It’s bitter cold this week in southwest Ohio, and one of the consequences of that is dry air in heated indoor areas. If you’ve walked across a carpeted floor and pet your cat (like I did the other day), you (and your cat) may have experienced a phenomenon known as dissipation of static electricity.
The relatively low static charge you pick up by shuffling your socks across the rug is pretty small, compared to the charge generated by:
- High speed rolling & unrolling of plastic film on a shrink wrapper.
- Plastic pellets traveling through a conveyor system to an injection molding machine.
- Slitting or trimming of paper, laminates, sheets, etc.
- Removing protective layers between sheets of delicate materials.
And these can cause issues year-round. The problems associated with static charge in these situations include:
- Nuisance shocks to operators.
- Dust and debris clinging to product finishes and surfaces
- Product clumping or clinging while in transit.
- Thin sheets tearing, jamming, folding, or misfeeding.
- Disruption of sensitive electronic sensors, switches, etc.
EXAIR Corporation has a variety of Static Eliminator Product solutions, depending on the specific needs of a particular application. To answer the question in the title of this blog, though, the Gen4 Ion Air Cannon is quite versatile, and is often considered alongside our other products. For example:
- Gen4 Super Ion Air Knives come in lengths from 3 inches to 9 feet. If you have a wide web, sheet, or plate to remove static charge from, they’re the best choice, hands down. For narrower widths, or situations where you have to blow in from the side or at a certain angle due to physical interference, the Gen4 Ion Air Cannon’s small footprint and adjustable mounting bracket provide a great workaround.
- Gen4 Ion Air Jets generate a focused, concentrated flow of ionized air, for spot cleaning of smaller parts. Its compact design is ideal for installations in close quarters. If you have some room, the Gen4 Ion Air Cannon actually uses less compressed air to generate a higher ionized air flow…and it’s quieter, to boot.
- Gen4 Super Ion Air Wipes are made to blow off and remove static from pipe, cable, extruded shapes, etc. They come in 2″ or 4″ diameters. If your product is larger than that, an array of Gen4 Ion Air Cannons can accommodate that.
- Gen4 Ionizing Points are often installed in ducts to ionize existing air flow. Arrays of two, three, or four are suitable for ducts up to about 6″ in diameter, depending on the air flow rate. For larger ducts (or very high flow rates,) Gen4 Ion Air Cannons can be installed to blow into a ‘Y’ connection in duct walls.
These are just a few of the myriad Static Eliminator applications that EXAIR Corporation has successfully solved over the years. Many times, the details of the application make one particular product the clear choice. When there ends up being more than one worth consideration, one of the others is usually the Gen4 Ion Air Cannon.
Again…that’s based on the details of the application, and we’re here to help with that. If you’ve got a static problem, give me a call.
Russ Bowman
Application Engineer
EXAIR Corporation
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