Spray nozzle scale blockage on the crisp line
Spray nozzle scale blockage was stopping the line every week at the UK’s largest crisp factory. Four sets of 200 micron nozzles on the cold-water spray bars were blocking as pressure dropped at the outlets, and each acid-bath clean took three hours with the line down. One HydroFLOW® i45 was fitted after the pumps on the two flexible feed pipes, treating all four nozzle sets. The nozzles stayed clear for 24 weeks and the weekly acid soak stopped. The factory calculated roughly 147 hours of production downtime and 196 litres of acid avoided each year, a 95% reduction in nozzle cleaning cost.
The Challenge
- Spray nozzle scale blockage stopped the line every week
- 200 micron outlets were highly vulnerable to scale blockage
- Pressure reduction at the outlets encouraged scale formation
- Each acid-bath cleaning took three hours with the line stopped
- Cleaning created downtime, labour and chemical costs
The Solution
- Unit installed: one HydroFLOW® i45
- Installation point: after the pumps, on two flexible plastic feed pipes
- System: four sets of 200 micron nozzles on the cold-water spray bars
- Previous treatment: weekly three-hour acid-bath clean
The spray nozzle scale blockage was addressed with one unit fitted after the pumps, where it could treat both flexible feed pipes before the water reached the spray bars. Nozzles that had blocked weekly stayed clear for 24 weeks, so the weekly three-hour acid soak and the production stoppage that went with it were no longer needed.
