Vacuum Breakers in the Textile Industry

Textiles is a global industry comprised of a wide array of manufacturing and processing stages. Starting as natural and synthetic fibers and threads, materials like cotton and yarn go through spinning and dyeing processes before their export as finished cloth goods. The textiles industry continues to grow, using diverse materials with different colors, properties, and specialized applications.

To facilitate this production, manufacturers increasingly turn to specialized machinery that can meet the demands of consumer, military, and industrial standards. Regardless of the machine or textile itself, however, most of these machines require the same underlying equipment: boiler and compressor systems that use vacuum breakers, chemical lines, and condensate lines.

Applications of Vacuum Breakers in the Textile Industry

A vacuum breaker is a specialized valve that protects pressure vessels, as well as pressurized tanks and piping. The textile industry has uses for vacuum breaker check valves and control valves throughout numerous stages of production. Some of the most common applications of these components include:

• Regulating heat from steam boilers. This heat has uses in fabric dyeing and drying processes.
• Creating pressure relief points. Valves allow pressure release for air compressor systems that need to run continually without downtime.
• Controlling the flow rate and volume of fluids. Accomplished along with the help of metering pumps, valves ensure a steady, sufficient flow of liquids such as chemicals and water. They also discharge substances from boilers, compressors, and pumps.

Vacuum Breaker Benefits in the Textile Industry

Vacuum breakers provide effective protection against the collapse of pressure vessels by preventing back-up material from entering the systems. For example, vacuum breakers can prevent condensate from backing up into previous parts of a system when it goes down or there’s decreased inlet steam.

Vacuum breakers help create safer systems, with some of the tasks they can handle including:

• Stopping pipe collapses if the transient pressure drops 
• Breaking siphons
• Stopping water hammer by allowing more air into the downstream portion of the piping after the check valve
• Preventing the formation of dangerous vacuums

Why You Need Vacuum Breakers

Vacuum breakers can protect your pressurized system from impairment in the event of pressure loss or over pressurized systems. They prevent dry can, slasher collapse, and pressure vessel collapse. In steam heated drying cylinders, which often dry ink on printed fabric, internal steam can condense into water during system downtime, creating a vacuum in the cylinder. Guarding against this, vacuum breakers can help keep your textile systems running efficiently and on time.

Vacuum breakers provide a tight shutoff to stop steam from leakage when a system is in use and then allow steam to escape during cooling cycles. Without vacuum breakers, the pressure shifts between highly pressurized “on” periods and depressurizing “off” periods can jeopardize the integrity of your equipment and lead to costly damage and downtime.

Vacuum Breakers From DFT® Inc.

The right vacuum breakers have strong seals to prevent leakage but are responsive enough to allow for the release of steam as needed to keep your textile operations running smoothly across each stage of production. Whether your facility specializes in synthetic fabrics, organic and natural fabrics, or dyed and treated textiles, the right equipment makes all the difference in completing orders on schedule and creating consistent products.

At DFT®, we serve our customers with a wide range of check valves and control valves. Our durable stainless steel DFT® Vacuum Breakers (model BSSV) are available in 1-inch to 4-inch diameters with a lapped disc and seat for tight shutoff. Contact us today or download our flyer to learn more about our Vacuum Breakers. You can also request a quote if you are ready to start your order.