Optimisation of the intermittent operation of a wire-cylinder electrostatic precipitator

Intermittent operation mode is specific to electrostatic precipitators (ESP) used in workshops where the polluting product is produced in a discontinuous way. The present work aimed at validating a standard procedure for modelling and optimisation of such a wire cylinder ESP, using an appropriate method of experimental design. The experiments were carried out with samples of micronized wood, using a laboratory cylindrical ESP built by one of the authors. The factors considered in the study were the applied high voltage U (kV), the air flow F (m(3)/h), the mass of pollutant at the input of the ESP m(i) (g) and the size of particles S (pm). Several "one-factor-at-a-time" experiments followed by a factorial composite design were performed, in order to identify the domain of variation of each factor and determine the mathematical model of the process.