What is Spray Analysis and Research? Problem-Solving, Optimizing Performance and Finding New Ways to Spray
In more complex spray operations, such as gas cooling, coating with viscous liquids and tablet coating, finding the spray nozzle and system that delivers the exact performance requires some research. In these operations, it's not possible to reproduce the process conditions in which the nozzles will be used. That's why we have a group dedicated to Spray Analysis and Research. This group conducts tests in our spray laboratories – the largest in the world – and uses sophisticated modeling tools to determine spray performance using a customer's exact operating conditions. The result of this research and testing validates nozzle selection while looking at other factors as well: nozzle placement on the lance, injector and header, where the feed device is placed in the operating environment, the effects of change in operating conditions and thermal stresses on spray performance and more.
Our Spray Analysis Group also researches new ways to spray. Customers often want to use spray technology instead of an existing technology to solve an application problem. Our research engineers develop prototypes and conduct proof-of concept testing to validate the approach and production feasibility. The results range from designing new spray nozzles and new spray manifolds to using existing products and spraying materials customers believed were "unsprayable". Benefits often include:
- Improved product/process quality
- Reduced use of water, chemicals and energy
- A cleaner, safer work environment
- Automated operation frees workers up for other tasks
Services Overview:
- Performance testing in our labs, including:
- Spray characterization
- Drop size distribution
- Spray impact
- Spray pattern
- Spray coverage
- Spray angle
- Evaporation rate
- Residence time
- Dwell time
- Advanced modeling to predict performance in more complex operations such as determining liquid and gas flows in scrubbers and towers, wall impact, shadowing and more.
- Computational fluid dynamics models illustrate flow patterns, velocity, temperature, gas/liquid distributions, droplet trajectories, pressures within the entire system and impact forces and stress caused by liquid flow
- Fluid Structure Interaction (FSI) and Finite Element Methods (FEM) models determine the interaction between fluid dynamics, mechanical stresses and structural integrity
If you have a challenging spray application or want to explore new application methods, we're the company to contact. We have more experience, expertise and global resources – laboratories and dedicated spray specialists – than any other supplier.
