skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Novel Backup Filter Device for Candle Filters

Conference ·
OSTI ID:835852

The currently preferred means of particulate removal from process or combustion gas generated by advanced coal-based power production processes is filtration with candle filters. However, candle filters have not shown the requisite reliability to be commercially viable for hot gas clean up for either integrated gasifier combined cycle (IGCC) or pressurized fluid bed combustion (PFBC) processes. Even a single candle failure can lead to unacceptable ash breakthrough, which can result in (a) damage to highly sensitive and expensive downstream equipment, (b) unacceptably low system on-stream factor, and (c) unplanned outages. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has recognized the need to have fail-safe devices installed within or downstream from candle filters. In addition to CeraMem, DOE has contracted with Siemens-Westinghouse, the Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) at the University of North Dakota, and the Southern Research Institute (SRI) to develop novel fail-safe devices. Siemens-Westinghouse is evaluating honeycomb-based filter devices on the clean-side of the candle filter that can operate up to 870 C. The EERC is developing a highly porous ceramic disk with a sticky yet temperature-stable coating that will trap dust in the event of filter failure. SRI is developing the Full-Flow Mechanical Safeguard Device that provides a positive seal for the candle filter. Operation of the SRI device is triggered by the higher-than-normal gas flow from a broken candle. The CeraMem approach is similar to that of Siemens-Westinghouse and involves the development of honeycomb-based filters that operate on the clean-side of a candle filter. The overall objective of this project is to fabricate and test silicon carbide-based honeycomb failsafe filters for protection of downstream equipment in advanced coal conversion processes. The fail-safe filter, installed directly downstream of a candle filter, should have the capability for stopping essentially all particulate bypassing a broken or leaking candle while having a low enough pressure drop to allow the candle to be backpulse-regenerated. Forward-flow pressure drop should increase by no more than 20% because of incorporation of the fail-safe filter.

Research Organization:
CeraMem Corporation, Waltham, MA; University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, ND (US)
Sponsoring Organization:
US Department of Energy (US)
DOE Contract Number:
FG02-99ER82760
OSTI ID:
835852
Resource Relation:
Conference: 5th International Symposium on Gas Cleaning at High Temperatures, Morgantown, WV (US), 09/17/2002--09/20/2002; Other Information: PBD: 18 Sep 2002
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English