Why are dust collectors needed?

Dust collectors are often needed in plastics processing facilities because conventional high-speed vacuum-conveying systems move plastic pellets and flakes so quickly that some are damaged, causing dust and other problems. Pellets of soft materials may bump on conveying tube surfaces, heat up due to friction, and leave smears of material that become stringy “angel hair.” Pellets of harder materials may chip or shatter when they hit tube walls or corners, creating “fines” such as small pieces, particles or dust.

Angel hair, fines, and dust should be removed before plastic resin is processed into parts. Otherwise, they will melt much more quickly than undamaged pellets and could begin to burn, leaving blackened or discolored streaks in finished parts. To remove them, processors often add dust collectors or de-dusting systems to their vacuum conveying systems. Cyclone dust collectors supplement the performance of dust-filtering screens that are provided with conveying systems; they can substantially improve dust collection efficiency and reduce overall maintenance requirements.

How Does a Cyclone Dust Collector Work?

When they are added to a conveyor system, cyclone dust collectors are usually placed just before the dust filters that are positioned near the vacuum pump(s) that drive the conveying system. As air is pulled through the chamber of the dust collector toward the vacuum conveying pump at high speed, it spins in a cyclonic motion. The centrifugal force created by this fast, circular air flow drives the heavier plastic particles, fines, and dust outward toward the wall of the cyclone chamber. They hit the wall, lose velocity, and fall down into a hopper or bin located underneath the cyclone collector.

Adding a cyclone dust collector has several major benefits for plastics processors:

  1. It dramatically reduces the amount of dust that must be captured in fixed filter screens, which are substantially more difficult to access, remove, and clean.
  2. It greatly extends the maintenance interval associated with dust-collection equipment. In most cases, the only maintenance required is to empty and replace the bin that catches the dust.
  3. It virtually eliminates the risk of conveyor performance problems or vacuum pump damage caused when fixed dust filter-screens become clogged due to maintenance delays, or when dust filter housings are improperly re-installed after filter-screen maintenance.

If you’re finding that you are having performance issues with your conveying system due to clogged filters on your pumps and receivers or are seemingly constantly emptying the bin on that dust collector, there’s a strong possibility that a cyclone dust collector will change your life.

Find out more in the Conveying section of our product offering by checking out:

Conair cyclone dust collector