Particulate Science and Technology, Vol.22, No.2, 119-127, 2004
Industrial multi-plug conveying analysis
Single-plug conveying systems have the advantage of being easy to handle and highly controllable. In industry, however, multi-plug conveying systems are the most common choice due to their high transporting capacity. In order to study a multi-plug industrial conveying system, the systems parameters were varied along with the materials being conveyed. The responses obtained were compared to the single-plug laboratory system, noting differences and similarities. The pneumatic conveying system at an industrial facility consisted of 0.01 m Schedule 10 aluminium pipe, approximately 100 m long. To measure the pressure at different points along the system, a total of seven transducers were installed, four air transducers and three flush transducers. This study also used a high-speed video camera to view the plugs as they passed through the transparent viewing port, providing more detailed information on the multi-plug conveying process. Three materials were tested at different superficial air velocities and solid mass flows. In each experiment all transducers took data with a sample rate of 1,000 Hz, giving a highly detailed overview of the conveying process. The analysis included plug velocity an plug-size with respect to the superficial air velocity. The Mi model for plug-flow pressure drops was found to yield agreement with the data within +/-25%. For this type of industrial operation, this agreement is considered acceptable. The visual observations recorded with the camera showed that there were conditions of stable plug formation as well as varying degrees of plug stability and integrity depending on the operational conditions.