Hot-Gas Filter Ash Characterization Project

Large-scale hot-gas filter testing over the past 10 years has revealed numerous cases of cake buildup on filter elements that has been difficult, if not impossible, to remove. At times, the cake can blind or bridge between candle filters, leading to filter failure. Physical factors, including particle-size distribution, particle shape, the aerodynamics of deposition, and system temperature, contribute to the difficulty in removing the cake, but chemical factors such as surface composition and gas-solid reactions also play roles in helping to bond the ash to the filters or to itself. This project is designed to perform the research necessary to determine the fuel-, sorbent-, and operations-related conditions that lead to blinding or bridging of hot-gas particle filters. The objectives of the project are threefold: (1) Determine the mechanisms by which a difficult-to-clean ash is formed and how it bridges hot-gas filters (2) Develop a method to determine the rate of bridging based on analyses of the feed coal and sorbent, filter properties, and system operating conditions and (3) Suggest and test ways to prevent filter bridging