Primary Industries for Process Heating Fans
Many varied industries from food processing and energy, to metals, plastic, glass, paper, and pulp processing use combustion air blowers for heating and drying purposes.
Process Heating Fan Selection & Specification
Fans and blowers not properly designed for the high temperatures that may be involved will catastrophically fail when used at temperatures above their design. Be sure to get it right.
Fan Designs Commonly Used in Process Heating Applications
Fan Arrangements
Fan Arrangements indicate how the motors mount to and drive the fans. The specification will depend on your application and the fan/s selected. Here are two examples:
Arrangement 1 – Belt Drive with an overhung impeller. The fan and motor mount separately to a unitary base.
Arrangement 8 – Direct Drive with an overhung impeller. The fan shaft is directly coupled to the motor shaft with a flexible coupling.
Accessories & Design
When it comes to design and accessories, it’s all about protecting and optimizing operations, maintenance, and life of the fan and bearings. Proximity to high temperatures and possibly corrosive gasses may also require customizing process heating fans to the extremes, including temperature variations.
Here are just some of the accessories and features you may see In process cooling fan applications:
- 304/316 Stainless Steel
- SSPC-SP10 bead blast surface preparation
- Bearings and motors that are isolated from the process. Shaft seals with ceramic felt elements.
- Flex Connectors to accommodate shifting during rapid temperature change
- Spring Vibration Isolators to protect the fan from excessive vibration
- Inlet Silencer for noise control on the fan inlet
- Inlet Vane Damper, Variable Frequency Drive (VFD), Outlet Damper, or a combination for volume and pressure control
- Inlet Filter or Screen to keep the airstream clean and avoid damaging the dampers
- Inlet Box if space is tight for the ductwork
- Vibration, and temperature sensors to monitor bearing and fan health and prevent unplanned outages
- Split Housing for easier maintenance access to the fan wheel and shaft.
- Proper installation and maintenance to ensure safe startup and operations
Talk with Our Application Engineers
If you feel overwhelmed by all this information, don’t despair! We have a team of application engineers who are happy to talk with you and select the best fan for your application. You can call 715-365-3267, email fans@airprofan.com, or send us your information, and one of our engineers will connect with you.
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