CA1096649A - Method for reconditioning dryer screens - Google Patents

Method for reconditioning dryer screens

Info

Publication number
CA1096649A
CA1096649A CA281,736A CA281736A CA1096649A CA 1096649 A CA1096649 A CA 1096649A CA 281736 A CA281736 A CA 281736A CA 1096649 A CA1096649 A CA 1096649A
Authority
CA
Canada
Prior art keywords
screen
oscillating
psi
dryer
water
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Expired
Application number
CA281,736A
Other languages
French (fr)
Inventor
Joseph P.E. Blais
Herman R. Levesque
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
International Paper Canada Inc
Original Assignee
International Paper Canada Inc
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by International Paper Canada Inc filed Critical International Paper Canada Inc
Priority to CA281,736A priority Critical patent/CA1096649A/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of CA1096649A publication Critical patent/CA1096649A/en
Expired legal-status Critical Current

Links

Classifications

    • DTEXTILES; PAPER
    • D21PAPER-MAKING; PRODUCTION OF CELLULOSE
    • D21FPAPER-MAKING MACHINES; METHODS OF PRODUCING PAPER THEREON
    • D21F1/00Wet end of machines for making continuous webs of paper
    • D21F1/32Washing wire-cloths or felts

Landscapes

  • Paper (AREA)

Abstract

METHOD FOR RECONDITIONING DRYER SCREENS

Abstract of the Disclosure A method for cleaning and reconditioning dryer screens for papermaking machines comprises the steps of removing the dryer screen from the machine and processing the screen section by section in assembly-line fashion through a sequence of cleaning steps, including bathing the screen in a cleaning solution, scrubbing the screen with oscillating brushes, showering the screen with an oscillating high pressure stream of water, rinsing the screen with a stationary low pressure stream of water, and drying the screen with an air shower.

Description

~166~

sackground of the Invention _ _ . _ _ _ Field to Which the Invention Pertains The present invention relates to the art of papermaking.
More particularly, -the invention relates to the cleaning and reconditioning of dryer screens used on papermaking machines -- long continuous belts of open mesh fabric which support and guide the paper sheet through the dryer section of the machine. These dryer screens also aid in drying the paper sheet by improving the sheet contact with the heated drying cylinders, while the water vapor resulting from drying passes freely through the mesh openings in the screen without condensing.
During the papermaking process, a dryer screen frequently accumulates foreign material such as paper dust and oil, which become imbedded in the screen filling its mesh openings and causing it to lose much of its permeability to air and water vapor.
The present invention is an efficient and economical process for reconditioning a dryer screen and involves removing the screen from the papermaking machine and sub- `
jecting the screen to a sequence of cleaning steps which restore its high permeability.
Prior Art In the past fifteen years, dryer screens fabricated from 100~ synthetic materials have come increasingly into use in papermaking machines as an alternative to dryer felts.
Dryer felts were typically constructed of materials made from natural fibers, e.g., cotton canvas or wool, often in combination with various synthetic fibers and with asbestos.

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A modern dryer screen, in contras-t to a felt, is typically loosely woven from a 100~ synthetic material and thus has a high permeability to air and water vapor. A
screen which loses its high permeability to water vapor will absorb the water vapor produced in drying the paper sheet. A highly permeable screen will pass the water vapor through with relatively little absorption, thus avoiding the thermally inefficient process of condensation and subse-quent re-evaporation of the water.
High dryer screen permeability to air also is desirable because it improves the effectiveness and efficiency of the drying process by encouraging freer evaporation of water from the side of the paper sheet in contact with the screen. Freer evaporation means greater cooling of the sheet thereby lowering its temperature and producing a greater temperature differential and hence a greater heat transfer between the dryer and the sheet. This in turn leads to a reduction of steam consumption by the dryer and thus to lower overall plant fuel consumption.
Dryer screens woven of synthetic materials have a distinct advantage over felts made from natural fibers in that they enjoy much longer useful lives before wearing out. However after 90 to 1~0 days of use on a papermaking machine the air passages through the screen mesh become blocked by foreign materials, most notably paper dust and oil. The ambient air in the paper mill which often contains paper dust circulates through the screen, causing the dust to collect in the screen mesh. The~oil is transmitted to the dryer screen from the dryer bearings and other mechanical parts of the dryer section of the papermaking machine and often accumulates in longitudinal strips 1 foot to 1 1/2
-2-.

feet wide along the edges of the screen. The resulting loss of dryer screen air and water vapor permeabilit~ makes it necessary in most cases to clean or recondition the screen after every 90 to 100 days of use. Moreover, the long use-~ul life of modern 100% synthetic dryer screens make such reconditioning practical from the standpoint of cost.
The prior art teaches various methods for cleaning papermachine felts while the felts remain on the machine. Some of these methods re~uire shutting down the production of paper as the felt is processed through a cleaning cycle. Such methods are suitable for use only on the shorter papermachine felts, such as the so-called presser felts. They are not practical for cleaning the much longer dryer screens, where cleaning could require paper production to be interrupted for three hours or more while subjecting the screen to a cleaning cycle.
The prior art also teaches methods for continuous cleaning of felts including dryer screens while on the paper-making machine during normal machine operation. These prior methods do not fill the present need for a reconditioning process for dryer screens which provides the very thorough cleaning needed to remove the foreign materials, e.g., paper dust and oil, which accumulate in the dryer screen mesh and reduce its permeability to air and water vapor. Such deep cleaning is difficult to achieve without removing the dryer screen from the machine. For example, in the present invention the cleaning process preferably includes removing the screen from the papermaking machine and washing it in `
a bath of hot caustic chemical solution. This cleaning step could not be readily carried out with the screen still on the machine, without risking damage to the machine by the caustic solution.
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Moreover, removing the dryer screen from the papermaking machine for cleaning allows a new or reconditioned screen to be immediately substi-tuted in its place thereby permitting the papermaking machine to continue its normal production with only a minor interruption for screen removal, which can often be accomplished during a shutdo~n of the machine for other mainten-ance.
Thus the present invention meets the existing need for a method of reconditioning dryer screens to restore their permeability ~o air and water vapor by removing accumulated paper dust, oil and other foreign materials. While the prior art teaches generally the removal of the felts from a papermaking machine for washing, the method described herein is particularly adpated to solve the problem of cleaning dryer screens, and is novel in the particular preferred combination of cleaning steps which is taught.
Summary of the Invention The invention provides a method for reconditioning a synthetic material dryer screen of a papermaking machine to remove foreign material which has become lodged in the mesh of the screen, comprising the steps of:
a) removing the screen from the papermaking machine; and b) sequentially processing the screen one section at a time in an assembly-line fashion through the following cleaning steps: i) bathing in an aqueous cleaning solution to soften the foreign materials which have become imbedded in the ; mesh; ii) scrubbing with oscillating brushes to dislodge the foreign material;
iii) spraying with a high pressure oscillating shower of water to further dislodge the foreign material; iv) showering with fresh water at a low pres-sure to remove the residual chemical cleaning solution and foreign material;
and v) drying with a stream of air.
The reconditioned screen is then ready to be reinstalled in the dryer section of the papermaking machine when needed.

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-~ , . . - - . -Brief Description of -the Drawing ~ he accompanying drawing is a schematic diagram illustrating an e~emplary embodiment of the present method of recondition:ing dryer screens.
Description of the_Preferred Embodiments . . .
Our method for recondi-tioning dryer screens begins with removal of the dryer screen to be recondi-tioned from the papermaking machine, which typically involves opening the transverse seam which joins the ends of the screen. The screen can be unseamed and removed during a normal shut-down of the paper machine, and can be replaced with either a new or previously reconditioned screen.
Referring now to the drawing, dryer screen 10, having been removed from the paperma~ing machine, is carefully wound onto a reel 12 which is mounted on a stand (not shown~ near reconditioning apparatus 14. From the stand the screen can be unwound as it passes through apparatus 14 to be reconditioned.

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The leading edge of the screen is threaded through the reconditioning machine by hand, over reel 16, through washer tub 18, passing under reel 28,over reels 20 and 22, and is attached to motor-driven w:indup reel 24 supported on a second stand (not shown).
Once the screen is threaded, the motor which drives windup reel 24 is actuated to turn the windup reel slowly clockwise and to wind the dryer screen from the reel 12 to the windup reel 24. Preferably the rate of travel of the screen is slow -- approximately 10 inches to 1 1/2 feet per minute. Use of a faster speed may result in in-complete reconditioning of the screen, necessitàting one or more additional cycles through the reconditioning process.
As screen 10 is wound from reel 12 to reel 24, it passes, section by section in assembly-line fashion, through a series of cleaning stations which will be described in the sequence in which they are encountered by the dryer screen.
First, the screen passes through chemical clean-ing bath 26 contained in tub 18. The bath preferablyis an aqueous solution comprising a caustic agent, a degreasing agent, and a sequestering agent.
From the various caustic agents which are well known to those skilled in the art, e.g., caustic soda (sodium hydro~ide) and caustic alcohol (sodium ethylate), we have selected caustic soda ~lake for use as a caustic agent in our preferred embodiment because it provides good cleaning action at low cost. However, other known caustic agents could be used without departing from the spirit of this invention.

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Chemical degreasing agents are surfactants used, for e~ample, in paper mills to remove grease and oil from the frame of the papermaking machine. From the many degreasers which are co~nercially available, it is preferable to use in the bath a non-flammable, non-combustible water soluble degreaser and cleaner such as that manufactured by Empire Maintenance, Ltd. of Montreal, Canada and sold under the trademark "Degraisseur - Actif G.S.L."
A sequestering agent, which may be selected from those well known in the art, preferably one containing sodium gluconate in solution such as that sold by DuBois Chemical Company, Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S.A., under the tradenam~ "Activate", is also added to the bath. It is believed that this sequestering agent promotes rinsing.
The bath is preferably mixed from the above ingredients in the following proportions: `-Caustic soda flake (450 lbs.) G.S.L. Degreaser (5 Imp. Gal.) Activate (5 Imp. Gal.) Cold Water (850 Imp. Gal.) The bath is preferably heated to a temperature of at least 140 ~. prior to reconditioning of the screen to promote the chemical action and the softening the materials imbedded in the screen.
Next, the screen is scrubbed by an oscillating brush 30 above the screen, showered by high pressure oscillating water spray 32, and scrubbed again by another oscillating brush 34 below the screen. This combination of ;
oscillating brushes and oscillating high pressure shower dislodges the foreign material imbedded in the screen which was softened in ~he preceding s ep of bathing the screen.
The water pressure of the shower from spray 30 should be -7- ~

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in the ran~e of 200 to 600 PSI, and brushes 30 and 34 shoul~ preferably oscillate at a speed of approximately 30 cycles per minute. The throw of the oscillating brushes which we prefer is six to eight inches.
The order in which the oscillating brushe5 and hi~h pre~sure sprays are applied to screen 10 is not critical; for example, it is within the scope of this invention to apply both top and bottom oscillating brushes (30 and 34) to the screen before applying high pressure oscillating spray 32.
Next in the process, the screen is showered with fresh water from stationary low pressure shower 36 to remove chemicals and foreign materials which remain from preceding steps in the reconditioning process. For this shower, a water pressure of between 40-60 PSI has been found to be satisfactory for the removal of residual chemicals and foreign material. A pan 38 collects the excess liquid running from the screen and a pipe (not shown) connected to the bottom of the pan carries the collected liquid away.
As the last step in the process before the screen is wound onto windup reel 24, the screen is dried by an air shower 40. Air pressures of up to 80 PSI
have been used, but 40-60 PSI has been found to be adequate.
When the entire screen has passed through the reconditioning apparatus and is wound onto windup reel 2~, the motorized dri.ve is deactivated and the reconditioned screen is ready to be installed on the papermaking machine.

Claims (12)

THE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION IN WHICH AN EXCLUSIVE
PROPERTY OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:
1. A method for reconditioning a synthetic material dryer screen of a papermaking machine to remove foreign material which has become lodged in the mesh of the screen, comprising the steps of:
a) removing the screen from the papermaking machine; and b) sequentially processing the screen one section at a time in an assembly-line fashion through the following cleaning steps:
i) bathing in an aqueous cleaning solution to soften the foreign materials which have become embedded in the mesh;
ii) scrubbing with oscillating brushes to dislodge the foreign material;
iii) spraying with a high pressure oscillating shower of water to further dislodge the foreign material;
iv) showering with fresh water at a low pressure to remove the residual chemical cleaning solution and foreign material; and v) drying with a stream of air.
2. The method of Claim 1 wherein the aqueous cleaning solution com-prises:
a) a caustic agent;
b) a degreasing agent; and c) a sequestering agent.
3. The method of Claim 2 wherein the caustic agent is caustic soda flake.
4. The method of Claim 2 wherein the step of bathing the screen in a cleaning solution further includes heating the bath to a temperature of at least 140°F.

before bathing the screen.
5. The method of Claim 1 wherein the screen travels through said cleaning steps at the rate of between one and 1-1/2 feet per minute.
6. The method of Claim 1 wherein the scrubbing of the screen by oscillating brushes is accomplished by a pair of brushes, the first said brush above and the second below the screen.
7. The method of Claim 6 wherein the first said oscillating brush scrubs the screen before the screen has been sprayed by said high pressure shower spray and the second said oscillating brush scrubs the screen after the screen has been sprayed by said high pressure shower spray.
8. The method of Claim 1 wherein the oscillating brushes scrub the screen at the rate of not less than 30 cycles per minute.
9. The method of Claim 1 wherein the throw of each of the oscillating brushes is between six and eight inches.
10. The method of Claim 1 wherein the high pressure oscillating shower sprays the screen with water at a pressure of between 200 PSI and 600 PSI.
11. The method of Claim 1 wherein the low pressure showering of the screen with fresh water takes place at a water pressure of between 40 PSI to 60 PSI.
12. The method of Claim 1 wherein the air stream drying the screen has a pressure of between 40 PSI and 60 PSI.
CA281,736A 1977-06-30 1977-06-30 Method for reconditioning dryer screens Expired CA1096649A (en)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
CA281,736A CA1096649A (en) 1977-06-30 1977-06-30 Method for reconditioning dryer screens

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
CA281,736A CA1096649A (en) 1977-06-30 1977-06-30 Method for reconditioning dryer screens

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
CA1096649A true CA1096649A (en) 1981-03-03

Family

ID=4109012

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
CA281,736A Expired CA1096649A (en) 1977-06-30 1977-06-30 Method for reconditioning dryer screens

Country Status (1)

Country Link
CA (1) CA1096649A (en)

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CN114769184A (en) * 2022-04-06 2022-07-22 酒泉市清河菜业有限公司 Net chain cleaning machine for drying box

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CN114769184A (en) * 2022-04-06 2022-07-22 酒泉市清河菜业有限公司 Net chain cleaning machine for drying box

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