UNIVERSITI KUALA LUMPUR

MALAYSIAN INSITITUTE OF INDUSTRIAL TECHNOLOGY (MITEC)

POLLUTION CONTROL TECHNOLOGY (JOB 20303)

LAB TASK 2B : CYCLONE SEPARATOR

GROUP : BPOS20/2

1. 2. 3. 4.

N0. NAME ID COURSE

1. FARAHANA RODZIANI BINTI MOHD RODI 57216120497 BPOS

2. JURIATUL ASMIRA BINTI MAH HASSAN 57216120312 BPOS

3. NUR QURRATU AINI BINTI ABDULLAH 57216120463 BPOS

4. SITI KHAIRUNNUR BINTI LADERLAH 51216120359 BPOS

 TABLE OF CONTENTS

NO. CONTENTS PAGE NUMBER

1 Summary 1

2 Objective 2

3 Introduction 3-6

4 Result and Discussion 7-9

5 Conclusion and Recommendations 10 - 11

6 Tutorial 12

7 References 13

8 Appendixes 14 - 16

List of Figures
9 17
List of Tables
 1.0 SUMMARY

The aim of this experimental study is concerned about cyclone efficiency. In this experiment,
we can see how the process of removing particulate solids from gas stream to get the cleaned
gas. This experiment is circulation with a definable centre is the kind of vortex separation.

Cyclone separator is gas cleaning device that employ a centrifugal force generated by a
spinning gas stream to separate the particulate matter (solid or liquid) from the carrier gas.

the procedure of running this experiment is given at the appendix section. Incoming air is
automatically forced to adopt a fast-revolving spiral movement, that called ‘double vortex’.
This double spiral movement consist of an outer stream, which flows downwards in a spiral,
and an inner stream, which flows upwards in a spiral. At the interchange between both streams,
air passed from one stream to the other. The particles which are present in the air forced to the
outer edges and leave the separator via collection device fitted to the bottom of the separator.
Figure 1 shows the cylindrical body of the cyclone.

Figure 1 : The cylindrical body of the cyclone

The cyclone efficiency results are analysed and discussion. Comments on the most appropriate
methods of control of particles, the sample in these experiments are given at last in the section
of recommendation.

To sum up, in the experiment, the particles escaping from the cyclone in the process might
lose, which could influence the cyclone efficiency.

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 2.0 OBJECTIVE

1. To study the small cyclone system collection efficiency

2. To study the process of removing particulate solids from gas streams
3. To determine vortex separation as a circulation with a definable centre

2
 3.0 INTRODUCTION

Cyclones are basic mechanical devices that remove relatively large particles from gas streams
(> 5 to 10 m). They're most widely used in a variety of fields, including:

• Environmental Engineers to remove particulate pollutants.

• Chemical Engineers and Mechanical Engineers to collect valuable particle products.
• Industrial Hygienists to sample particles in working environments.
• Pharmaceutics to classify their powdered drugs.

Cyclones are also used as pre-cleaners for more advanced air quality control devices including
electrostatic precipitators and baghouses. Cyclones are a particular form of pollution control
system used to keep particulate matter out of the air. Since they are more effective at extracting
particulate matter than settling chambers, they are commonly used in manufacturing to manage
pollutants from dryers, crushers, incinerators, and kilns. However, they are less efficient than
either wet scrubbers, baghouses, or electrostatic precipitators. Pre-cleaning cyclones are often
configured to eliminate more than 80% of particles with a diameter greater than 20 m.

Cyclone Mechanism: Impaction

A cyclone separates ions from a gas stream using centrifugal energy. It works in a similar way
to an impactor. A single wide chamber, a series of small tubular chambers in tandem, or a
complex unit similar to a blower may both be used as separators. Units in series provide
increased removal performance, whereas units in parallel provide increased volumetric power
(Wark, 1981). The incoming dust-laden air spirals around and down the cylindrical body of the
cyclone, as seen in Figure 2. The centrifugal force generated in the vortex continues to drive
the particles radially towards the wall, and those that make it to the wall slide into the cone and
into the dust hopper bottle. According to specific gravity, the particulate matter slips down.
The real gravity of a substance is the ratio of its density to that of a normal reference material
(air) (bill, 1966). The clean gas then creates a narrower spiral course and exits the cyclone at
its tip. Only the heavier particles are stored in the dust hopper container, while the lighter

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particles escape with the carrier medium (air) through the vortex finder mounted in the dust
hopper container.

Figure 2 : Principle of cyclone operation

Cyclone’s twist and transform the incoming gas stream in a spiral pattern. Because of their
velocity or inertia, large particles joining the gas stream cannot transform with it. As a result,
they break free from the gas stream and collide with the cyclone's wall. The particles then roll
down the wall and into a hopper where they are stored. Figure 3 shows a top-down view of the
action.

Figure 3: Cyclone particles collection

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The manner in which the gas is introduced determines the spiral pattern of gas flow (Figure 5).
It enters through the cyclone's body wall and twists a few times before spiralling down to the
bottom, just like a tornado's funnel. When the gas approaches the cyclone's bottom, it reverses
direction and travels up the tube's middle in a spiral pattern. When this spiral or vortex pattern
ascends, it turns in the same direction as when it descends.

Figure 4 : Cyclonic separation

Particulate matter is pulled to the wall in the cyclone's

cylindrical portion. Or, to put it another way, the ions are
pushed against the wall by a "apparent" centrifugal force. The
body of the cone segment is tapered to have enough rotational
momentum for the gas to hold the particles against the wall.
This helps to avoid re-entrainment, or the reintroduction of
collected debris into the gas stream. The particulate matter
collects in the hopper as it sinks to the floor and is discarded
either constantly or regularly.

Figure 5 : Gas flow in a cyclone

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So, Impaction is actually the mechanism for the collection in the system, and it is more effective
for larger particles. The most important parameter that affects impaction is called Stokes
number (Stk). Stk includes both flow velocity and particle diameter and is defined a

The efficiency of the experiment can be calculated using:

Which,

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 4.0 RESULT AND DISCUSSION

Figure 6 : Illustration of cyclone separator

Parameter Data
Types of cyclone Small
Air flowrate, Q (L/min) 20
Inlet velocity, vi (m/s) 36258
Revolutions per min (RPM) 1756
Pressure Drop, (in.H2O) 2
Initial weight of sample in feed container, WCI (g) 50
Final weight of sample in feed container, WCF (g) 7.56
Weight of sample collected in dust hopper, WH (g) 17.24
Collection efficiency, (%) 40.60
Table 1: The data of cyclone efficiency

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Calculation:

In order to calculate the collection efficiency, (%), the following equation is applied:

which:

η = efficiency

WH = Weight of Sample collected in dust hopper

WCI = Initial Weight of sample in feed container

WCF = Final Weight of Sample in feed container

A = Weight of Sample in feed container after experiment

B = Weight of feed container

WCI = 50g

WCF = A – B

= 431.49 – 423.93

= 7.56g

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 The cyclone system's collection efficiency is determined by the cyclone body diameter
and inlet velocity. The aims of this experiment are to study the small cyclone system collection
efficiency and to determine vortex separation in removing particulate solids from gas streams.
Based on the raw data that we have collected, it is shown that the air flowrate, Q (m3/h), inlet
velocity, vi (m/s), and the pressure drop (in.H2O) decrease with increasing time. From the
result we can also see that the inlet velocity for the small cyclone is 36258 m/s.

The cyclone system's efficiency is determined by dividing the weight of the sample
collected in the dust hopper by the difference between the initial and final weight of the sample
in the feed container and multiplying by 100 percent. Based on the result, it is calculated that
the collection efficiency of the cyclone it is 40.6%.

In theory, a cyclone with a smaller diameter has a higher collection efficiency than one
with a larger diameter. The hypothesis is proved, according to Jolius Gimbun et al. (2004), by
using the Li and Wang model by Li & Wang (1989) to predict the outcome. Different cyclone
diameters have different collection performances. As Avci and Irfan discovered, a larger
cyclone generates less centrifugal force, resulting in lower collection performance (2003).

Based on the data information collected and the results obtained, we found that cyclone
functions as a cyclone works on the principle of creating a high-speed spiral airflow to
eliminate particles. This spiral motion applies to a centrifuge force on the particles. The conical
segment at the base of the cyclone gradually reduces the diameter of the filing gas flow, which
allows the smaller particles to be eliminated more efficiently.

Sawmills use large-scale cyclones to remove sawdust from extracted air. Cyclones are
also used to isolate oils and gases in oil refineries, as well as in the cement industry as part of
kiln preheaters. Cyclones are becoming more common in the home, with bagless portable
vacuum cleaners and central vacuum cleaners featuring technology. In industrial and technical
kitchen ventilation, cyclones are used to separate grease from exhaust air in extraction hoods.
Airborne particles are separated for examinations using smaller cyclones. Some are small
enough to clip clothing and are used to collect respirable particles for study later.

However, in this experiment we could not prove that by increasing the cyclone size,
Dc, the collection efficiency will decrease, due to some reasons that have been explained in the
discussion section. The changeset of Efficiency usually different to diameter of cyclone but
unfortunately, we cannot run this experiment to prove that the different diameter of cyclone
will affect the collection efficiency.

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 5.0 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

As the conclusion, the experiment had been carried out successfully and we managed
to come out with a result.

It has been proved that cyclones is an effective way to remove relatively particles from
gas streams. Hence, in this experiment we can see the process of removing particulate solids
from gas stream achieved by using a high-speed rotating airflow, a method of vortex separation.
However, in this experiment, we could not prove that increasing the cyclone size will affect
collection efficiency, due to some reasons that have been explained in the discussion section.

After this experiment, we experienced many kinds of errors including human errors, systemic
errors, and random errors that affect the result:

1. The weight of Kaolin that has been used for sampling in this experiment is too light.
Thus, the piping that connects from inlet dust to cyclone will get many particles
remaining.
2. Several connections are not tightened properly due to aging (loose).
3. Moisture inside the feed container prevents particles from going up freely.
4. It is difficult to go up due to the moisture content inside the Kaolin itself because it has
high content of moisture compared to flour. Thus, it required further steps slightly
different from previous experiments from others that use flour.
5. Kaolin in this experiment needs to be known for the exact size of particles so that we
can estimate the efficiency of the cyclone correctly.

Therefore, we have come up with several recommendations in order to reduce the errors:

1. To encounter this error, we must open the feeder slowly and cautiously. Furthermore,
the handling of the dust should be properly managed so that any spill over of the dust
onto the floor may bring an error while calculating its actual efficiency.
2. The connection should be assembled properly before being used in the experiment. The
low maintenance of the equipment should not le be happen since it will have a big
impact on the Kaolin flow rate.

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3. Hot air should be blown to the feed container before starting the experiment so that it
will decrease the quantity of moisture inside the feed container.
4. Kaolin needs to be dry in the over before being poured into the feed container.
5. The particle size for the dust sample, which is Kaolin in this case, should be uniform
while conducting the experiment. This is due to the reason that varying the size of the
particle may result in an inaccuracy which is in terms of collection efficiency.

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6.0 TUTORIAL

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 7.0 REFERENCE

Cyclonic separators. (n.d.). Jeven

Oy. https://web.archive.org/web/20170421003247/www.jeven.fi/en/cyclonic-

separators/

Experimental study of cyclone performance for blow-by gas cleaning applications. (n.d.).

ResearchGate. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/317248783_Experimental_s

tudy_of_cyclone_performance_for_blow-by_gas_cleaning_applications

Report of cyclone efficiency method. (2017, April 21).

UKEssays.com. https://www.ukessays.com/essays/environmental-studies/report-of-

cyclone-efficiency-method.php

Super User. (n.d.). Cyclones. Primasonics International Ltd - Primasonics International

Ltd. https://www.primasonics.com/industries/cyclones

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 8.0 APPENDIX

1. The experiment for a small cyclone operation is prepared

2. The empty feed container and dust hopper are weighed separately

3. 750g of sample weighed and poured slowly into the feed container

4. The air pumps to the feed container with the tubing provided are connected and the
needle valve, V7 is ensured initially closed

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5. The feed container is attached to the holder and adjusted so that the outlet of feed
container is just inside the inlet piping of cyclone

6. The outlet dust filter is cleaned

7. All items are ensured ready and connection are assembled and tightened properly before
starting the experiment

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8. Opened the valve V4
9. The main switch is switched on and push the START button to run the air blower
10. The air blower speed is adjusted until the venturi differential pressure gauge,
manometer (venturi) showed approximately 600 Pa (61.183mmH2O)
11. The air compressor is switched on and the pressure regulator is regulated to 2bar

12. Opened the valve, V7 slowly until boiling phenomena is observed

13. The experiment is run for 30 minutes until the powder is finished. The feeder tapped
lightly when the powder was stuck.
14. Switch off the compressor and air blower when the experiment is completed
15. The dust sample is clean off that left inside cyclone into dust hopper gently by using
compressed air (did carefully to avoid losses)
16. Unattached the feed container, F1 and the dust hopper, H1 and weighted them
separately

17. The collection efficiency of the cyclone is determined by key in the weight of sample
loaded and collected

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 LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1 : The cylindrical body of the cyclone

Figure 2 : Principle of cyclone operation

Figure 3 : Cyclone particles collection

Figure 4 : Cyclonic separation

Figure 5 : Gas flow in a cyclone

Figure 6 : Illustration of cyclone separator

LIST OF TABLES

Figure 1 : The data of cyclone efficiency

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