Dry bulk pneumatic conveying systems are used to move bulk materials that don’t contain any water, such as talcum powder or plastic pellets, through an enclosed pipeline system.
This system is commonly used in the processing and manufacturing various types of goods, from breakfast cereals to pet kibble. In this quick guide, you’ll find information on how dry bulk pneumatic conveying systems work, the components they use, and the types of materials they convey.
Dry bulk materials are usually unprocessed raw materials that are shipped in large containers to factories or processing sites, where they’re moved to wherever they’re needed through specifically designed systems. Coal, ores, cement powder, and even electronic components are some examples of bulk materials. Conveying these types of materials within processing sites or manufacturing plants requires specialized systems, like pneumatic conveying systems.
Dry bulk pneumatic conveying involves the use of gas (air or nitrogen) to convey granular, powdery, or lumpy materials that don’t contain water. In these systems, gas pressure differential and gas flow are combined to move the materials within the processing area or factory premises.
Moving bulk materials, especially light powdery ones like coffee creamers, is very challenging. Trying to move them using conveyor belts or in batches using large containers isn’t practical as it can become very messy very quickly. This is because, given the composition of the materials, particles can easily be spilled and blown around.
Therefore, powdery bulk materials need to be contained inside pipelines, where air or gas is used as the carrying medium instead of multiple moving parts. This is exactly what dry bulk pneumatic conveying systems do.
Dry bulk handling has several stages, including transporting the material from the source, delivering it to the manufacturing plant, and conveying it through the dry bulk handling system. From there, the bulk materials may either be stored temporarily or directly processed.
Dry bulk pneumatic conveying systems work mainly through the action of gas flow and pressure differential. Put simply, materials are conveyed through the pipelines by the flowing gas, which is made possible by the various components inside the system.
A dry bulk handling system is typically a customized conveying system designed for specific dry bulk materials. Although the design, size, and power may vary, there are four main categories of components in a pneumatic conveying system:
Dry bulk handling is not a one-size-fits-all solution; the system has to be specifically designed for the bulk materials it’s conveying. For example, a dense phase or dilute phase conveying system will each handle different products: while dense phase conveying systems are designed for tightly packed materials, like dog kibble or plastic pellets, dilute phase conveying is used for lighter materials, like talcum powder.
Several considerations have to be factored into the design of a dry bulk handling system, such as:
In order to work in a dry bulk pneumatic conveying system, the materials must either have zero water content or a water content that’s very negligible. Some examples of dry bulk materials include:
Handling these different materials requires special designs and processes. However, some bulk material handling systems may be able to handle similar materials. For example, various types of cereals can be handled by just one system.