Reusable Sintered Felt Filter Cartridge

Reusable Sintered Felt Filter Cartridge: An Economical and Sustainable Filtration Solution

In the field of industrial filtration, the frequent replacement of disposable filter cartridges not only incurs ongoing costs but also generates significant waste. The reusable sintered felt filter cartridge, known for its exceptional regeneration capability and service life, successfully breaks this cycle and has become a preferred cost-effective and environmentally sustainable filtration choice.

1. What is a Reusable Sintered Felt Filter Cartridge?

A reusable sintered felt filter cartridge is a three-dimensional porous material made from metal fibers such as stainless steel or iron-chromium-aluminum (FeCrAl), which are layered and sintered at high temperatures. Its "reusable" characteristic is rooted in inherent material and structural advantages:

• Rigid Structure: The metallurgical bonds formed during high-temperature sintering provide the felt with sufficient mechanical strength and rigidity to withstand physical impacts during cleaning without damage.

• Depth Filtration: Contaminants are primarily trapped within the vast three-dimensional network of pores inside the material, rather than merely adhering to the surface.

• Stable Pore Structure: During cleaning, the pore size and distribution remain unchanged, allowing stable recovery of filtration performance.

2. Why Can It Be Cleaned? Key Advantages

1. High Mechanical Strength
   The sintered felt cartridge itself has high pressure differential tolerance, easily withstanding the impact of high-pressure back-pulsing without structural failure, unlike paper or certain fiber cartridges.

2. Excellent Chemical Stability
   Made from materials like 316L stainless steel, it exhibits good corrosion resistance and can tolerate immersion in various acids, alkalis, and organic solvents to dissolve different types of contaminants.

3. Deep Contaminant Holding and Efficient Release
   Although its three-dimensional structure has a large dirt-holding capacity, contaminants are mainly physically adsorbed onto the fibers. With appropriate cleaning methods, deeply trapped pollutants can be "expelled," achieving thorough cleaning.

3. Common Cleaning Methods and Procedures

Depending on the nature of the contaminants, one or a combination of the following methods can be used:

1. Reverse Pulse Cleaning (Preferred Method)

   • Principle: Compressed air (or nitrogen) is introduced into the cartridge interior, using instantaneous high-pressure reverse airflow to "blow off" dust-like contaminants attached to the fibers.

   • Characteristics: Online cleaning, no need to disassemble the cartridge, highly automated, and the most common and efficient method for dust removal applications.

2. Ultrasonic Cleaning

   • Principle: The cartridge is immersed in a cleaning solution, and high-frequency "cavitation" effects generated by ultrasound in the liquid create micro-jets that impact and dislodge stubborn contaminants deep within the micropores.

   • Characteristics: Most thorough cleaning, especially suitable for sticky, oily contaminants, or deeply clogged cartridges.

3. Thermal Pyrolysis Cleaning

   • Principle: For organic contamination (e.g., polymers, coke carbon), the cartridge is placed in a muffle furnace at a controlled high temperature (e.g., 450°C) to incinerate the organics into gases.

   • Characteristics: Completely removes organic pollutants and restores the cartridge's original flux. Temperature must be strictly controlled to prevent material damage.

4. Chemical Soak Cleaning

   • Principle: The cartridge is soaked in specific acid, alkali, or surfactant solutions to remove contaminants (e.g., oxides, scale, specific chemical residues) through chemical reactions or dissolution.

   • Characteristics: Highly targeted; requires thorough rinsing with clean water after cleaning to prevent chemical residue.

Typical Cleaning Procedure:
Offline disassembly → Preliminary back-pulse → (Optional) Ultrasonic/chemical cleaning → Rinsing → Drying → Integrity test → Reinstallation

4. Main Application Scenarios

Reusable sintered felt cartridges are ideal for high-contamination or high-value applications:

• Chemical Industry: Polymer melt filtration, catalyst recovery. The high value of cartridges makes cleaning and reuse economically significant.

• Powder & Dust Removal: High-temperature flue gas dedusting, powder coating recovery, metal powder filtration. Continuous operation can be achieved through online back-pulsing.

• Metallurgy Industry: Molten metal filtration (e.g., aluminum, zinc). Cartridges can be reused after pyrolysis cleaning.

• Environmental Protection & Water Treatment: Treating complex industrial wastewater; performance can be restored through chemical cleaning.

• Food & Pharmaceutical Industries: Used for filtration and recovery of process aids (e.g., activated carbon).

5. Economic Analysis