Multi-action particle separator

Claim 1

An improved, multi-action particle separator for separating air suspended particles comprising: an elongated, vertically oriented sheet metal enclosure, said enclosure being rectangular in horizontal cross section, said enclosure comprising interconnected upper, middle and lower sections, said lower section being in the form of an inverted frusto-pyramid defined by four edge connected, inclined sidewalls, a cover overlying the top of said enclosure, a horizontal gate closing off the bottom of said lower section, an inclined inlet duct fixed to the side of the middle section of said enclosure at the top thereof and opening into said enclosure, said inlet duct being inclined such that inlet air and suspended particles moving through said inlet duct directly impact the inclined sidewall of said enclosure lower section on the side of the enclosure opposite that carrying said inclined inlet duct and effect in conjunction with an oppositely inclined sidewall of said inverted frusto-pyramid lower section to separate particles from the inlet air by centrifugal force, a plurality of laterally spaced baffle plates spanning the top of said middle section, said baffle plates being inclined generally parallel to the axis of the inlet duct and generally at right angles to air flow moving by vortex action from the lower section into the middle section and through said baffle plates into the upper section of said enclosure and to thereby impact the inlet air entering the middle section from said inlet duct prior to striking said laterally spaced baffle plates, one of said baffle plates being of extended length and being fixed to the side and within the enclosure and being in line with the upper wall of the inlet duct and acting as an extension thereof to further direct the inlet air and suspendced particles through said middle section for direct impact against the inclined sidewall of the inverted frust-pyramid lower section, a plurality of vertical, laterally spaced tubular filter bags mounted within the upper enclosure section and being open interiorly to the middle separator section above said baffle plates and being closed off at their upper ends, means within said upper enclosure section for carrying said plurality of filter bags such that air is forced to flow into the interior of the filter bags, a separator air discharge duct mounted on the cover and open to the space between the tubular filter bags, and blower means for inducing air flow from said inlet duct through said enclosure and out said discharge duct; whereby, particle separation is effected by gravity due to air velocity decrease in said middle section, centrifugal force as a result of vortex action within said lower section, particle impingement between inlet air particles and suspended particles within the air stream moving upwardly from the lower section through said middle section and into the upper section, particle impingement within said middle section by impact with said baffle plates and dust bag filtering of the smaller sized particles within the upper section prior to relatively clean air discharge at the top of the upper section.