Gas turbine filter media for air intakes

Start with the site

Gas turbines run power stations, drive compressors and pumps on oil and gas sites, and power ships and offshore platforms. The site decides what the intake filters must deal with, and so which medium makes sense.

• Desert and dry inland sites: heavy, fine dust and sand. Filters load quickly, so dust-holding capacity and cleanability matter most.
• Coastal and offshore sites: salt in the air and high humidity.
• Humid and tropical sites: fog and rain. A wet medium can lose strength or raise its pressure drop.
• Industrial and urban sites: fine particles and pollution that foul compressor blades over time.

Name the filter stage

Most intake systems use several stages, and media is bought for one stage at a time.

• Pre-filters: pads, panels or bags that catch coarse dust and protect the next stage. Synthetic media is common here because it is light, strong and holds a lot of dust.
• Final or high-efficiency filters: pleated panels or compact filters for fine particles, often in composite media, where a fine layer gives the efficiency and a stronger carrier gives the strength.
• Self-cleaning (pulse-jet) cartridges: cleaned by short blasts of compressed air, widely used at dusty sites. The medium must release its dust cake cleanly and stand up to repeated pulses. Cellulose and cellulose-synthetic blends are a common choice.

Cellulose, synthetic or composite?

Cellulose media is economical, pleats well and holds dust well; its weak point is moisture, unless it is treated or blended. Synthetic media is stronger and is not weakened by water, so it suits humid sites, pre-filters and bags. Composite media combines layers, for example a fine meltblown or fine-fibre layer on a stronger carrier, to raise efficiency without giving up too much dust-holding or strength.

There is no single best medium. The choice depends on the stage, the site, the service interval the operator expects and the cost per filter. We make cellulose, synthetic and composite media; we do not make glass-fibre media.

Made to order, tested in your filter

We do not sell standard stock grades. Each medium is made to your specification. If you do not have every number yet, describe the finished filter and the site, and we will propose a starting medium for trials. Test samples in finished, pleated filters on your own rig, check them damp for humid and coastal sites, run long pulse series for cartridges, and compare samples from more than one roll.