Experimental method for investigating wear of porous thermal insulation systems exposed to realistic, hot, turbulent gas flow

A realistic wear test was developed for porous thermal insulation systems exposed to high temperature turbulent gas flow, because it is essential for the development of existing and new concepts of such insulation and therefore also for the performance of processes that depend on such insulation. Wear is crucial and often dominant for the long-term performance of thermal insulation and, because of the complex nature of insulation wear under exposure of high-temperature turbulent flow, realistic testing capability is a necessary tool for improvement. A test rig was developed to subject fibrous ceramic insulation, the most encountered type of thermal insulation, to conditions representative for in-service use and to enable investigation of the occurring phenomena and behaviour. This rig can accommodate a range of different insulation configurations and is compatible with many turbulent flow sources. This test rig, its components, the experimental procedure, its accuracy and representative results are presented.