A West African Smelter had a problem with pneumatic cylinders not working during power loss and resulting in contaminating molten aluminium.
The Smelter had two problems. Firstly they had an unreliable power supply. This meant whenever there was a power cut, the pneumatics were lost and the cylinders, used to activate the crust breaking rods, would fail, causing them to drop into the pots and contaminate the molten aluminium. Secondly, the cylinders were only lasting for a few months before starting to leak air.
The challenge
To provide a high quality, reliable pneumatic cylinder that in the result of a power failure and subsequent pneumatics loss would not allow the piston rods to fall into the pots contaminating the molten aluminum.
Our solution
With many years of experience in designing and manufacturing reliable solutions within this industry, Helipebs designed a long lasting cylinder, incorporating high quality seals and a latching mechanism fitted into the rear head of the cylinder. In the event of a power failure the cylinder would automatically lock in the retracted position and prevent the crust breaking rods from falling into the molten aluminium. Restoration of pneumatics would enable the cylinder to de-latch and return to normal operation.
Key points
- Even though the unreliable power is still a problem, the Helipebs pneumatic cylinders have been in operation for more than 4 years without any issues or any need for replacement.
- Due to the latching mechanism, there has been no contamination from crust breaker rods coming into contact with molten aluminium during a power failure.
- Our technical solution, which included improved seal design and hardened piston rod, has provided a much increased cylinder life.
