Powder material transportation is an important part of industrial production. The selection of the powder material transportation system is closely related to the safety and economy of industrial production. In the past, for the long-distance transportation of powder materials in industrial production, pneumatic conveyors were mainly used. With the continuous development of technology, Tubular Chain Conveyors were produced and are increasingly widely used in industrial powder material transportation. What are the specific differences between these two powder material transportation systems? Let's have a preliminary understanding.
Comparison Of The Principles Of Two Powder Material Conveying Systems
Tubular Chain Conveyors
Tubular chain conveyors are continuous conveying equipment for powder materials. This equipment performs well in terms of conveying quality and safety. Its application in the powder material conveying field in China is becoming increasingly widespread. The principle of this equipment is that within a well-sealed pipeline, the chain pieces serve as the transmission components to drive the powder materials to move along the conveying pipeline. If the internal friction force between the powder materials and the internal friction force between the materials and the conveying pipeline are relatively large, the powder materials will gradually move along the transmission chain pieces and eventually form some relatively stable flow of materials.
During the vertical transportation process, the powder inside the conveying channel will be pushed upward by the transmission chain plates. Since the lower layer of powder will bear the downward force of the upper layer of powder, a certain lateral pressure will be generated, which in turn causes an increase in the internal friction force of the powder. If the internal friction force is greater than the weight of the powder itself and the external friction force, the material will gradually move upward along the transmission chain plates, eventually forming a relatively stable material conveying flow.
Pneumatic Conveyor
The operation of the pneumatic conveying device mainly utilizes air dynamic pressure and static pressure, enabling the powder to be conveyed along the pipeline through the air flow. Pneumatic conveying differs significantly from traditional single-phase liquid or gas conveyance. During the pneumatic conveying process, the mixture of gas and powder is mainly conveyed. Generally, air is chosen as the conveying gas. However, if the powder being conveyed has the risk of dust explosion or reacts with air, inert gas should be selected to convey the powder to avoid contact between air and the conveyed powder. This not only ensures the stability of the powder quality but also enhances the safety of industrial production.
Take the raw material of terephthalic acid as an example. It has the risk of dust explosion. When in contact with air, it is prone to cause a dust explosion. Therefore, during the transportation process, nitrogen should be selected as the transportation gas to fundamentally reduce safety hazards.
Comparison Of The Advantages Of Two Powder Material Conveying Systems
Tubular Chain Conveyors
- The system is fully enclosed and has excellent sealing performance. Since the tubular chain conveyor is a segmented assembly of a circular tube structure, it is easy to seal and has extremely good sealing performance, achieving a complete sealing effect.
- The structure is compact and the conveying efficiency is high. Due to the special structure of the internal conveying part, during the conveying process, the material sedimentation is very small. The conveying efficiency is relatively high.
- The layout is flexible and installation is convenient. Since the structure of the tubular chain conveyor is in the form of a tube, it can be designed according to the user's needs at the existing site or at the original factory, and can fully meet the usage requirements in various occasions.
- The maintenance rate is low and installation is convenient. Due to the simple and reliable internal structure of the tubular chain conveyor, and the internal structure part being processed by specialized techniques, the maintenance rate is extremely low, greatly increasing the service life.
Pneumatic Conveyor
- The equipment is simple in structure, easy to install, has low control costs, and short construction time. The main components of the pneumatic conveyor are all welded structures made of profile steel plates. They are composed of pipe and tank-shaped components. There is no relative motion between the components, and maintenance operations are relatively easy. It is very easy to achieve automatic operation.
- The conveying efficiency is high, and the equipment has no return transportation. Other transportation tools have the disadvantage of returning by empty mode. However, the transportation medium of pneumatic conveying is air. It only needs to be discharged into the atmosphere at the terminal, and during the conveying process, the feeding port can continuously add materials to achieve continuous conveying.
- The labor and hygiene conditions are good. During pneumatic conveying, the materials run in the pipe, and the pipe is under negative pressure. The dust will not be leaked and fly around. The materials will not fly and contaminate the environment.
- The conveying pipeline of pneumatic conveying is convenient to be set up in a network according to local conditions. The layout is simple and flexible, and it can fully utilize the workshop area, making it easy to adapt to the workshop environment.
Comparison Of The Applications Of Two Powder Material Conveying Systems
In recent years, tubular chain conveyors have been widely applied in industries such as PTA. Currently, they are mainly used in the transportation of powders and granules with small flow and good fluidity. The Tubular Drag Chain Conveyors are equipped with mechanisms such as chains, conveying discs, and corner sprockets. In recent years, many research results have emerged regarding the conveying discs, chains, and automatic tensioners, which have solved some problems in the manufacturing and use of Tubular Drag Conveyors, facilitating their promotion and application.
Positive pressure pneumatic conveying equipment was previously widely used in the ash transportation systems of power plants. Its features such as sealed transportation and ease of layout, as well as the recent national requirements for environmental protection, have led to its gradual promotion and application in the chemical industry. There are already many application examples in the transportation of polyolefin powders and other fields.
The two types of powder particle conveying equipment each have their own advantages and disadvantages. There are significant differences in terms of energy consumption, conveying capacity, equipment layout, and applicable types. When selecting a powder particle conveying equipment, it is necessary to take into account the performance of all aspects, not only considering the physical and chemical properties of the materials, but also meeting the conveying capacity and index requirements of actual production.
If you have any questions regarding the selection, principle compatibility, and application matching of tubular cable conveyors and pneumatic conveying systems, or if you want to obtain personalized conveying system selection suggestions based on your own powder material transportation requirements (such as material properties, transportation distance, environmental protection requirements, etc.), please feel free to contact us at any time.
