The EcoDryScrubber system presented October 15 works with recirculation of the booth process air and dry separation of the surplus paint particles during application. Recirculation reduces the energy required for air treatment significantly compared to conventional spray booths. Moreover, the elimination of standard wet separation means that fresh water is no longer required for paint separation. This results in considerable improvement in energy consumption and in CO2 and paint-particle emissions.
More than 150 representatives from all the major automobile manufacturers seized the opportunity to take a closer look at this innovation at first hand at the new Technology Center at Dürr’s future central location in Bietigheim. Besides guests from Germany and other European countries, Dürr was even able to welcome visitors from South and North America and Asia.
Ralf Dieter, Dürr AG’s CEO, commented: “As technology leader, Dürr already addressed the issue of energy and CO2 optimization early on. So, today, we are in a position to offer our customers equipment and systems with which energy and unit costs can be significantly reduced. Our dry separation system clearly underscores the results of our development efforts.”
Depending on the level of automation between 20 per cent (manual painting) and 85 per cent (automated exterior painting) of the material reaches the body when applying wet paints. In the conventional process, the rest of the paint, known as “overspray”, is carried with the downward flow of process air into the lower section of the spray booth where it is bonded in water with the aid of specially designed venturi tubes. The process air is drawn off as, through the contact with water, it absorbs too much moisture for it to be re-used, and it also contains paint-particle residues. As a result, a fresh supply of air has to be treated and fed to the booth, which consumes a lot of energy.
By contrast, spray booths equipped with the EcoDryScrubber require far less fresh air. The reason: the process air does not pick up added moisture, and the paint particles are removed in a dry filtration system beneath the booth, so it can be re-used. This recirculation of the process air reduces energy costs for air treatment in the spray booth by about 60 per cent. In addition, the water required for humidifying the air is reduced by about 80 per cent since less air needs to be conditioned.
