ABSTRACT
An interaction still missing from all general fabric filtration models is that attributable to electrical forces even though the capability of dominating particle motion by electrical forces is well known--the photocopying process, dust collection on a TV screen, the electrostatic precipitator itself. In addition, many independent experiments are now reported in the literature in which electrical forces have been deliberately introduced into a fabric filter system to improve performance. Their success clearly indicates the first-order effects of electrical forces in some fabric filter operation. Nonetheless, no model can yet quantitatively predict these planned effects much less include the influence that stray electrical charges and their attendant electrical fields might have on conventional fabric filtration. Conventional bag fabrication ignores the electrical properties of the fabric and the dust it is to filter; conventional baghouse operation invokes electrical effects only as an afterthe-fact explanation of anomalous performance. In this latter role electrical forces are usually portrayed as upsetting planned performance, such as interfering with or degrading the cleaning action.
