Forsta Self-Cleaning Filters Ensure Reliability of Cooling Systems
During the COVID-19 crisis, a California-based biomedical facility relies on self-cleaning filters to continue producing plasma therapies and other products.
According to the U.S. Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy, installing a sidestream filtration system to cleanse cooling tower water will help maintain water efficiency across facilities. Although this applies to many types of applications and throughout industries, systems that are exposed to a large amount of airborne particulates are at a greater risk for compromised efficiency and system failure.
Cooling towers are an essential aspect of many refrigeration systems, providing temperature regulation for comfort in places of work, residences, and service centers. They also provide process cooling throughout a broad range of applications in the industrial sector including manufacturing and power generation.
Likewise, biomedical and pharmeceutical production facilities require effective cooling systems. Cooling towers in these facilities may protect ancillary equipment in the system including condensers, chillers, and heat exchangers.
During the unprecedented COVID-19 health crisis, biomedical facilities are at the forefront of developing plasma therapies until a vaccine is available. The plasma recovered from COVID-19 donors contains antibodies which are specific against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. Convalescent plasma can be used for direct transfusion as well as to develop medicines.
In one Los Angeles biodemical facility, production of plasma therapies, immunoglobulin medicines, and screening tests has become a top priority.
Fortunately, in late 2019, the facility’s Director of Maintenance noticed that dirty cooling tower water was causing adverse effects on chiller performance, requiring increased maintenance on the heat exchangers. He contacted Forsta Filters to come up with a solution to the problems being caused by the dirty cooling tower water. The facility needed a reliable way to keep the cooling water clean. The proper and uninterrupted function of chillers and heat exchangers relied on it.
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Homeowner Jeffrey Jackson explains the problems he was having irrigating his residential property with water from the nearby irrigation canal. He solves his problem by installing a Forsta 90 series self-cleaning filter.
Listen to him describe his installation process, step-by-step, and how his system has benefited since the install.
B4-90 filter with 100 micron screen and 9-volt battery-operated backwash controller
Many farms/orchards still use wasteful sand/media filters as the main form of filtration upstream of drip and other irrigation systems. When backwashing, Forsta self-cleaning screen filters use, on average, less than 3% of the volume of water required to backwash a comparable sand media system. Even when considering an increased backwash frequency with screen filters, Forsta customers report that water savings are substantial.
An agricultural operation that combines efficient self-cleaning screen filtration with a drip irrigation/spray nozzle system is set-up for long-term water savings and success in crop yields. Forsta self-cleaning filters protect drip tubing and nozzles from debris buildup which can reduce energy efficiency. As irrigation piping and drip tubing/spary nozzle orifices become smaller due to buildup it takes more energy to pump water through them. Clogged orifices can cause reduced water delivery to plants, causing damage to the plant and reducing yield.
Forsta’s self-cleaning systems protect drip tubing and spray nozzles with 100-200 micron screens that keep fine sand, silt and other particles from entering the system. By utilizing available system pressure for cleaning (min. 35psi), Forsta self-cleaning filters consume a minimal amount of energy. Where system pressure is lower (min 15psi) Forsta offers motor-driven filters.
Consistent and effiecnt irrigation is particularly important for California avocado groves, where rainfall is low. Lack of water can reduce yields, and since irrigation can have the highest cost of production – it needs to be used efficiently.
Irrigating Avocados information from the California Avocado Commission,
https://www.californiaavocadogrowers.com/sites/default/files/documents/Irrigating-Avocados-Fact-Sheet.pdf
Self-Cleaning Filters in Latin America
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| Forsta Industrial Cooling Water Filters |
Michelsen Packaging Co. in Yakima, Wash., had just installed a 125 hp water-cooled air compressor that required cooling water in order to prevent overheating. According to Michelsen’s research and development engineer, Carey Bruskland, the application required the company to cool the heated water coming from the compressor through a set of heat exchangers. The cooling water on the other side of the exchangers contained fine paper fibers and biological growth, which thrived in the heat generated by the vacuum pumps. Both the fibers and the bio-growth had to be removed to ensure that the heat exchanger wouldn’t plug.
“We needed two high-quality durable filter units that would be self-cleaning and easy to maintain,” Bruskland says. “They needed to be made from noncorrosive materials to withstand harsh chemicals and be able to supply the 100 gpm flow to our heat exchangers throughout the cleaning cycle.”
Bruskland and his team selected the Forsta A2-90 filter model equipped with a100 micron, stainless steel screen. The A2-90 would protect the heat exchangers, which cool the water for the water-cooled air compressor. The selection came following an analysis of Forsta’s technology, including system integration, internal components and backwash mechanism.
Michelsen chose Forsta because the company provided, “high quality units at a lower cost than the other manufacturers.” Bruskland says. “We also really liked the fact that the filter operates on inlet-water pressure alone and does not require an external source of water for the very short backwash.
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| Automatic Self-cleaning Filters |
“This was our first filter unit of this type, so we had many questions,” Bruskland says. “The Forsta engineers were very helpful and thorough as we were looking at the different types of filter units and choosing the unit which best fit our needs.” He says that Forsta engineers “were always very courteous and professional. We were always able to get in contact with them and they always answered our questions. They were very helpful not only before we purchased the units but also as we were assembling them. They followed up and contacted us after installation to make sure everything was working properly.”
Bruskland says that he would recommend Forsta “very highly” to other companies with similar applications,
For more information on Forsta self-cleaning filters, go to www.forstafilters.com.
Problem:
Suspended particles in well water can be a big problem when it comes to clogging sprinkler heads and creating buildup on pipe walls. Dirty water can lead to equipment failure and forced downtime.
This is the problem that Alex Posada was responsible for solving. Posada is the Director of Recreation & Parks for the City of Santa Maria, California. The challenge before him was to reduce particulate matter from a well at a local recreation open-space park.
“Water being pumped from the well had a significant amount of mineral and soil debris contamination giving the water a cloudy appearance. It was leaving heavy residue deposits in our pipe lines, water troughs and water tanks.” said Posada.
Solution:
The City of Santa Maria installed a Forsta B2-90 self-cleaning water filter to help remove particles from the well water. The filter’s compact design made installation easy, and the backwash controller allows the system to be fully automatic, eliminating the need for frequent maintenance.
The 50 micron multi-layer screen traps suspended particles, and expels them when buildup occurs. The point-of-suction backwash cycle cleans the screen without interrupting the system flow. Filtered water is continually supplied to the park’s irrigation system, even when the filter is cleaning itself.
“We are satisfied with the filter we have and it seems to be working well for our application.” Posada said of the Forsta self-cleaning water filter.
When asked about working with Forsta Filters and Application Engineer Eran Fischer, Posada replied, “Eran was very helpful in following up with my emails and our installers got good tech support while installing the system. I would say our experience was very good.”