CasterJet® Nozzles Dissolve Polyvinyl Acetate Slab in 20 Minutes Versus 6 Hours
 Speed Critical in Dissolving Reactor Chamber's Contents
PROBLEM: During the production of polyvinyl alcohol, vinyl acetate is first polymerized to polyvinyl acetate. This process is conducted on a containment conveyor inside an enclosed reactor. A viscous polymer feed is mixed with a vinyl acetate feed where they solidify into a hard 10" (254 mm) thick by 37' (11.3 m) long slab.
If the containment conveyor fails for any reason, like a power outage or a broken drive motor, workers cannot enter the reactor chamber until the organic fumes of methyl alcohol and methyl acetate are dissipated. The slab must be dissolved and drained to a holding tank.
Originally, a lab-scale reactor was designed using FullJet® nozzles. However, it took a full six hours to dissipate the slab. What could be used to more quickly dissipate the slab, allowing the workers access to the reactor?
SOLUTION: Steam. The answer was to install 80 CasterJet® nozzles with a separate water and steam connection. The traverse spray angle of the CasterJet nozzle pattern provides a chiseling action on the slab. That, plus the uniform heat causes a high degree of agitation that dissipates the slab in 20 minutes.
Installation design allows for regulated flow
The flow of both the water and steam is easily monitored and regulated since the regulators are installed external to the reactor. Metering orifices for both steam and water facilitate fine-tuning flow rates in combination with the pressure regulator. The wide, 120° angle of the spray nozzle allowed for a single row of nozzles installed directly above the containment reactor. And the 7-7/8" (200 mm) length on the CasterJet nozzle meant the spray nozzles could be easily connected to the piping system outside of the reactor.
Developed to fulfill the exacting needs of continuous casting, the patented (Pat. No. 4,349,156) CasterJet nozzle delivers a precise mixture of air and water in a flat fan spray pattern. This finely atomized spray provides high heat transfer rates for fast heat removal.
- uniform water distribution
- wide operating range
- low air quantity demands
- nonclogging design
- self-aligning spray tips
All critical parts are interchangeable. Various length extensions can be shaped to fit customer needs. The nonclogging design uses smooth, clean passages. Metering orifices for both air and water facilitate fine-tuning flow rates even within the same air or water pressure system. The unique features of the CasterJet nozzle provide spray accuracy and efficiency in an easily maintained product.
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