BRINK MIST ELIMINATORS

FOR SULFURIC ACID PLANTS

World Class Technology. World Class Service.

BRINK ®
Available Worldwide.
www.mecs.dupont.com
 GENUINE BRINK FOR SULFURIC ACID
®

FIBER BED MIST ELIMNATORS

Formation of acid mists

WHY BRINK ? ® Larger acid mist particles are created in sulfuric acid drying
and absorbing towers as a result of the splash and shear of
• Experience in sulfuric acid plant technology liquid acid in the distributor and over the packing. These
since 1925 particles are entrained in the upward gas flow. More
• Invented fiber bed technology difficult to collect small acid particles are formed by the
• Patented designs for sulfuric acid plant products reaction of sulfur trioxide with any water vapor present and
including AutoDrain® and XP™ by the condensation of acid from the gaseous or vapor
phase. These acid particles can corrode blowers, ductwork
• Exclusive supplier of ZeCor-Z® wire mesh pads
and heat exchangers, damage catalyst and cause
• Best technical support in the industry atmospheric pollution.
• Worldwide manufacturing and availability

QUALITY, SERVICE, TECHNOLOGY

Dr. Joseph Brink developed the first fiber bed mist
eliminator for chemical and acid plant use in 1958.
MECS, Inc. (MECS) continues to be the leader in
mist elimination products which utilize the latest
technology. MECS welcomes the opportunity to
investigate and recommend solutions to any air
pollution or down stream corrosion problem in your
sulfuric acid plant. Brink® Mist Eliminator products
offer longer service life resulting in lower plant
maintenance and operating costs.
In a sulfuric acid plant, much of the mist is mechanically
generated. The frothing action in the trough style distributor
along with bubbling in the downcomers generate spray particles.
Also, acid drops are stripped off the acid flowing over and
through the tower packing.

Collection of acid mists

A fiber bed mist eliminator for sulfuric acid service is a
thick filter consisting of acid resistant glass fibers packed
in a supporting cage. Gases containing the mist particles
are directed horizontally through the fiber beds. Particles
contact and collect on individual fibers of the bed and
then coalesce to form liquid films and droplets which are
moved through the bed by gas flow. The collected liquid
then drains off the downstream face of the bed by gravity.

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 GENUINE BRINK FOR SULFURIC ACID ®

COLLECTION MECHANISMS FOR SULFURIC ACID MIST

PHYSICS
• Particles larger than 3.0 microns are collected INTERCEPTED
when their momentum prevents them from INTERCEPTION
PARTICLE 1–3 MICRONS

following gas streamlines around fibers. They IMPACTION

PARTICLE PATH
PARTICLE PATH
leave the streamline, strike a fiber and are
collected by the fiber.
IMPACTED TARGET FIBER
• Between 1.0 and 3.0 micron size particles PARTICLE
CROSS SECTION
GAS FLOW AROUND
TARGET FIBER
>3 MICRONS
tend to follow the gas streamlines as they
flow relatively close to fibers. A 1.0 micron
particle, for example, passing within 0.5
micron of a fiber will be collected by the fiber.
RANDOM BROWNIAN
DIFFUSION PARTICLE PATH RANDOM PARTICLE
<1 MICRON
• Submicron particles have random side-to-side
movement caused by collisions with gas
molecules, greatly increasing the probability
of collision with a fiber.

After collection, the acid mist droplets coalesce on the individual

fibers in the fiber bed and begin to drain.
ENCAPSULATION

MIST DROPLETS INDIVIDUAL DROPLET

IN GAS FLOW DRAINING

PENETRATION

NODE GAS FLOW

RE-ENTRAINMENT

DROPLET ON NODE
WETTING DRAIN
SURFACE
DROPLET ON
NON–WETTING
STAGNANT DROPLETS SURFACE

GLASS FIBER GLASS FIBER

COALESCENCE
DRAINAGE 3
 GENUINE BRINK FOR SULFURIC ACID ®

DIFFUSION FIBER BED PRODUCTS

XP™– EXTRA PERFORMANCE

BI-COMPONENT HANGING STYLE The eXtra Performance offers the lowest pressure drop
PRODUCTS TUBE available in one to one match-ups when compared to other
CLEAN
SHEET elements. The pressure drop per XP™ element is 1/3 less
GAS
than a typical element of the same size and efficiency. As a
FIBER BED
result, a sulfuric acid plant may use up to one third fewer
MIST filter elements at the same Delta P and fewer filter elements
ELIMINATOR
means lower life-cycle maintenance costs. New installations
SEAL LEG can benefit from lower initial capital cost due to smaller
vessel size and footprint.
Annual cost increases for purchased electric power are
Section A becoming commonplace today. Where new plant
construction or tower replacement is necessary or being
MIST considered, another design approach should be evaluated.
LADEN
GAS
To minimize the effects of escalating energy costs, consider
DRAINAGE AND RE-ENTRAINMENT
CONTROL FIBERS a design where the towers are FULL sized with a FULL
LIQUID
SCREEN DRAIN TOWER complement of eXtra Performance XP™ elements. This
WALL design approach will reduce the overall plant pressure drop
and reduce the energy required to drive the main
compressor. Depending upon the local cost per kilowatt
hour of electricity and availability of energy conservation
tax credits, payback may be as soon as 6 months.
MIST LADEN
GAS
CLEAN GAS
Section A In addition to new construction and revamps, replacing
TO VENT
existing elements with XP™ also results in significant power
LIQUID savings. The resulting power savings allows for the
TO
DRAIN incremental price difference of XP™ elements to be
TUBE recaptured quickly.
SHEET
CLEAN

COLLECTING
GAS
ES – ENERGY SAVER
FIBERS
This product consists of a special wound fiber bed,
FIBER BED
MIST computer controlled quality, and a bi-component drainage
ELIMINATOR
or re-entrainment control layer of coarse fiber downstream
of the finer collecting fiber. Liquid that would re-entrain
AUTODRAIN®
from the fine fiber bed is drained in the re-entrainment
control layer. The ES element has become the product of
Section A
preference in absorption tower service.

HE – HIGH EFFICIENCY
MIST
LADEN The original Brink® design consists of fibers which are
GAS
packed between two concentric cylindrical screens. The
4 LIQUID HE "Plus" adds a drainage and re-entrainment control and
DRAIN VESSEL
WALL layer similar to the ES design.
 GENUINE BRINK FOR SULFURIC ACID ®

AUTODRAIN™ FIBER BEDS

AD – AUTODRAIN ™

AutoDrain™ effectively drains acid and virtually eliminates

reenetrainment from Brink® Mist Eliminators without the
use of expensive and complex seal leg piping systems.
New installations
With Brink® AutoDrain™, seal legs, seal cups and complex
drain piping are not required for hanging fiber bed mist
eliminators. Significant initial cost reduction and life cycle
maintenance cost reductions will result AND the project
schedule can be shortened. Additional value can be
realized eliminating the hanging mist eliminator seal
system design: deletion of stainless steel piping, reduced
field labor for installation, enhanced safety and no need
With Brink® AutoDrain™seal legs, seal cups and complex drain for future seal system inspection or maintenance repairs.
piping are not required for hanging fiber bed mist eliminators. Existing plants
All of the "NEW INSTALLATION" benefits discussed
above can be realized when adding AutoDrain™ to an exist-
ing installation. When adding the AutoDrain™ to existing
elements, the option also exists to convert the elements to
XP™. In most cases this will keep the length of the new
element with AutoDrain™ the same as the length of the
element without AutoDrain™. Converting the elements to
XP™ also typically results in plant debottlenecking, lower
pressure drop, and/or increased plant rates. As with ES
elements, XP™ elements with AutoDrain™ will allow for
fast track turnarounds as less field work will be required to
install drain piping.
Without Brink® AutoDrain™seal legs, seal cups and complex
drain piping are required adding to the overall cost of operation.

REDUCED EMISSIONS WITH AUTODRAIN™ SEAL LEG SYSTEM VS. AUTODRAIN™*

FAT APPLICATIONS COST COMPARISON — TIME AND MONEY
0.075
SEAL LEG SYSTEM AUTODRAIN™
MATERIALS $100K $0
EXIT EMISSIONS (KG H₂SO₄/METRIC TON)

0.057 LABOR $100K $0

(PIPE, FITTINGS, DESIGN AND FIELD INSTALLATION)

0.038
SCHEDULE +2 DAYS SAVES 2 DAYS
INSPECTION @ MAJOR TURN AROUNDS NOT REQUIRED

*FOR A 3000 TPD PLANT – 50 ELEMENT FAT

0.019
ACTUAL
PERFORMANCE 0.012

0.000
TYPICAL EMISSION CUSTOMER AUTODRAIN™
5
LIMIT* REQUIREMENT

*ACTUAL EMISSION LIMIT DEPENDS ON LOCAL REGULATION

 GENUINE BRINK FOR SULFURIC ACID ®

ACID PLANT DE-BOTTLENECKING

THE ULTIMATE DE-BOTTLENECKING TOOL

Extra Performance XP™
Increase the rate of your plant, generate up to 30% more
product and make more money with Extra Perfomance XP™.
The Brink XP™ is the next generation fiber bed mist
eliminator technology for de-bottlenecking sulfuric acid
plants from MECS. The Brink XP™ is designed specifically
to increase production potential where relatively minor
plant modification is a desirable alternative to new
construction.
The Brink® XP™ is a unique and patented fiber bed design
that is ideal for de-bottlenecking and enhancing plant
production potential. It allows the lowest pressure drop
while guaranteeing 99% acid mist removal at design inlet
loading for most de-bottlenecking applications. As a result,
you may enhance your profit potential from incremental
rate improvement without the need for major equipment
modification or new plant construction.
De-bottlenecking with Brink XP™ is a cost effective,
revenue producing project for plants that are rate limited
due to pressure drop within the tower(s) containing fiber
bed mist eliminators. In today’s production oriented
economy, plants are pushed to the limit of production. The
Brink XP™ offers the best method to reduce pressure drop
in existing towers while allowing your plant to increase rate.

Concentric elements
BRINK® XP™ – MORE PRODUCTION POTENTIAL Concentric elements increase the fiber bed surface area
ELEMENT PRESSURE DROP VS MIST LOADING without requiring tubesheet modifications. Lower pressure
12
CONVENTIONAL ES RESULTS drop or increased flow capacity is achievable and they are
available in all element types. The extra cost of a flared
ELEMENT PRESSURE DROP (IN WC)

10

8
tower or added tower height can be avoided by using Brink®
concentric fiber beds.
6

0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70

INLET MIST (MG/ACF)

6
 GENUINE BRINK FOR SULFURIC ACID
®

REPACKS, REPAIRS, UPGRADES AND CONVERSIONS

REPACKING TO XP™ DESIGN – REPAIR AND UPGRADES

MECS® BRINK® AP™ To achieve fast turnaround and expedited delivery,
MECS offers a unique approach to repacking fouled fiber MECS inventories flanges, screens, end plates, gaskets,
beds – the Brink® AP™. These new AP™ repacks consist of fasteners, roving, mat and bulk fiber engineered for
Brink® XP™ technology blended with existing ES or ES sulfuric acid service.
style cages. Brink® AP™ offer approximately 20% reduction Brink® quality, craftsmanship and experience assures
in pressure drop and improved efficiency over repacking high performance and a clean stack for your sulfuric
your existing fiber bed cages with their original design acid plant.
diffusion fiber collection media. While repacking with XP™
media does not offer the full advantage of new XP™
elements, the 20% Delta P and efficiency improvement
offers a significant advantage over conventional repacks. 

MECS® BRINK® AUTODRAIN™

CONVERSION RE-PACKS
Modification to element screen cages and the addition of
proprietary embedded drainage devices will be installed to
incorporate the Brink® AutoDrain™ design during an
element re-pack. The converted elements will operate like
new Brink® AutoDrain™ mist eliminators without the need
for filling seal cups, materials and labor for seal cups and/or Before repair and repack – mishandling of this fiberbed
has caused serious damage to the cage and flange of this
drain piping. The extra height available can allow for longer stripped element.
functional process length on the re-packed – equipped
with AutoDrain™ elements, resulting in de-bottlenecking After repair, upgrade and repack – MECS can repack any
opportunities. Lower pressure drop and/or increased brand fiberbed to meet or excede OEM specifications.
plant rates will be realized. Fast track turnarounds
can be achieved due to less field work required.

STANDARD REPACKS
MECS can repack any brand fiberbed to meet
or improve the original equipment
manufacture’s specifications.

MECS repacks provide and/or improve:

• Better efficiency
• Longer service life
• Optimized pressure drop
• Expedited service available

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 GENUINE BRINK FOR SULFURIC ACID ®

IMPACTION FIBER BED PRODUCTS

CK – CO-KNIT
A new innovation to increase the operating time between
CS MODELS washings of drying tower elements and
WIRE MESH extend the plant operating time between
SCREEN turnarounds. Co-knit uses
Alloy 20 wire mesh with acid
resistant glass fiber knitted into
the mesh, creating a more open
MIST LADEN packing structure while
GAS CLEAN GAS
TO VENT
providing the same efficiency
as a CS element. A metal alloy
LIQUID
TO mesh re-entrainment control
DRAIN
layer is included on the
COLLECTING downstream side (outside).
FIBERS

CS – COST SAVER
CK MODELS Packed with a glass fiber mat
WIRE MESH
WITH CO-KNIT collecting layer and a metal
FIBERS
SCREEN alloy mesh re-entrainment
control layer on the
downstream side (outside).
One advantage of CS products
MIST LADEN CLEAN GAS
TO VENT
is their ease of maintenance and removal compared to
GAS
conventional mesh pads.
LIQUID
TO
DRAIN
CS-IP
Used in the drying towers of sulfur burning and spent acid
plants where the outer metal mesh layer is typically Alloy 20.
COLLECTING
MEDIA CS-IP elements in the drying tower usually need to be
washed about once per year due to the build up of sulfates in
the filter. While this maintenance results in plant downtime,
removing the acid mist and solids with the CS helps protect
downstream equipment such as a suction blower and the
first pass catalyst.
CS-IIP
Can be used in any absorbing tower. Like the CS-IP, the
CS-IIP uses a glass mat to collecte the particles and includes
a metal mesh re-entrainment layer, which greatly reduces
re-entrainment.

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 GENUINE BRINK FOR SULFURIC ACID ®

IMPACTION MESH PAD PRODUCTS

TOWERGARD™– HIGH PERFORMANCE MESH PADS

BENEFITS Captures, collects and returns acid mist to the tower with 99.9% collection
• ZeCor-Z® increases service life efficiency on particles greater than 2.0 microns with 2 inch w.c. pressure drop.
3 to 5 times vs. Alloy 20 TowerGARD™ systems made with
• Increases service life of duct work, co-knit glass or Teflon® fibers are
blowers and catalyst capable of 50% turndown due
• Guards against unexpected to increased targets for
temperature upsets or surges slower/smaller droplets.

FEATURES ZECOR®- Z CORROSION

• Uses multi-layer mesh in ZeCor-Z®, RESISTANT MATERIALS
Alloy 20, 316L SS and co-knit for Sulfuric acid plant drying or absorbing
all services tower mesh pads utilizing stainless steel or
• Exclusively incorporates the best Alloy 20 materials require replacement every one to
materials available three years as a result of corrosion. Resultant sulfate
• Co-knit glass or Teflon® fibers build-up reduces collection efficiency and increases
provide increased efficiency and pressure drop. Plant upsets can overheat Teflon® mesh
reduced pressure drop without pads and cause them to melt. TowerGARD™ mesh pads are
sacrificing capacity available exclusively with the best corrosion-resistant
materials currently available:
MESH STYLES ZeCor®-Z can be used for 92 – CHART 1: 93% H₂SO₄ Corrosion Rate*
CORROSION RATE (mils/yr)

25
98% sulfuric acid.
CRIMPED WIRE 20
Compared to Alloy 20 and
L SS

316L stainless steel, corrosion 15

316

20

rates are dramatically reduced

oy

10
r-Z
All

Co
for ZeCor®-Z within normal
Ze

15
operating temperatures for
drying towers (50° – 80°C) 0
0 60 80 100 120 140
and 92 – 98% sulfuric acid TEMPERATURE (Deg. C°)
(see charts 1 and 2). ZeCor®-Z
has much greater corrosion CHART 2: 98% H₂SO₄ Corrosion Rate*
CORROSION RATE (mils/yr)

25
resistance and will withstand
CO-KNIT WIRE/FIBERGLASS temporary plant excursions 20
better than either Alloy 20 or 15
316L stainless steel.
SS
316L

20

10
oy
All

15 r-Z
Co
Ze

0
0 60 80 100 120 140
TEMPERATURE (Deg. C°)

(One layer shown for clarity)

 GENUINE BRINK FOR SULFURIC ACID
®

MIST PARTICLE SIZE IN SULFURIC ACID TOWERS

BRINK® AND TOWERGARD™

COLLECTION EFFICIENCY VS. PARTICLE SIZE
100

COLLECTION EFFICIENCY (%)

XP,™ ES, HE
90

d
Pa
80

sh
P

K, H
IP, H

Me
70

IP, C

D™
CS-I
If a

AR
CS-
60

erG
Tow
human 50
0.2 0.5 1.0 5.0 10.0
PARTICLE SIZE (Microns)
hair was
this size… …then acid mist would be this size.
A human hair
has a diameter of
approximately
2.5 microns
100 microns. STANDARD DRYING TOWER
1 micron = Mist mean size is 2.5 microns
0.000039 inch 1.5 microns STANDARD INTERPASS TOWER

Mist mean size is 1.5 microns

FINAL TOWER
Mist mean size is 1.5 microns

1.0 micron INTERPASS TOWER WITH HEAT RECOVERY

Mist mean size is 1.0 micron

0.3 micron INTERPASS TOWER WITH OLEUM PRODUCTION

Mist mean size is 0.3 micron

AMMONIA SCRUBBER
Mist mean size is 0.3 micron

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GENUINE BRINK FOR SULFURIC ACID
®

INNOVATIVE ENGINEERING

BRINK MIST ELIMINATORS

®

Brink® fiber beds are designed to remove

virtually any type of mist from any gas
stream and they excel at collecting the
most difficult to capture aerosol mists –
submicron sized. MECS welcomes the
opportunity to investigate and
recommend solutions to any mist
related air pollution or in-process gas
handling problem that you may have in
your sulfuric acid plant.

DIFFUSION IMPACTION

MIST ELIMINATOR SELECTION GUIDE

SULFUR BURNING ✓
DRYING TOWER SPENT ACID ✓ ✓
METALLURGICAL ✓
INTERPASS TOWER NO OLEUM ✓ ✓
WITH OLEUM ✓
HRS (Heat Recovery Tower) ✓
STRINGENT REGULATIONS ✓
FINAL TOWER OPERATING RATE VARIES ✓
STANDARD DESIGN ✓ ✓
CAUSTIC/AMMONIA SCRUBBER ✓
OLEUM STORAGE AND LOADING ✓
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 GENUINE BRINK FOR SULFURIC ACID ®

WORLD’S LEADING SOURCE FOR SULFURIC ACID TECHNOLOGIES

NORTH AMERICA ASIA PACIFIC

MECS Headquarters Hong Kong, China
Chesterfield, Missouri USA EUROPE/AFRICA MECS Far East Limited
Tel: +1-314-275 5700 Tel: +852-2734 5388
Brussels, Belgium
[email protected] [email protected]
Tel: +32-2-658 2620
[email protected]

MILAN, ITALY
Phone: +39-02-8969 0658 MUMBAI, INDIA
[email protected] MECS India Private Ltd.
SOUTH AMERICA Tel: +91-22-6774 9500
Barueri, Sao Paulo, Brazil [email protected]
Tel: +27-11-218 8618
[email protected]
SHANGHAI, CHINA
JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA MECS Chemical Plants
Tel: +27-11-708 9860 Equipment (Shanghai) Co., Ltd
[email protected] Tel: +86-21-6182 1111
[email protected]

MECS is known around the world as the premier supplier of sulfuric acid plants.
Along with process engineering and design, MECS provides a broad range of
innovative and value engineered products
for the sulfuric acid industry.
World Class Technology. World Class Service. BRINK
®

Available Worldwide. www.mecs.dupont.com

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10
Copyright© 2013. E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company. All rights reserved. The DuPont Oval Logo, DuPont™, The miracles of science™,
Teflon®, Brink®, AutoDrain™, XP™, TowerGard™, ZeCor Z™, AP™ and MECS® are registered trademarks of DuPont or its affiliates. K26388