ARMSTRONG - Humidifiers 9000/1000

Armstrong’s improvements in steam humidification are fundamentally different. They begin not with the humidifier, but with the steam. Unlike units that simply disperse steam, Armstrong’s direct-steam humidifiers work with it, guiding it through the many steps of a carefully engineered process.

That’s because at Armstrong, improving humidification is extremely basic. It starts with steam. And what we’ve learned has made it possible to improve the design of hardware that distributes steam.

There’s no name for what happens to steam in an Armstrong humidifier, so we’ve created one. We call it conditioning. To condition steam, we slow it down, remove its particulate matter, separate condensate from it, dry it and, finally, silence it.

Armstrong’s four-step conditioning process

• Straining. The first step in steam conditioning, straining removes most of the steam’s dirt and scale particles.
• Separating. In the cast iron separating chamber, a cupped baffle reverses the flow, forcing steam back on itself. The outer walls of the chamber form another cup, and the same thing happens again. These two 180˚ turns reduce the velocity and separate the condensate from the vapor. The center baffle, positioned directly over the larger drain connection, knocks down and further guides condensate out the drain.
• Drying. Steam entering the drying chamber is at supply temperature and essentially atmospheric pressure, so there’s no condensation. Any remaining mist is re-evaporated before it leaves the humidifier.
• Silencing. The drying chamber is filled with a stainless steel silencing material that absorbs almost completely the noise of escaping steam as it is generated at the control valve.

The most common form of steam humidifier is the direct-steam-injection type. Direct-steam humidification systems require very little maintenance. The steam supply acts as a cleaning agent to keep components free of mineral deposits that can clog many forms of water-spray and evaporative-pan systems.

Response to control and accurate control of output are two other advantages of direct-steam humidification. Since steam is water vapor, it needs only to be mixed with air to satisfy the demands of the system. In addition, direct-steam humidifiers can meter output by means of a modulating control valve. As the system responds to control, it can position the valve anywhere from closed to fully open. As a result, direct-steam humidifiers can respond more quickly and precisely than other humidifier types to fluctuating demand.

The high temperatures inherent in steam humidification make it virtually a sterile medium. Boiler makeup water is assumed to be of satisfactory quality. So if there is no condensation, and if no dripping or spitting occurs in the ducts, the system will not disseminate bacteria.

Corrosion is rarely a concern with a properly installed steam system. Scale and sediment—whether formed in the unit or entrained in the supply steam—are drained from the humidifier through the steam trap.

Conditioned steam. It’s the cornerstone of Series 9000 superior performance and control.

Armstrong offers also a steam separator-type humidifier for use in sensitive environments (Series 1000) where pure demineralized, deionized or distilled water is used to generate clean steam.

All wetted parts of the humidifier package are stainless steel, so the carryover of impurities created by this highly corrosive water is minimized. Whenever carryover of impurities is a problem in steam discharge, the Armstrong stainless steel direct-steam humidifier solves it—with precisely controlled, trouble-free steam humidification.