Challenge
Big Quill Resources in Wynyard, Saskatchewan, Canada is a manufacturer of high purity potassium sulfate. Potassium sulfate is a specialty plant fertilizer that is utilized on crops that have a low tolerance to chlorides in standard potash fertilizer. Previously, a cyclone was used to control dust from a bucket elevator, screen, bin, and truck loading areas. Because of low cyclone efficiency, they were losing valuable product that was exhausted from the cyclone to the atmosphere. In the fall of 2008, Big Quill Resources planned to replace their cyclone with a more efficient dust collector.
Solution
Darin Boire, Camfil APC rep at Cypress Sales Partnership of Saskatoon, worked with this company to determine a solution. Big Quill provided the specification and Darin quoted a GS16/12 Farr Gold Series® industrial dust collector with ARI, airlock and Dura-Pleat® spunbond cartridges. Darin says, “The first row of filters were taken out to increase the drop out capture. In high humidity conditions, the potassium sulfate dust has poor flowability and has a tendency to bridge and “rat-hole." Big Quill Resources Inc. installed a vibrator on the collector hopper to ensure complete discharge of the dust.”
Bes Blentic of Camfil APC and Darin Boire had a final meeting with Big Quill to discuss the details. The GS16/12 was shipped at the end of 2008, and it has been operating since February 2009. The highly efficient GS16/12 is rated at 5,500 CFM with 10” of static pressure. The emissions are close to zero, which results in no loss of the product into the air. Big Quill now recaptures up to 5 tons per month of potassium sulfate dust during peak shipping periods. Darin says, “I think the support that Farr and Cypress Sales provided was something that Big Quill liked. Rural Saskatchewan doesn’t see many reps come out for personal visits—especially a manufacturing rep from Toronto.”