Acoustic Cleaning Systems and the Alternatives

Steam Soot Blowers – the employment of these somewhat primitive and abrasive boiler tube cleaning systems is certainly in decline and have an ever increasing request to replace both the retractable lance and rotary type Soot Blower units with our Acoustic Cleaners and Sonic Soot Blowers. The reasons given by Power Generation plant engineers wishing to replace their Steam Soot Blowers are that they are costly to purchase, install, operate and maintain. In addition, they are generally only used on an eight hour cycle thus allowing the ash to build up and sinter or 'bake' on the heat tubes. They also cannot clean the entire circumference of each tube, rather they strike the leading edge of the tube and thus give rise to the very costly twin problems of tube erosion and corrosion.

Primasonics Acoustic Cleaners and Sonic Soot Blowers can be installed in either redundant Steam Soot Blower portholes or other available hatches. Rather than wait until the end of each 8-hour shift before being operated, as with Steam Soot Blowers, Primasonics Acoustic Cleaning Systems are 'sounded' for a few seconds at predetermined intervals thus preventing ash from building up in the first place. Therefore, because ash is not allowed to reside on hot tube surfaces, it cannot sinter and become a permanent 'insulator'. This means that with either Acoustic Cleaners or Sonic Soot Blowers installed, thermal efficiency is increased and remember, sound waves 'envelop' the entire circumference of each tube without causing any damage to tube bundles or structures.

Pictured: Sonic Soot Blower installed on a Boiler.

Read more about the Benefits of Acoustic Cleaners and the Benefits of Sonic Soot Blowers or follow the links below to view more comparisons between Acoustic Cleaning Systems and the Alternatives.