Knowledge

In pulse-based deposit removal — air cannons, explosion-gas systems, pulse valves — rise time matters as much as (and often more than) peak pressure.

When we talk about a "pulse," what does the deposit actually feel? Not the tail. Not the average. The front.

Deposits break when the vessel wall and the material column experience a rapid change in pressure (high dP/dt) that turns into mechanical stress at the interface — shear, microcracking, fatigue. The shorter the rise, the more "shock-like" the event, and the more effectively energy couples into the system.

In gas-phase systems the front usually stretches out, so dP/dt is harder to preserve. This fast, repeatable front is the foundation of MultiPulse™ and AirMace® efficiency: consistent excitation, pulse after pulse.

Takeaway: If you're evaluating any pulse-cleaning approach, don't ask only "how many bar?" Ask: how fast is the front at the surface you're trying to clean? That's where the work happens.

We're proud when our technology delivers outcomes that operators actually feel day-to-day:

• Fewer unplanned kiln stops — a customer cement plant reported that a MultiPulse™ installation reduced kiln stops by ~18 per year, translating to ~€200k annual savings from avoided stoppages alone.
• Reduced high-pressure water cleaning — less frequent water cleaning helps avoid disturbances that can drive thermal inefficiency, extra fuel consumption, and higher CO₂ emissions.
• More consistent clinker quality — improved stability often supports tighter control of free lime and more consistent clinker mineralogy (crystal size/shape, reactivity, early strength).
• Higher and more stable alternative fuel substitution — improved preheater stability can support increased TSR and broader use of waste-derived fuels and materials.
• Lower overall CO₂ and EU ETS exposure — via improved thermal efficiency, fewer upsets, higher TSR, and improved clinker factor stability.

• €162,068 saved via pet-coke mix optimization
• €204,204 saved via MultiPulse™ process improvement
• 18 fewer stoppages
• 32,725 t/year additional output

If your preheater, riser duct, or cooler buildup is driving stoppages, this is the kind of math worth reviewing.

Sounds dramatic… until you see what happens when a small amount of water joins the air cannon blast in a preheater, riser duct, or cooler.

Buildup is removed effectively in place, and the affected areas clear faster — often reducing or even replacing high-pressure water and Cardox cleaning, with fewer firings and less downtime.

This is the principle behind our Hybrid AirMace™ and Hybrid MultiPulse™ air-water impulse systems.

What's really going on inside the MultiPulse™ tool when it fires in a silo, preheater, or boiler? Here's the simple version.

1. The "heart" of the tool — receiver + ports. Every MultiPulse™ device has two key parts that define how it works: a receiver — a chamber filled with high-pressure gas (usually air) — and ports/windows, openings where the gas is suddenly released. When the piston opens, the pressurized gas in the receiver is dumped through the ports in a few milliseconds. That sudden release creates a shock wave and a fast-moving wave front that pushes the buildup material.

2. Why tool size and port size must match the receiver. The outer diameter limits how big the internal receiver can be. The port diameter controls how quickly the gas can escape. If the receiver is too big for the port size, you get a very large energy dump through a relatively small opening — lots of wasted energy with little extra cleaning benefit. If the receiver is too small, the pulse may be very sharp but "thin" — not enough mass of material moved, not enough impulse to really scrub the facility walls. The art is to balance receiver volume (how much energy and gas we store) against port size (how fast we can release it), so the pulse is strong but controlled and repeatable.

3. Mass per unit time — it's not just pressure, it's flow. Operators often think in terms of pressure: "How many psi is the tool firing at?" Equally important is mass per unit time — how much material we actually move, and how fast. A good MultiPulse™ pulse doesn't just "spike" the pressure — it pushes a big slug of material in a very short time. That acceleration is what breaks buildup, moves particles, and cleans. The receiver, ports, and tool size must be designed together to get the right air mass flow and a well-shaped wave front, not just a big number on a pressure gauge.

In soybean processing applications for animal feed, food ingredients, and oil production, reliable material flow is essential.

This successful installation demonstrates how AirMace® helps reduce buildup and blockage risk while supporting smoother, more consistent production.