Numerical Simulation for Cylindrical Electrostatic Precipitator: Effect of the Applied Voltage

Abstract

Coaxial (wire-cylinder) electrodes arrangements are widely used for electrostatic deposition of dust particles in flue gases, when a high voltage is applied to electrodes immersed in air and provide a strongly non-uniform electric field. The efficiency of electrostatic filters mainly depends on the value of the applied voltage and the distribution of the electric field. In this work, a two-dimensional computer simulation was constructed to study the effect of different applied voltages (20, 22, 25, 26, 28, 30 kV) on the inner electrode and their effect on the efficiency of the electrostatic precipitator. Finite Element Method (FEM) and COMSOL Multiphysics software were used to simulate the cross section of a wire cylinder. The results showed that the velocity of the liquid and the charge accumulation of the particles increased with the increase of the applied voltage and also the efficiency of the precipitator increased and reached 100% with an applied voltage of 30 kV.