Engineering Systems for

Air Pollution Control

(Part one)
CO3: To evaluate various sources of air and
noise pollution and propose the relevant
control principles.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Amirhossein Malakahmad

Civil & Environmental Engineering Department
Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS
Unit objectives…
At the end of this session you will be able to:

• Evaluate different methods for air pollution

control and describe the hierarchy of control.
• Apply different techniques to control particulates
contaminants in air.
Approaches to contaminants control
• There are two broad approaches to the
control of particulate and gaseous
contaminants:

– Dilution of the contaminants in the

atmosphere

– Control of the contaminants at their source

 Dilution What goes up
Accomplished must eventually
through the come down
use of tall
stacks
Dilution
• Tall stacks and other such dilution devices
are only a means of spreading air
contaminants around our globe or diluting
them to levels at which their harmful effects
are less noticeable near their source.

In terms of long-range control of air

pollution, control of contaminants at their
source is a more desirable and effective
method than dilution.
Control of pollutants at their source
1. Prevent the contaminants
2. Substituting an alternative power source
– (i.e., hydraulic, geothermal, or solar energy
for fossil-fuel-derived energy)
3. Reduce contaminant emission
– Alternation
4. Proper operation and maintenance of
existing equipment
5. Changing the process
6. Install control equipment
Control devices
• Since few such devices are effective in the
control of both particulate and gaseous
contaminants, control devices are usually
designed to control either one or the other.

• In terms of volume of pollutants, the control of

gaseous pollutants seems of primary
importance.

• However, in actual practice, much greater

attention has been directed toward particulate
control, perhaps because particulates are more
easily seen.
Control Devices
for Particulate
Contaminants
Gravitational Settling Chambers
• System provides enlarged areas to
minimize horizontal velocities and allow
time for the vertical velocity to carry the
particle to the floor.
Gravitational Settling Chambers
vh= horizontal flow-through
velocity, m/s
H = height of settling chamber
L = length of settling chamber
g = gravitational constant, m/s2
ρp= density of the particle, kg/m3
µ = viscosity of air, kg/m.s
vt = terminal settling velocity, m/s
Example 1: A settling chamber that is 12 m long, 2 m high,
and 2 m wide processes 240 m3/min of air at a
temperature of 75 °C (µ = 2.06 x 10-5 kg/m.s).
i. Determine the maximum size of the particle with density
of 1800 kg/m3 that is removed with efficiency of 100%.
ii. Draw a size – efficiency curve for the system.
Centrifugal collectors
• It employs a centrifugal force instead of
gravity to separate particles.

• Because centrifugal forces can be

generated that are several times greater
than gravitational forces, particles can be
removed in centrifugal collectors that are
much smaller than those that can be
removed in gravity settling chambers.
Cyclone
Under the power of the
centrifugal force
generated by the spinning
gas, the solid particles are
thrown to the walls of the
cyclone as the gas spirals
upward at the inside of
the cone. The particles
slide down the walls of
the cone and into the
hopper.
Standard-dimension cyclone collector
Centrifugal force
• The operating or separating efficiency of a
cyclone depends on the magnitude of the
centrifugal force exerted on the particles.
Large-diameter cyclones
have good collection
efficiencies for particles
40 to 50 µm in diameter.
High-efficiency cyclones
Fc = centrifugal force, N
with diameters of 23 cm
Mp = particulate mass, kg or less have good
vi= particle velocity. m/s efficiencies for particles
R = radius of the cyclone, m from 15 to 20 µm.
Multiple cyclones
• Multiple cyclones operating in parallel are
necessary to treat large flows when small-
diameter cyclones are used.
Particle removal efficiency

d50 = diameter of the

particle with 50
percent efficiency, m
µ = gas viscosity, kg/m.s
b = width of cyclone inlet, m
Ne = number of effective
turns within the cyclone
vi = inlet gas velocity, m/s
ρ = density of the particulate
matter, kg/m3
Example 2: An air stream with a flow rate of 7 m3/s is passed
through a cyclone of standard proportion. The particle has a
density of 1.5 g/cm3 and a diameter of 10 µm, the air
temperature is 77 ºC, Ne = 5 turns and µ = 2.1 x 10-5 kg/m.s.
Compare the collection efficiency of a cyclone with a diameter
of 2.0 m and a bank of 64 cyclones with diameter of 24 cm.