Importance

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Abstract

A method and apparatus are provided for handling the exhaust products produced during a treatment process in which treatment fluid is applied to a length of material. Several types of machines used in the textile industry and in the paper industry are operable to apply treatment fluid to a length of material in a treatment process during which exhaust products are created and some of the exhaust products comprise pollutants while other exhaust products are substantially pollutant-free. The present invention provides an exhaust products handling apparatus including an exhaust manifold connected to all the treatment zones of a treatment fluid applying machine, a discharge assembly connected to the exhaust manifold for drawing exhaust products away from the treatment zones, and a selective communicating device for selectively communicating the discharge assembly through the exhaust manifold, with a respective one of at least two different groups of treatment zones. The selective communicating device is movable between a first configuration in which the discharge assembly is communicated with a first group of treatment zones and a second configuration in which the discharge assembly is communicated with a second different group of treatment zones. Accordingly, those exhaust products which are substantially pollutant-free can be routed along one path in which they are directly released to the atmosphere without conditioning while those exhaust products comprising pollutants can be routed along a different path to a reconditioning device which removes or neutralizes pollutants in the exhaust products before releasing the exhaust products to the atmosphere.

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First Claim