High-voltage monitoring in electrostatic separators

High voltage is known to be one of the main control variables in any electrostatic-separation process. From this perspective, the aim of this paper is twofold: to develop an effective high-voltage monitoring system and to demonstrate that it can be a useful tool for controlling the overall operating conditions of an electrostatic-separator system. A custom-designed virtual instrument was employed for processing the experimental data provided by a high-voltage probe, the output of which was connected to an electrometer. In several experiments, the output of the high-voltage probe was also connected to a digital oscilloscope, in order to obtain a better understanding of the variation of the electrode potential after a spark discharge. The laps of time without corona. discharge and/or with low electric field intensities could thus lie accurately determined, and the impact of the spark discharges on the outcome of the separation process evaluated. The dispersion of high-voltage measured values was found to increase in the presence of the material. The statistical analysis of the data revealed a significant correlation between the standard deviation of the high-voltage and the concentration of metal in the processed material. The results of this paper could be helpful for those seeking the optimization of the operating conditions for the electrostatic separation applications, in which the metal content in the feed materials exhibits substantial fluctuation with time.