion of the seal between a first position adjacent the rotor and a second position spaced from the first position, and a control system for activating the drive. The control system includes a boiler load power sensor, means for storing a first stored boiler load having a value between the minimum boiler load and the maximum boiler load, and logic for comparing the sensed boiler load to the first stored boiler load. The logic provides a first activation signal to the drive when the sensed boiler load rises above the first stored boiler load and a second activation signal to the drive when the sensed boiler load falls below the first stored boiler load. The first activation signal activates the drive to drive the portion of the seal to the first position and the second activation signal activates the drive to drive the portion of the seal to the second position.

Load based control system for active leakage control in air preheater

The modular heat exchange baskets for a rotary regenerative air preheater which normally have a single stacked array of heat exchange plates, are constructed with heat exchange plate support bars intermediate the top and bottom surface. The basket then has two separate stacked arrays of heat exchange plates which permits the plate material or arrangement in the top of each basket to be different from the plate material or arrangement in the bottom. For side loaded air preheaters with basket support gratings, the arrangement of heat exchange plates can be changed without the need to move the gratings.

Rotary regenerative heat exchanger with multiple layer baskets

The rotor of a rotary regenerative air preheater is constructed for the loading of the heat exchange basket modules into the sectors of the rotor in a radial direction through the periphery of the rotor. The heat exchange basket modules are arranged in a plurality of axially spaced layers with the lower baskets supporting the baskets located above. To provide the support and to facilitate the loading of the baskets, each basket includes an integral grating structure at the top surface thereof which extends partially above the uppermost surface of the basket frame. This provides a clear sliding surface as well as a support for the baskets in the layer above. The invention eliminates the support gratings which are a part of the rotor structure, except at the bottom of the rotor.

Rotary regenerative heat exchanger

A hot spot detection system (78) at one location that is fixed with respect to the rotor (12), and a temperature suppression system (62) at another location that is fixed with respect to the rotor. The suppression system is automatically energized by the hot spot detection system when a threshold temperature is detected. Preferably, the suppression system includes one or more pipes (66) that span the radial dimension of the heating element compartments in the rotor. The detection system can be in the conventional location, on the trailing edge (40) of the air inlet duct (32) of the air preheater. The suppression piping (66) is preferably located in the hot end, or air discharge duct (34), of the air preheater. Depending on the location of the suppression piping with respect to rotor rotation, a timing device (100) is preferably employed to start and stop the flow of suppression water into the rotor, just prior to and after the hot spot passes under the piping.

Hot spot detection and supression system

A bag filter arrangement having a cleaning system that exhausts a reverse pulse of compressed air through the bags thereof to remove collected dust particles from the surface of the bags. The arrangement is directed to a special cooperation of interlocking elements that positively align the several elements thereof in order that maximum dust removal is effected.

Snap-in assembly for bag filter

A bag filter apparatus that exhausts a blast of compressed air into the open ends of a series of filter bags to remove dust particles that have collected on the outer surface thereof. The compressed air is exhausted from nozzle means in a header pipe that is precluded from excessive distortion, while it may be quickly disassembled and accurately re-assembled to achieve optimum performance.

Header pipe attachment

Rotary regenerative heat exchange apparatus including a cylindrical rotor of heat absorbent material that is alternately exposed to a hot and a cold fluid in order that heat absorbed from the hot fluid may be transferred to the cold fluid passing therethrough. The rotor is surrounded by a housing that includes a sector plate at opposite ends thereof to separate the hot from the cold fluids. As the rotor turns and is being subjected to a wide range of temperatures, it distorts into a dish shaped element. A mechanical toggle arrangement moved by a hydraulic actuator forces the sector plate into a configuration similar to that of the adjacent face of the rotor so as to preclude excessive leakage of fluid therebetween.

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Wellsville, NY, United States of America

Kent E Ritter