Optimization of Electrostatic Precipitator Parameters Using the Taguchi Method

Electrostatic precipitators (ESPs) are widely used for particulate control in industrial gas-cleaning systems, and their collection performance is influenced by applied voltage, volumetric gas flow rate and particle size.The present Phase-I study investigates these three parameters using a Taguchi L9 orthogonal array together with a literature-supported analytical collection model.The selected levels are 6, 9 and 12 kV for applied voltage, 0.05, 0.10 and 0.15 m³/s for volumetric gas flow rate, and 2.5, 4 and 10 µm for particle size.The collection efficiency for each of the nine trials is calculated using the Deutsch-Anderson equation.A collecting area of 0.06 m² is adopted from a published wire-plate ESP geometry, while the effective particle migration velocity is estimated using the explicit screening relationship adopted for this Phase-I analytical study.The resulting responses are evaluated using the larger-the-better signal-to-noise ratio, response-level averages and ANOVA.The analysis identifies 12 kV applied voltage, 0.05 m³/s gas flow rate and 2.5 µm particle size as the optimum combination within the selected levels.Particle size is ranked as the most influential factor, followed by gas flow rate and applied voltage.The present work therefore provides a quantitative baseline for ESP parameter optimization without claiming CFD simulation or experimental testing.In Phase-II, the optimized condition will be taken forward for higher-fidelity numerical and/or experimental validation, with additional parameters such as electrode spacing, discharge-electrode geometry, corona current, gas temperature and particle properties considered to improve the predictive capability and practical applicability of the ESP performance assessment.