Dual-motor sootblower

Abstract

A sootblower to project a blowing medium into a boiler is disclosed herein. The sootblower includes a hub, a first motor, a second motor, a gear train, and a drive shaft. The hub comprises a first end to receive a lance and a second end to receive the blowing medium. Further, the gear train is configured to convert rotation of the first motor into rotation of the lance, and the drive shaft is configured to convert bidirectional rotation of the second motor into translational motion of the lance.

1 . A sootblower used to project a blowing medium, the sootblower comprising:
 a hub comprising a first end to receive a lance and a second end to receive the blowing medium;   a first motor;   a second motor;   a gear train configured to convert rotation of the first motor into rotation of the lance; and   a drive shaft configured to convert bidirectional rotation of the second motor into translational motion of the lance.   
   
   
       2 . The sootblower of  claim 1 :
 wherein the gear train comprises a first spur gear, a second spur gear, and a bevel gear;   wherein the first motor is configured to provide rotation to a first spur gear;   wherein the first spur gear is configured to provide rotation to the second spur gear;   wherein the second spur gear is configured to provide rotation to a bevel gear; and   wherein the bevel gear is configured to provide rotation to the lance.   
   
   
       3 . The sootblower of  claim 2 , wherein the second spur gear is attached to the bevel gear to provide rotation from the second spur gear to the bevel gear. 
   
   
       4 . The sootblower of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a first worm gear disposed about the drive shaft and a second worm gear attached to the drive shaft;   wherein the first motor is configured to provide rotation to a first worm engaging the first worm gear, thereby providing rotation to the gear train; and   wherein the second motor is configured to provide bidirectional rotation to a second worm engaging the second worm gear, thereby providing bidirectional rotation to the drive shaft.   
   
   
       5 . The sootblower of  claim 1 , wherein the hub connects the lance to a feed line supplying the blowing medium to the sootblower. 
   
   
       6 . The sootblower of  claim 1 , further comprising a housing to contain the hub, the gear train, and the drive shaft. 
   
   
       7 . The sootblower of  claim 6 , further comprising a lubricant disposed within the housing. 
   
   
       8 . The sootblower of  claim 7 , wherein the lubricant comprises synthetic oil. 
   
   
       9 . The sootblower of  claim 1 , wherein the lance is positioned substantially on a vertical centerline of the housing. 
   
   
       10 . The sootblower of  claim 1 , further comprising pinion gears attached to the drive shaft, wherein the pinion gears are configured to engage a rack to provide translational motion for the sootblower. 
   
   
       11 . The sootblower of  claim 1 , wherein the blowing medium is steam. 
   
   
       12 . The sootblower of  claim 1 , wherein the lance comprises a venturi nozzle to emit the blowing medium. 
   
   
       13 . A sootblower to project a blowing medium into a boiler, the sootblower comprising:
 a first motor and a second motor;   a drive assembly configured to convert rotation from the first motor into rotation of a lance; and   a drive shaft configured to convert bidirectional rotation from the second motor into bidirectional translational motion of the lance;   wherein the drive assembly comprises a gear train having a first spur gear, a second spur gear, and a bevel gear;   wherein the first motor is configured to provide rotation to the first spur gear;   wherein the first spur gear is configured to provide rotation to the second spur gear;   wherein the second spur gear is configured to provide rotation to the bevel gear; and   wherein the bevel gear is configured to provide rotation to the lance.   
   
   
       14 . The sootblower of  claim 13 , wherein the second spur gear is attached to the bevel gear to provide rotation from the second spur gear to the bevel gear. 
   
   
       15 . The sootblower of  claim 13 , further comprising:
 a first worm gear disposed about the drive shaft and a second worm gear attached to the drive shaft;   wherein the first motor is configured to provide rotation to a first worm engaging the first worm gear, thereby providing rotation to the gear train; and   wherein the second motor is configured to provide bidirectional rotation to a second worm engaging the second worm gear, thereby providing bidirectional rotation to the drive shaft.   
   
   
       16 . The sootblower of  claim 13 , wherein a first end of the lance is configured to be received by a hub and a second end of the lance is configured to project the blowing medium. 
   
   
       17 . The sootblower of  claim 13 , wherein the drive assembly and the drive shaft are disposed within a housing. 
   
   
       18 . The sootblower of  claim 17 , further comprising rollers rotatably attached to a housing and configured to travel along tracks. 
   
   
       19 . A method for cleaning a boiler using a sootblower in accordance with  claim 1 . 
   
   
       20 . A method for cleaning a boiler using a sootblower in accordance with  claim 13 .