Flexible Explosive Container Cleaning Lance for Incinerator Deposit Removal
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional cleaning methods for soiled and slagged containers, such as incinerators, are inefficient and costly, requiring frequent shutdowns, manual labor, and pose health risks due to dust and scum accumulation, with existing explosion cleaning methods using explosives being hazardous and costly.
Innovation Solution
A cleaning device and method utilizing a flexible container shell filled with an explosive gas mixture, which is ignited to generate shockwaves for removing deposits, with the shell being designed to burn completely and minimize residue, and a protective tube system to shield and cool the shell during insertion.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conventional cleaning methods (manual cleaning, sandblasting) are used, then deposits can be removed from container walls, but operational downtime increases and cleaning costs rise
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces mechanical cleaning systems (sandblasting, manual scraping) with an explosion-based cleaning system. An explosive charge is introduced into the container through a lance, creating a controlled explosion that generates shock waves to detach deposits from walls. This substitution eliminates the need for prolonged shutdowns and manual labor, significantly reducing operational downtime while maintaining effective cleaning capability.
2Productivity
If explosives are used for cleaning, then cleaning effectiveness is improved, but safety risks and costs increase due to handling and storage requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The explosive cleaning system is segmented into separate functional components: a portable lance assembly, an explosive charge container, and a triggering mechanism. This segmentation allows the system to be transported and stored in a dispersed, low-risk state, only assembling the explosive function at the moment of use. The lance can be inserted through small openings without requiring full container shutdown, and the explosive charge is contained within the lance until activation, minimizing safety risks during handling and storage.
3Productivity
If the container shell is made thin and flexible for complete combustion, then cleaning effectiveness is improved, but the shell becomes more sensitive to fire and heat damage before explosion
Solution Approach 1:
The container shell is pre-cooled with water or other cooling agents before being introduced into the hot combustion chamber. This preliminary cooling action creates a thermal buffer that protects the thin, flexible shell from premature ignition or structural failure due to heat exposure. The cooling measure is applied in advance, allowing the shell to maintain its structural integrity during insertion and positioning, while still being thin enough to combust completely during the controlled explosion for effective cleaning.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution allows for effective and safe cleaning with reduced operational downtime, lower costs, and enhanced safety by using inexpensive and non-explosive gas components, minimizing damage to the container shell and reducing personnel exposure to hazardous conditions.
Implementation Method 1
By igniting the gas mixture in the vessel shell, an explosion is generated, the shock waves of which result in the detachment of dirt from the vessel walls.
Implementation Method 2
In order to prevent this undesired effect, the container casings are wetted with a cooling liquid, in particular with water, before or during introduction into the boiler room.
Data Source
Figure 1a~1b
Figure 1c~1d
Figure 2a~2b
AI summary
A cleaning device for removing deposits in receptacles by way of blasting technology includes a cleaning lance with a grip-side and with a cleaning-side end section, on which a flexible container envelope forming a receiving space can be attached. The cleaning lance includes a feed tube with a container connection device that is arranged on the cleaning-side end section and is for feeding the explosive mixture or its starting components, to the container envelope, as well as a protective tube with a receiving space for a container envelope for the propose of shielding the container envelope to the outside. The protective tube is displaceably arranged along the longitudinal axis of the cleaning lance relative to the feed tube from a first position, in which the container envelope is shielded by the protective tube, into a second position in which the container envelope projects out through the protective tube.