Coal-fired power plants are known for their high-energy output, but they also require frequent maintenance and upgrades to operate at peak efficiency. One key area that often requires attention is the air heater inlet duct. Over time, these ducts can become worn and rusty, which can negatively impact efficiency and increase downtime. However, with the use of modern fabric expansion joints, power plant operators can achieve improved efficiency and longevity. What is a Fabric Expansion Joint? A fabric expansion joint is a flexible element that can be used to compensate for movement, misalignment, and vibration in duct systems. These joints are typically made from layers of high-strength fabrics, such as fiberglass or Kevlar, which are coated with specialized compounds to resist heat, moisture, and chemicals. They can be designed to withstand extreme temperatures, pressures, and other environmental conditions. Why Upgrade Air Heater Inlet Ducts with Fabric Expansion Joints? Air heater inlet ducts play a critical role in the combustion process by preheating the air that is used to fuel the boiler. If these ducts are worn or damaged, they can leak air, which can reduce efficiency and increase emissions. Additionally, worn ducts can be more susceptible to corrosion and other forms of damage, which can shorten their lifespan and increase maintenance costs. By upgrading air heater inlet ducts with fabric expansion joints, power plant operators can achieve several benefits, including: Improved Efficiency: Fabric expansion joints can help to minimize air leakage, which can improve combustion efficiency and reduce emissions. By maintaining a consistent flow of preheated air, fabric expansion joints can also help to prevent hot spots and other thermal imbalances. Increased Longevity: Fabric expansion joints are designed to withstand extreme temperatures, pressures, and other environmental conditions. As a result, they can provide longer service life than traditional metal expansion joints or welded joints, which can be prone to corrosion and other forms of damage. Reduced Maintenance Costs: By reducing the need for frequent repairs and replacements, fabric expansion joints can help to reduce maintenance costs and downtime. They can also be designed to allow for easier inspection and maintenance, further reducing the overall cost of ownership. Upgrading air heater inlet ducts with fabric expansion joints can provide significant benefits to power plant operators. By improving efficiency and longevity, fabric expansion joints can help to reduce emissions, increase productivity, and save money in the long run. For power plants looking to improve their operations and reduce their environmental impact, fabric expansion joints are a smart investment.

By |2023-05-17T20:20:29+00:00May 15, 2023|Projects|Comments Off on Coal-fired power plants are known for their high-energy output, but they also require frequent maintenance and upgrades to operate at peak efficiency. One key area that often requires attention is the air heater inlet duct. Over time, these ducts can become worn and rusty, which can negatively impact efficiency and increase downtime. However, with the use of modern fabric expansion joints, power plant operators can achieve improved efficiency and longevity. What is a Fabric Expansion Joint? A fabric expansion joint is a flexible element that can be used to compensate for movement, misalignment, and vibration in duct systems. These joints are typically made from layers of high-strength fabrics, such as fiberglass or Kevlar, which are coated with specialized compounds to resist heat, moisture, and chemicals. They can be designed to withstand extreme temperatures, pressures, and other environmental conditions. Why Upgrade Air Heater Inlet Ducts with Fabric Expansion Joints? Air heater inlet ducts play a critical role in the combustion process by preheating the air that is used to fuel the boiler. If these ducts are worn or damaged, they can leak air, which can reduce efficiency and increase emissions. Additionally, worn ducts can be more susceptible to corrosion and other forms of damage, which can shorten their lifespan and increase maintenance costs. By upgrading air heater inlet ducts with fabric expansion joints, power plant operators can achieve several benefits, including: Improved Efficiency: Fabric expansion joints can help to minimize air leakage, which can improve combustion efficiency and reduce emissions. By maintaining a consistent flow of preheated air, fabric expansion joints can also help to prevent hot spots and other thermal imbalances. Increased Longevity: Fabric expansion joints are designed to withstand extreme temperatures, pressures, and other environmental conditions. As a result, they can provide longer service life than traditional metal expansion joints or welded joints, which can be prone to corrosion and other forms of damage. Reduced Maintenance Costs: By reducing the need for frequent repairs and replacements, fabric expansion joints can help to reduce maintenance costs and downtime. They can also be designed to allow for easier inspection and maintenance, further reducing the overall cost of ownership. Upgrading air heater inlet ducts with fabric expansion joints can provide significant benefits to power plant operators. By improving efficiency and longevity, fabric expansion joints can help to reduce emissions, increase productivity, and save money in the long run. For power plants looking to improve their operations and reduce their environmental impact, fabric expansion joints are a smart investment.
Read More

Performance and longevity of an expansion joint (EJ) areaffected by storage & environmental conditions. While most forms of environmental attack will have little effect upon a typical EJ while in storage, they are susceptible to accidental damage and storage best-practices must be followed in order to avoid plant-process issues after installation. Contact us for a storage guide, link in bio! #expansionjoints #industrialplants #industrialparts

By |2021-09-26T20:55:03+00:00August 23, 2021|Instagram, Projects|Comments Off on Performance and longevity of an expansion joint (EJ) areaffected by storage & environmental conditions. While most forms of environmental attack will have little effect upon a typical EJ while in storage, they are susceptible to accidental damage and storage best-practices must be followed in order to avoid plant-process issues after installation. Contact us for a storage guide, link in bio! #expansionjoints #industrialplants #industrialparts
Read More

Does your brickwork have expansion joints in it? Often, they’re made of Viton Rubber, which can handle acid well, but if you wash your acid down with water, you create hot acid due to the exothermic reaction the two substances produce, no rubber expansion joint can handle hot acid. Have INTEREP come out if you’ve had an upset event in your acid area recently, we’ll help you make sure your flooring expansion joints are holding up well, and help you avoid needed to do structural concrete repair work beneath your brick pad.

By |2021-08-02T14:18:41+00:00August 2, 2021|Instagram, Projects|Comments Off on Does your brickwork have expansion joints in it? Often, they’re made of Viton Rubber, which can handle acid well, but if you wash your acid down with water, you create hot acid due to the exothermic reaction the two substances produce, no rubber expansion joint can handle hot acid. Have INTEREP come out if you’ve had an upset event in your acid area recently, we’ll help you make sure your flooring expansion joints are holding up well, and help you avoid needed to do structural concrete repair work beneath your brick pad.
Read More

No drawings? No problem. Need a part for your plant, but its custom engineered and the drawings are nowhere to be found? INTEREP will show up and reverse engineer your expansion joints, dampers, or fans. Yet another reason to keep INTEREP on speed dial!

By |2021-07-23T00:06:00+00:00July 23, 2021|Instagram, Projects|Comments Off on No drawings? No problem. Need a part for your plant, but its custom engineered and the drawings are nowhere to be found? INTEREP will show up and reverse engineer your expansion joints, dampers, or fans. Yet another reason to keep INTEREP on speed dial!
Read More

Finishing up a Dynawave scrubber inlet liner that we built out of FRP with a dual-laminate layer of ECTFE inside. This process sees hot gas, fluorides, and sulfur, so it eats pretty much any alloy out there. We needed to get something in there that could handle abrasives and still see temperatures around 300F from time to time. Next step is to get on-site and make sure that the Dynawave quenching weir is working properly so we don’t get any hot spots

By |2021-07-07T16:25:07+00:00July 7, 2021|Instagram, Projects|Comments Off on Finishing up a Dynawave scrubber inlet liner that we built out of FRP with a dual-laminate layer of ECTFE inside. This process sees hot gas, fluorides, and sulfur, so it eats pretty much any alloy out there. We needed to get something in there that could handle abrasives and still see temperatures around 300F from time to time. Next step is to get on-site and make sure that the Dynawave quenching weir is working properly so we don’t get any hot spots
Read More

In the dry climate of the Rocky Mountains you really only get a rust bloom like this on your carbon steel when it sees direct contact with water (this new piece of ductwork just saw the first of many rainstorms in its life). However, in humid climates you’ll get this same rust inside of your vessels that aren’t even exposed to rain. That’s why it’s important to put down a coat of primer such as Pennguard HB, Penntrowel Epoxy Primer, or other similar ErgonArmor products as soon as possible after you’ve cleaned and prepped your surface. That’ll ensure you seal it in and are ready for a solid bond between your steel and your vessel lining system.

By |2021-04-19T23:21:58+00:00April 19, 2021|Instagram, Projects|Comments Off on In the dry climate of the Rocky Mountains you really only get a rust bloom like this on your carbon steel when it sees direct contact with water (this new piece of ductwork just saw the first of many rainstorms in its life). However, in humid climates you’ll get this same rust inside of your vessels that aren’t even exposed to rain. That’s why it’s important to put down a coat of primer such as Pennguard HB, Penntrowel Epoxy Primer, or other similar ErgonArmor products as soon as possible after you’ve cleaned and prepped your surface. That’ll ensure you seal it in and are ready for a solid bond between your steel and your vessel lining system.
Read More

We’ve been supplying industrial process equipment around the world since 1983. We believe in delivering the highest quality hardware to keep an American industry up and running. Process knowledge is our passion. Most vendors understand their products, but we understand your process and how our products will interact with it. We’re here to help you avoid downtime when downtime isn’t an option. INTEREP was created out of the ashes of the 1980’s oil bust. Our founder, Carl Horecky, swore he’d never put all his eggs in one basket again. From there, INTEREP was born and forged a path to become not only suppliers, but experts. In 2021, we’re excited to continue growing our team of professionals who live for the unique challenges and solutions of unforgiving environments. We’d love to hear from you! Bring us your piping or ducting design challenge today and let us show you why so many industrial facilities trust INTEREP as the experts.

By |2021-03-23T16:15:22+00:00March 23, 2021|Instagram, Projects|Comments Off on We’ve been supplying industrial process equipment around the world since 1983. We believe in delivering the highest quality hardware to keep an American industry up and running. Process knowledge is our passion. Most vendors understand their products, but we understand your process and how our products will interact with it. We’re here to help you avoid downtime when downtime isn’t an option. INTEREP was created out of the ashes of the 1980’s oil bust. Our founder, Carl Horecky, swore he’d never put all his eggs in one basket again. From there, INTEREP was born and forged a path to become not only suppliers, but experts. In 2021, we’re excited to continue growing our team of professionals who live for the unique challenges and solutions of unforgiving environments. We’d love to hear from you! Bring us your piping or ducting design challenge today and let us show you why so many industrial facilities trust INTEREP as the experts.
Read More

A customer reached out to us with a dilemma. They had a whole duct full of fabric expansion joints that were burning up, and they needed all new ones in less than 4 weeks. What’s weird is the flue gas is normally only 300F. However, they sometimes bypass 1000F gas into it and ALL of the gas that goes through this duct is high in sulfur. Instead of providing a new expansion joint with more insulation, we decided to calculate the minimum allowable amount of insulation based on their excursion durations and temperatures, put in all stainless flow-liners, hardware, and frames, and topped it off with silicone gaskets to help get the PTFE belt as watertight (or acid tight) as we could. Over-insulating the internal cavity pillow would cause sulfuric acid condensation inside the expansion joint (between the belt and pillow). Is it going to build up acid on cold days still? Probably. Is it going to keep the plant up and running without leaving gaping holes in their ductwork? Definitely.

By |2021-03-23T16:12:37+00:00March 23, 2021|Instagram, Projects|Comments Off on A customer reached out to us with a dilemma. They had a whole duct full of fabric expansion joints that were burning up, and they needed all new ones in less than 4 weeks. What’s weird is the flue gas is normally only 300F. However, they sometimes bypass 1000F gas into it and ALL of the gas that goes through this duct is high in sulfur. Instead of providing a new expansion joint with more insulation, we decided to calculate the minimum allowable amount of insulation based on their excursion durations and temperatures, put in all stainless flow-liners, hardware, and frames, and topped it off with silicone gaskets to help get the PTFE belt as watertight (or acid tight) as we could. Over-insulating the internal cavity pillow would cause sulfuric acid condensation inside the expansion joint (between the belt and pillow). Is it going to build up acid on cold days still? Probably. Is it going to keep the plant up and running without leaving gaping holes in their ductwork? Definitely.
Read More