Semi-analytical and computational investigation of different dust loading structures affecting the performance of a fibrous air filter

In this study, a semi-analytical model was developed to illustrate the relationship between filtration performance (filtration efficiency and pressure drop) and dust loading under two different particle deposit structures based on theoretical analysis and computational fluid dynamic (CFD) technology. Under the compact deposit structure, within the practical parameter ranges (fiber diameter, air velocity, dust loading mass), a slight efficiency enhancement (∼10%) occurred at the most penetration particle size (MPPS) and pressure drop increased significantly (∼100%) in response to the solidity increase from 5% to 15%. However, under the dendritic particle deposit structure, both filtration efficiency (∼40%) and pressure drop (∼600%) increased significantly with the same solidity increase due to the larger air velocity and swerve change between fibers.