Electrostatic fume extractors are designed for the capture and control of fine particulate matter like fumes, smoke, dust, mist etc that are generated during industrial processes. Some of the aforementioned processes include welding, soldering and brazing. These systems make use of the principle of electrostatic filtration, which is simple, effective and efficient.

How It Works

At its core, these systems make use of electrostatic filtration modules. Here’s a step by step breakdown of the stages of operation of the electrostatic filter modules used by Powertech Pollution Controls.

1. Intake: The air consisting of pollutants like fumes and smoke is pulled into the system through the inlet.
2. Charging Stage: The first stage of the filtration modules makes use of aluminium parallel plates where all the fine particles receive a heavy positive charge.
3. Collection Stage: The second stage of the filters use a second set of more closely placed parallel plates which have alternating positive and negative charges. When the positively charged particles pass through this stage, they are pushed onto the negative plates where they get stuck.
4. Release: The filtered air is then released either back into the shop floor or into the atmosphere, free of all fine particulate matter.

It is to be noted that the filtered particles remain stuck on the electrostatic plates even after the system is turned off due to residual static charge.

Benefits of an Electrostatic Filtration System

1. High Efficiency: These system can capture particles that are up to 0.01 microns in size with 90 – 99% efficiency.
2. Reusable Filters: These filters have a long life and only require minimum maintenance of occasional cleaning.
3. Low Pressure Drop: Due to the use of parallel plates, the air passing through the filters have minimal obstruction and therefore, these system demonstrate a very low pressure drop between the inlet and outlet. 
4. Lower Power Usage: the low pressure drop allows for higher capacity systems with lower power consumptions. These systems usually require only half the power of a similar system using a physical filter.
5. Economic Benefits: The lower power usage, minimal maintenance requirements and negligible replacement costs, these systems can reduce running costs by about 30%.

Applications of Electrostatic Fume Extractors

These systems are typically used as one of the following:

1. Welding Fume Extractor
2. Soldering Fume Extractor
3. Oil Mist Collector

They are typically used in welding and soldering stations, CNC machining centers, automotive workshops, electronics manufacturing and food processing units.

Electrostatic filters are the smart choice for industries that need clean air. They are effective, efficient and economically more viable over the long term.