US2730191A - Electrostatic precipitator - Google Patents

Description

R. W. WARBURTON ELECTROSTATIC PRECIPITATOR `Ian. 10, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April l, 1954 Iiaveazoz4.- A/ M WaeBUQv-ozv ly @Ganz J. @M

2,730,191 ELECTROSTATIC PRECIPITATOR Ruy W. Warburton, Medfield, Mass., assignor to Westinghouse Electric Corporation, East Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Y Application April 1, 1954, Serial No. 420,365

2 Claims. (Cl. 18S-A7) This invention relates to electrostatic precipitators for removing small foreign particles such as dust from gases such as air.

The most commonly used electrostatic precipitators for cleaning air employ ionizers upstream with respect to air ow of collector plates. The ionizers usually consist of fine wires supported between and insulated from, relatively large non-dscharging ionizer electrodes such as metal tubes. The insulators for supporting the ionizer wire assemblies are usually tubular and have tapped metal inserts in their ends for receiving screws which secure the insulators to the precipitator casing, and which secure the ionizer wire assembly to the insulators. Such insulators usually project into the air stream causing turbulence in the air flow, and are exposed to the washer sprays when the electrodes are washed and coated with adhesive.

This invention provides an ionizer wire frame assembly In one embodiment of this invention, a frame has end plates of spring metal with ionizer wire supporting rods extending therebetween.

precipitator casing. The resiliency of the end plates of spring metal maintains the assembly in position without requiring the usual screws or bolts.

An object of this invention is to simplify the ionizer frame assemblies of electrostatic precipitators.

Another object of this invention is to provide an ionizer wire supporting frame which can be installed without the use of bolts or screws.

Another object of this invention is to provide an ionizer wire supporting frame having supporting insulators which do not protrude into the air stream passing the ionizer electrodes.

This invention will now be described with reference to the annexed drawings, of which:

Fig. l is a plan view looking downwardly, with top removed, upon an electrostatic precipitator embodying this invention, the collector cells being omitted;

Fig. 2 is an end elevation, partially in section, of the precipitator;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation, partially in section, of the precipitator, and Fig. 4 is an enlarged sectional view of a turned and aligned portions 15 which serve to position the collector cells which are not illustrated. The side .sheet 13 also has the circular, inwardly turned portions 16 and 17 which are horizontally aligned with similar inturned portions 18 and 19 respectively, of the side sheet 14. The inner sides of the sheet portions 16, 17, 18 and 19 are flattened and have circular openings therein through which extend the outer cylindrical bosses 20 of the insulators 21. The insulators 21 have inner cylinin the end plates 23 of spring metal, of the ionizer frame, and which have the slots 35 therein.

The metal tubes 25 extend between the ends of the wardly mldway between each end tube 25 and the center tube 26 where they extend around the inner bosses 22 of the insulators 21.

The small rods 2S of spring metal have their outer ends held in slots in the upper tube 25, and extend inwardly of the ionizer wires 29 attached to their inner ends. The rods 31 have their outer ends held in slots in the tube 26. Alternate of the rods 31 extend inwardly and upwardly and their inner ends support alternate ionizer wires 29 at their ends. The others of the rods 31 extend inwardly and downwardly and their inner ends support the other ionizer wires.

The casing 10 has the upper and lower plates 30 between which extend the cylindrical tubes 34 which are non-discharging ionizer electrodes and which extend midway between adjacent ionizer wires 29. The curved, inwardly protruding, metal sheets 36 also extend between the plates 30 and form end non-discharging ionizer electrodes.

For installing the ionizer wire frame assembly, one of the insulators 21, say the right lower one of Fig. 2, would the right causing both spring plates to Hex inwardly, permitting the lower right insulator 21 to be slipped in between the portion 19 of the side sheet 13 and that portion ot' the left spring plate 23 which is opposite same. The inner boss 22 on that insulator is then inserted in the circular opening provided therefor in the lower portion of the left spring plate 23, and the outer boss 20 of the same insulator is inserted in the circular opening provided therefor in the portion 19 of the side sheet 13. Then when pressure is released from the left spring plate, it lexes to the left pressing the lower left insulator between it and the portion 19 of the side sheet 13. The two lower insulators will now maintain the lower portion of the frame in position. Next, one of the upper insulators 21, say the right one, would have its outer boss 20 inserted in the opening provided therefor in the portion 16 of the side sheet 14, and would have its inner boss 22 inserted in right for providing room to insert the upper left insulator 21 with its inner boss 22 in the opening provided therefor in the upper portion of the left spring plate 23, and with its outer boss in the circular opening provided therefor in the portion 1S of the side sheet 13. Then pressure would be removed from the left spring plate 23 following which the two spring plates would ex outwardly to press the four insulators 21 rmly between the plates 23 and the inwardly extending portions 16, 17, 18 and 19 of the side sheets.

The ionizer wire frame can easily be removed by reversing the procedure described in the foregoing. lOne person can easily 'insert and remove the frame without requiring any tools.

What I claim is:

l. An electrostatic precipitator comprising a casing having a gas inlet, an ionizer frame having a pair of end ioniz'er wire supports and a central ionizer wire support, said frame having a pair of resilient side plates attached to the ends of said supports, said side plates between said end supports and said central support having outwardly bowed portions, a lir'st pair of insulators having their outer Aends attached to one of the sides of said casing adjacent said inlet and having their inner ends attached to the outwardly bowed portions of one of said side plates, and a second pair of insulators having their outer ends attached to the opposite side of said casing adjacent said inlet and having their inner ends attached to the outwardly bowed portions of the other of said side plates.

2. An electrostatic precipitator as claimed in claim 1 in which the side plates have circular openings in their outwardlyv bowed portions,4 and in which the insulators have cylindrical inner ends in said openings.

References Cited in the iile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,437,717 Werner 1---- Mar. 16, 1948 2,454,538 Bazley et al Nov. 23, 1948 15 2,476,248 MacKenzie July 12, 1949

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