Title

EXPERIMENTAL EVALUATION OF THE METHOD AIR SCOURING USED IN FLUSHING SYSTEMS FOR CLEANING PIPES

Authorship

Vitor Orlando Ferreira; Richard de Medeiros Castro; Elvys Isaias Mercado Curi; João da Silva Júnior

Vitor Orlando Ferreira

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Richard de Medeiros Castro

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Elvys Isaias Mercado Curi

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João da Silva Júnior

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DOI

10.5151/1472-5836-25771

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Abstract

The efficiency of an apparatus which uses a forced lubrication system, as well as the useful life of its components, is strongly related to the degree of contamination of lubricating oil. The presence of contaminants and the degradation of the oil itself cause it to release substances that fouling of the wall of the pipes. The cleaning and dialysis of the oil pipes, besides prolonging the life of the lubricant reduces wear of the components. There are several methods of cleaning in pipes, the problem is that some have abrasive characteristics, which could damage some types pipes. Among the non-abrasive methods stand the Flushing and Air scouring. Flushing uses the lubricating oil which circulates in temperatures alternating and high speeds, for generating turbulence to perform washing. The Air scouring method uses oil and filtered compressed air, injected into pipe, to generating higher flow, causing the power supply unit with fluid can work with lower power consumption and higher speeds, removing fouling of the pipe. The objective of this research is to evaluate the Reynolds number to correlate with the efficiency of cleaning the pipe. The method applied was the Air scouring and it was verified that the qualitative effects may occur when compared to Flushing. After testing, it was found that the chosen method brings significant changes in flow, and this flow regime varies considerably increasing the Reynolds number.

Keywords

Contamination; Cleaning; Flushing; Air scouring