Riffle Me This

In 2008 Wear-Concepts took on a riddle that presented itself at a Midwest coal burning power plant. The conundrum was found in the labyrinth of the upper and lower Riffle Housings. The purpose of the Riffles is to equalize the pressure drop of the Pulverized Coal headed for the boiler. The Riffle Housing is in constant contact with pulverized coal, which causes wear. A large amount of wear at the exit and near the edges of the Riffle Elements was costing the plant a bundle in repairs. The power plant’s maintenance team was rebuilding the housings once every year with hardsurface welding rod. It took one man working ten-hour days for one full week to build up the housings and get them back into service.