Pollution control is one of the most important aspects of any mining operation and if not managed correctly may have dire consequences on the mining operation.
Mechanical Rotating Solutions (MRS) was contacted by a vanadium mining operation in search of a solution to prolong their mechanically aided processing plant’s up-time by improving the life span and efficiency of equipment affected by highly abrasive chemicals. Industrial scrubbers are an assorted group of air pollution control devices that can be used to remove some particulates and gases from industrial exhaust streams. These scrubber fans are used on vanadium process plants to get rid of unnecessary gases, and as with almost any device, the addition of moving parts leads to an increase in potential maintenance problems.
“The client used to open the centrifugal fan monthly and sandblast the fan runner clean before operations could start up again. Upon request MRS were given the opportunity to test the life span, reliability and efficiency of the fan runner by applying Belzona 1392 high temperature coating to the system.” Says Franscois Steenkamp Managing Director of MRS.
Fan runner coated in Belzona 1392 high temperature coating
Mechanically aided scrubbers have higher maintenance costs than other wet collector systems. The moving parts are particularly susceptible to corrosion and fouling. In addition, rotating parts are subject to vibration-induced fatigue or wear, causing them to become unbalanced. “As the Scrubber fan pulls gases from the outlet of a kiln at very high temperatures, Belzona 1392 high temperature epoxy coating formulated to provide metal surfaces with erosion and corrosion protection in combination with excellent chemical resistance was selected for the project. Belzona 1392 will resist water, aqueous solutions, hydrocarbons in acid contaminated water and hydrocarbons up to temperatures of 120°C in continuous immersion.”
The newly coated runner immediately contributed to a massive increase in productivity as after twelve months there was still no sign of any build up, fatigue, wear or an unbalanced system.
Applications for Belzona 1392 (Ceramic HT2) include:
- High temperature lining for process vessels, distillation columns, heat exchangers, clarifiers and scrubber units operating under immersion
- Protection of pumps, valves, hot water tanks and separators from the effects of erosion, corrosion and chemical attack
- Protection of sumps and containment areas from chemical attack
While erosion, corrosion and physical damage pose a threat to many industries, the real issues are downtime, efficiency decline, profit loss and safety hazards created by the root problem. Mechanical Rotating Solutions has the skill and expertise to offer a range of Belzona products that are manufactured to resolve these problems.
Among its product offering and related turnkey solutions, Mechanical Rotating Solutions is currently servicing the Mpumalanga area with the AESSEAL® product range of mechanical seals and systems, Labtecta Bearing Isolators, Belzona Engineered Coatings and Superbolts, as well as supplying the whole of South Africa with innovative Straub pipe couplings, KSB pumps and valves, Amandla pumps, and the full HCP range of pumps.