---
title: Air Cannons Improve Material Flow of Wet & Sticky Coal
description: Air cannons apply precisely timed bursts of air to prevent material buildup on interior container walls and obstructions at discharge ports.
image: https://blog.martin-eng.com/hubfs/AC_AirCannons_person_copy.jpg
---

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## Problem Solved Paper

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# Air Cannons Improve Material Flow of Wet & Sticky Coal

[Martin Engineering](https://blog.martin-eng.com/problem-solved-papers/author/martin-engineering)

 April 25 2024

[Air Cannons](https://blog.martin-eng.com/problem-solved-papers/tag/air-cannons)

### Problem

![PSPBlog_ToledoBefore](https://blog.martin-eng.com/hs-fs/hubfs/PSPBlog_ToledoBefore.jpg?width=350&height=197&name=PSPBlog_ToledoBefore.jpg)Toledo Power Plant, Toledo Power Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Global Business Power Corporation, with a total capacity of 246 MW was having trouble with coal conditions. The material was wet and slightly sticky, which made it stick to the walls of the hopper, so much so that the material would accumulate and create a blockage in the hopper. Production couldn’t run smoothly, requiring temporary shutdowns so employees could manually knock down the material from the walls of the hopper.

### Solution

![PSPBlog_ToledoSolution](https://blog.martin-eng.com/hs-fs/hubfs/PSPBlog_ToledoSolution.jpg?width=200&height=267&name=PSPBlog_ToledoSolution.jpg)After evaluating the problem, Martin Engineering recommended installing air cannons. [Martin](https://www.martin-eng.com/content/product_subcategory/491/air-cannons-products)[® Air](https://www.martin-eng.com/content/product_subcategory/491/air-cannons-products) [Cannons](https://www.martin-eng.com/content/product_subcategory/491/air-cannons-products) provide effective performance by supplying a quiet but powerful discharge of compressed air to dislodge material buildups and enhance the flow of bulk solids. The low maintenance requirements and high-velocity discharge make Martin® air cannons suitable for use on high temperature applications and the most challenging materials.

### Results

![PSPBlogToledo_Results](https://blog.martin-eng.com/hs-fs/hubfs/PSPBlogToledo_Results.jpg?width=185&height=247&name=PSPBlogToledo_Results.jpg)The air cannons [eliminated the blockages](https://foundations.martin-eng.com/learning-center/learning-center/air-cannons). The air cannons successfully prevented the accumulation that impacted the process efficiency and required process interruptions for manual clean out. With the air cannon installed at the slope of the hopper, the material now flows freely through the hopper to the screw feeder. Martin installed a total of 18 air cannons at the plant.

[![Download "Air Cannons 101" E-Book](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/5156573/e4c71e83-cd81-469d-977c-48d24722c56d.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/5156573/e4c71e83-cd81-469d-977c-48d24722c56d)

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