1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to rotary regenerative heat exchange apparatus in which a mass of heat absorbent material commonly comprised of packed element plates is positioned in a passageway for hot gas to absorb heat from the hot gases passing therethrough. After the plates become heated by the hot gas they are moved to a cool air passageway where the heated plates transmit their heat to the cooler air. The heat absorbent material is commonly carried in open-ended baskets which are in turn carried in the rotatable rotor. To prevent mixing of the gas and air, opposite end edges of the rotor are provided with apertured sector plates that direct independent streams of gas and air through the rotor while axial sealing plates lying in the annular space between the rotor and the rotor housing preclude circumferential flow of fluid around the rotor.
The rotor is turned about its axis by an annular driving gear that extends around the rotor and is driven by a suitable prime mover. The annular driving gear presents an irregular surface that defines a multiplicity of flow passages through which high pressure fluid may flow to a low pressure zone. As the high pressure fluid with particulate matter entrained therein moves past the irregular surface, a high velocity jet stream is produced with a sandblasting effect that rapidly abrades the adjacent parts of the rotor and the rotor housing, thus producing lowered efficiency and rapid abrasion of the adjacent parts of the rotor.