Complete Guide to Textile Humidification Plant: Process, Components, and Importance in Textile Mills.
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Introduction of Humidity:
- Humidity is the amount of moisture content present in the atmospheric sir.
- Absolute humidity of the atmosphere is the mass of the water vapour present per unit volume (eg. 10 g/m³)
- 10 grams of water vapor present in 1 cubic meter of air.
- Relative humidity is the amount of moisture contained in the air at any given temperature as compared to the maximum amount of moisture the air can hold at that temperature when saturated.
- Dew point is the temperature of air at which moisture starts condensing when air is cooled.
Sensible heat:
- It is the heat that raises the temperature of the water without any change of phase (from liquid to vapour).
Latent heat:
- It is the heat which changes the phase of the water from liquid phase to vapour phase. With reference to the air, it is the heat of evaporation of the contained water vapour.
Enthalpy total heat:
- Enthalpy is the total heat contained in unit weight of air (in Kcal/kg of air) is the sum of sensible heat content and the latent heat of water vapour contained in it.
Saturated air:
- It is defined as the air with 100% humidity.
Humidity Control in Textile Mills
- Humidity more precisely relative humidity (RH) plays a crucial role in textile mills. However, it is often overlooked and is usually the first system affected during power shortages or load shedding.
- The first humidification plant designed specifically for textile mills was developed in 1904 by Stuart W. Cramer of North Carolina. He introduced the term “air conditioning” defining it as a process that controls temperature, humidity, air cleanliness, and air distribution within an environment.
- Even during the early stages of textile mill mechanization, it was observed that maintaining a specific level of relative humidity in the production area was essential for the proper processing of textile fibres. As a result, recommended humidity levels were established for different textile processes and different types of natural fibres.
Humidification Methods Used in Textile Mills
To maintain a specific relative humidity level inside textile rooms, several humidification systems have been developed. These systems generally work by adding water to the air, either through evaporation or by introducing very fine aerosol droplets into the airflow.
Common humidification methods include:
- Pressure atomization
- Mechanical centrifugal atomization
- Pneumatic atomization
In all these systems, air and water are brought into close contact so that heat and moisture transfer can occur. This transfer takes place through an adiabatic process, meaning it occurs without the involvement of an external heat source.
Air Washer in Humidification Systems
- Historically, a chamber known as an air washer was designed primarily as an air-washing device used for filtration purposes. Because of this original function, the system was called an air washer.
- Over time, as more advanced dry filtration systems were developed, the use of air washers for filtration declined. However, they became an essential component of industrial humidification systems.
- An air washer remains one of the most efficient methods for achieving thermo-hygrometric exchange between air and water, especially in industrial environments where large volumes of air and water are involved.
Importance of Psychrometrics
- A solid understanding of psychrometrics the study of the thermodynamic properties of air and water vapour is essential. It helps engineers not only design humidification systems but also operate them efficiently to achieve the required environmental conditions.
Effect of Humidity on Textile Fibres
- Most textile materials are hygroscopic, meaning they absorb moisture from the surrounding air. In the case of cotton, increased moisture content generally improves important mechanical properties such as strength and elasticity up to a certain limit.
- Textile processing takes advantage of this characteristic. By maintaining a controlled level of relative humidity, yarns can better withstand the temporary mechanical stresses they experience during processing.
For cotton fibres:
- Between 0% and 100% relative humidity, the tensile strength can nearly double.
- The breaking extension may increase up to 2.5 times.
Research Findings on the Effect of Moisture
Various textile research associations have studied the influence of moisture on textile properties. Key findings include:
- Breaking strength increases by approximately 12% when fibres are wetted.
- Uniformity of fibre strength improves by about 8% after wetting.
- Breaking elongation of cotton fibres increases by around 15.4%.
- Wet yarns show higher breaking elongation than dry yarns across all twist levels, with increases ranging from 7% to 15%.
In many cases, the effect of moisture on fibre properties is similar to increasing the spinning twist.
Influence of Temperature and Humidity on Yarn Breakage
Studies conducted in spinning rooms have shown that end breakage rates are strongly influenced by the combination of temperature and humidity.
Favorable conditions include:
- Low temperature with low humidity
- High temperature with high humidity
Both combinations tend to produce fewer yarn breaks.
However, unfavorable combinations can cause problems:
High temperature with low humidity
- Leads to low moisture regain
- Reduces fibre cohesion
- Causes fibres in the drafted roving to separate and break in the spinning zone
Low temperature with high humidity
- Causes excessive stickiness between fibres
- Water droplets may deposit on rovings and rollers
- Reduces drafting efficiency
- Causes mechanical adhesion of fibres to machine rollers
Recommended Conditions in Cotton Processing
The recommended ambient conditions for cotton textile processing are as under:
- Cotton mixing – 60 - 65% RH,
- Blow room – 60 - 65% RH,
- Card frame – 55 - 60% RH,
- Comber – 52 - 65% RH,
- Ring frame – 52 - 57% RH,
- Winding and warping – 60 - 65% RH,
- Weaving – 75 - 85% RH,
Humidity Considerations for Different Fibres
In cotton fibres, wetting improves mechanical strength and uniformity. For example:
- Breaking strength increases by about 12%
- Uniformity improves by around 8%
- However, the behavior of man-made fibres is different. In many synthetic fibres, breaking strength decreases when the fibre absorbs moisture. For this reason, the recommended relative humidity for processing synthetic fibres is generally lower than for cotton.
- Nevertheless, maintaining an adequate humidity level is still important because higher humidity reduces the formation of static electricity, which can otherwise interfere with fibre handling and processing.
The optimal relative humidity level depends on several factors, including:
- Blending ratio of fibres
- Staple length
- Type and characteristics of the fibre
Process of Humidification in Textile Mills
Designing of a Textile Humidification Plant
- A textile humidification plant is designed to maintain the required temperature, humidity level, and air circulation inside the production area. Proper humidification ensures improved fibre strength, reduced yarn breakage, and better processing efficiency.
A typical textile humidification plant consists of the following major components:
- Supply air fan
- Exhaust or return air fan
- Spray water pump
- Spray Nozzle
- Fresh air damper
- Exhaust air damper
- Return air damper
- Bypass air damper
- V-filters
- Rotary air filters
- Supply air ducts
- Diffusers
- Air plenum chamber
- Automatic gravity louvers
- Louver sheets
- Mist eliminators
- Floor grills
- Air Tight doors
- These components work together to circulate air, filter contaminants, add moisture to the air, and distribute conditioned air uniformly throughout the textile mill.
- Modern textile humidification plants are now widely available as prefabricated structured systems. These systems are designed for both supply and exhaust air applications, making installation faster, improving efficiency, and simplifying maintenance.
Manufacturing Companies
Several manufacturers specialize in Air Engineering and textile humidification systems. Some well-known companies include:
These companies design and manufacture industrial humidification systems specifically for textile mills and other process industries.
Humidification and air conditioning
- Difference between humidification and air conditioning, in humidification the department relative humidity is controlled.
- In air conditioning the department temperature, humidity, cleanliness (dust/fly liberation) and distribution of the air to meet the requirement of conditioned space.
- An air conditioning system may use heating, cooling, humidifying, dehumidifying and filtering units of combination of these depending upon the outside weather.
- Importance of humidity control in textiles
- Due to high humidity, apart from the dust levels, if stickiness is present in the cotton may cause sticking of fibres on rollers.
- Lower humidity levels may lead to fibre fly in to the department.
- The number of air change is an important factor to ensure that air is clean and safe.
- Air changes per hour affects the productivity, product quality and health of the personnel.
Static generation on textile fibres:
Static electricity
- An imbalance in the distribution of electrons which is an accumulation of a time invariant charge of positive and or negative sign on the material.
- Cotton fibres particularly between the carding and roving stages where they are loosely bound are especially vulnerable to static electricity.
- Static electricity can cause roller licking increases fire hazards in the department.
- The higher the speeds, the more the likelihood of the above problems occurring.
- Higher machine speeds put a heavy mechanical stress on the fibre thus lead to end breakages during spinning and adversely affect productivity.
- Harsh treatment of fibre and yarn causes the liberation of fluff and dust which affects the working environment.
- Unlike cotton fibre, synthetic fibre does not absorb moisture but tends to be sticky at higher temperatures.
Effect of humidification on textile fibres
- In synthetic fibre processing, the humidification plant cannot control the temperature due to the fluctuation in dry bulb temperature along with wet bulb temperature.
- Air conditioning is required to control both RH% and temperature.
- The condition of temperature RH for cotton and synthetic fibre vary according to the quality and blending of the fibres used, the speed of the processing machines etc.
- Importance of controlled relative humidity and temperature:
- Reduction in static electricity there by removing possibilities of fire hazard and roller licking and consequently increasing productivity.
- Increasing strength and abrasion resistance of cotton fibers.
- A cleaner environment, as generation of fluff is reduced and fluff tends to settle down thus increases worker efficiency.
Air filtration and air conditioning:
- Air filtration is an important aspect in environmental control for maintaining quality of product and higher efficiency.
- Efficient air filtering devices have to be incorporated in the systems.
- Air conditioning with refrigeration is used where temperature and relative humidity are to be controlled for meeting the requirement of the process.
Conclusion:
Humidity control is one of the most important environmental factors in textile manufacturing. A properly designed textile humidification plant helps maintain the required relative humidity and temperature levels inside production areas, ensuring smooth fibre processing and improved product quality.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
1. What is the ideal air change rate in a textile humidification system?
- The recommended air changes per hour (ACH) in textile mills generally range from 20 to 40 air changes per hour, depending on the department and machine density. Proper air circulation helps maintain uniform humidity, remove dust, and improve worker comfort.
2. What is the function of an air washer in a textile humidification plant?
- An air washer is a key component used to humidify and clean the air simultaneously. It sprays water into the airflow, allowing heat and moisture exchange between air and water, which helps achieve the required humidity level inside the textile mill.
3. Why is filtration important in textile humidification systems?
- Air filtration is essential in textile mills to remove dust, lint, and fibre particles from the air. Proper filtration improves product quality, protects machinery from contamination, and creates a healthier working environment for employees.
About the Author – Insight Control System
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