Clean air is of the utmost importance when it comes to avoiding various health conditions like asthma and other respiratory diseases. Nevertheless, rapid industrialization combined with growing construction and mining activities in emerging economies contributes significantly to air pollution. This is where dust control systems have gained widespread acceptance.
What are dust control systems and why have they become so crucial?
Dust control systems are widely used in various industries to enhance air quality by eliminating particulate matter from the air. Manufacturers also focus on developing advanced technology dust control systems. In addition, the governments of different countries are also adopting environmental and worker safety standards and regulations. This leads to a higher demand for dust control systems. Manufacturers design cost-effective and higher-performance dust control systems to improve the clean production process.
Dust control systems are requisite in these industries:
- Construction
Dust control measures are applicable across any and every construction site where the potential for air and water pollution from dust traveling through the countryside or the air is visible. Dust control includes practices that are used during construction to reduce or prohibit the surface and air transport of dust. The guidelines of the EPA are for cleaning and affecting the least possible areas unless they are to be worked on. Sometimes the clearing and grubbing of the entire site are performed all at once because of planned operations, although this could be different on large-scale projects.
No matter how much you monitor airflow levels through a building site, dust will still be snagged and swirled around. The dust has to be prevented from escaping the site wherever possible. This is where cannons that create a fine mist can help to control dust. These kinds of systems are mobile, and thus can be run exactly where they are required the most on-site. Some are best suited for outdoor use and will prevent dust from spreading towards a neighboring building. Others can be deployed indoors where there may be stone or concrete grinding, thus helping to trap dust at its source.
- Food and beverages
Dust produced when the food products are produced and processed cause significant challenges. Particles of the dust often become airborne, which can endanger the health of workers and cause outbreaks of combustible dust. Particles from the food dust vary in size, and some are so fine that they are not visible to the naked eye. Common food hazards include cereal ingredients, spices, agricultural products for feed and raw grain, eggshell dust, flour, maize starch, sugar, and flavoring additives.
Traveling dust in a food processing plant may lead to exposure to allergens or a pathogen outbreak from microorganisms spreads. Cross-contamination prevention includes a thorough cleaning of equipment and processing suites— collecting and extracting all pollutants before they become widespread. Pathogens and allergens collecting, controlling, and filtering limit the spread of harmful pollutants and prevent them from returning to the processing area.
- Pharmaceuticals
As per the World Health Organization, constant exposure to bags of dust triggers diseases, temporary or permanent disabilities, and deaths in various developed and developing countries. The production and distribution of pharmaceutical products, such as medications, supplements, minerals or spices, require a wide variety of processes that can create harmful dust. The pharmaceutical dust will harm the workers, pose chemical hazards and contaminate the product. This is a growing industry with continued demand for adequate tools for dust control and effective personal protective equipment (PPE).
How can different industries benefit from microscopic ‘smart dust’ sensors?
Smart dust is the next logical progression for today's Internet of Things (IoT). The IoT market has developed itself rapidly as an essential element of the contemporary world. Devices vary wildly, from consumer devices like smart thermostats to big business-made products like small sensors that track oil wells to ensure efficient performance.
Several users have already been considered: tiny smart dust motes could be installed across farm crops to monitor plant needs, from determining watering times to controlling pests. Smart dust elsewhere may track bees to find out where they encounter different chemicals that harm their populations.
Small sensor networks have already been developed by a variety of industrial sectors to track machinery across a plant or factory. Apart from oil refineries, chemical plants and mines are locations where the already developed sensor networks could be upgraded to smart dust as soon as the technology becomes usable. In addition to tracking their equipment, large-scale consumer goods companies (such as packaged food producers or breweries) can use smart dust to improve inventory control and improve safety by monitoring their products wirelessly.
To sum up
The need for clean air is rising with increasing levels of pollution, combined with growing respiratory problems in urban areas, which are expected to contribute significantly to the growth of the industry. The increasing need for product adoption, particularly in developing regions around the globe, is expected to drive demand over the forecast period.
Dust storms can create impacts on the environment, like reduced solar radiation, geochemical and biogeochemical effects, damaging primary marine producers or autotrophs. One explanation of why dust has these global effects is its transferability of up to 20,000 km. Dust may also adversely affect the cardiovascular, respiratory, cerebral and vascular systems. It may cause or increase meningitis, fever, pain, allergies, and viral infections; it could also damage the DNA of the skin and lung cells.
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