Bag Testing

ETS has established a complete, independent fabric-filter laboratory dedicated to fabric, dust and new/used bag testing. The laboratory has been serving industry for over 25 years, and has conducted thousands of bag analyses both for baghouse suppliers and users. Clients have used this service for new baghouse applications, new bag quality assurance programs, and used bag troubleshooting. Used bag troubleshooting typically includes:

• High or unstable pressure drop
• Excessive emissions
• Unacceptable bag life.

The fabric lab is the only independent facility in North America that is equipped with a test apparatus that complies with internationally recognized test standards (ASTM D6830-02 & VDI/DIN Standard 3926), based on the German VDI method 3926, that allows the user to measure baghouse filter media performance under defined conditions with regard to the filtration velocity (G/C), particle size distribution, and cleaning requirements.

The fabric lab is also equipped to measure tensile strength, mullen burst strength, and flex strength, and can conduct particle size analysis, microscopic analysis, and fabric permeability analysis. To more closely simulate actual operating conditions, the standard Frazier permeability equipment has been modified by ETS to allow bags to be tested non-destructively at elevated temperatures and pressure drops.

The test data are reviewed and interpreted by skilled staff, including some of the nation's most noted baghouse consultants. The data are reviewed by a committee approach, with each offering various perspectives with unique insight as to the cause of failure and potential remedies. A report is prepared for each project, including test data, analytical results, photographs, and recommendations/conclusions. For used bag troubleshooting projects, proper solution to the root cause of the problem can often be recommended from review of the project results, ETS's bag-testing database, and the client's baghouse operating characteristics.