Pneumatic Conveying Systems Home Bateman Engineering NV Pneumatics Track Record Project Management Contact us

Pneumatic Conveying Systems - Track Record

The BATEMAN Pneumo-Drier dries a particulate solid while conveying it. This is achieved simply by introducing the wet
particulate material into a pneumatic-conveying system driven by heated air.

The BATEMAN Pneumo-Drier

• Controls drying - handles moisture levels of up to 25 %, depending upon the nature of the material.
  All parameters are monitored continually to ensure effective and efficient drying.

• Saves cost - a simple, robust system with few components, it replaces the dual systems used
  currently to dry and transport the material.

• Enhances security - securely encloses the material being conveyed from time of entry until delivery.

• Is compact and flexible - requires far less headroom than existing systems, whether it is a new or
  replacement system.

• Is environmentally friendly - completely encloses the conveyed product, thus preventing contamination
  of either the product or the surrounds.

• Has optimum availability - requires minimal maintenance.

• Specifications - the Pneumo-Drier can convey up to 20 tonne/h and, depending on the thermal
  properties of the material, will dry at up to 350° C.

Pneumo-Drier installed at Anglo Platinum mine

The BATEMAN Pneumo-Drier system installed recently at an Anglo Platinum mine near Rustenburg is
the first full scale plant to be used in the platinum industry to simultaneously convey and dry particulate
solids. With a total conveying capacity of 96 t/h it is, to date, the largest Pneumo-Drier system to be
supplied by BATEMAN.

The order for the system was placed by Hatch Africa Project Managers following a successful pilot plant trial
at another site. The system comprises two separate trains, each feeding 48 t/h of material to the
converter-slag and the furnace-matte plants. Each train contains two parallel BATEMAN Pneumo-Driers
with a capacity of 24 t/h. With parallel units, production losses will be minimised if either one fails.
Approximately 4 MW of installed power is used to reduce the moisture content of the 96 t/h feed of
platinum matte and slag from 15 % to zero.

The BATEMAN Pneumo-Drier dries a wet particulate solid while conveying it along a pneumatic-conveying
system driven by air heated up to 350°C, depending upon the properties of the solid. The material is
enclosed from the time of entry until rapid delivery, with few handling stages, enhancing product security
and preventing contamination of either the product or the surrounds.

A Roots-type positive displacement blower with variable speed drive propels the conveying / drying air
into the inline heater (electrical or heat exchanger) and to the feeding tee. A small amount of blower
discharge air is bled off to the feeder sub-system, to protect the rubber pinch valves and compensators
from over heating, and then re-enters the system via the feeding tee.

The wet material from the dewatering bins is discharged into the Pneumo-Drier through twin vertical-surge
hoppers mounted on load cells that interlock with pneumatically-actuated pinch valves. This arrangement
provides the necessary airlock between system overpressure and ambient conditions. A vibrating-tube
feeder then batch-feeds the material through the feeding tee into the conveyor pipe where it is dried while
being transported to the knockout bin, where it cools as it free-falls in a large volume of low velocity
secondary (ambient) air. The latter is extracted from the bin into either a dust-filtration system or wet /
dry-scrubber system, while the dry material is conveyed pneumatically to the storage silos.

Used predominantly in the diamond industry to handle kimberlite (diamondiferous ore), alluvial diamond
ore and marine silica, the BATEMAN Pneumo Drier has also successfully conveyed and dried other
materials such as coal, foundry sands, salt and crushed rubber.

In many instances it has replaced traditional rotary, infrared and fluidised-bed driers because of its
capital, operating-cost and downtime advantages. It is simple, robust and compact, requiring less
headroom than conventional drying systems. The flexibility of the pipe routing allows for easy retrofitting
into the existing establishments. Continuous on-line temperature monitoring and accurate product
dosage maintain system efficiency.

BATEMAN has recently supplied several systems for conveying diamonds and diamondiferous concentrate to
mines in Botswana. At Jwaneng Diamond Mine two Pneumo-driers have been installed to handle wet recovery
concentrate at a rate of 20 tonne/h and bulk sampling concentrate at a rate of 1 tonne/h.

Material containing 10 % moisture is fed via tubular feeders and in-line heaters of propriety design into
these Pneumo-driers. The conveyors are designed for optimum product drying within the conveying lines
and ensure trouble-free storage and discharge. This has been proven to be by far the most efficient product
drying process and is unique in that it permits the possibility of drying a particulate material while it is being
conveyed.

Two positive pressure pneumatic conveying systems have also been supplied to Jwaneng for handling X-ray
machine waste discharge and sort-house products. BATEMAN's long involvement in the diamond industry
has enabled it to optimise this type of conveying system.

At Orapa Diamond Mine, some 400km north of Jwaneng, BATEMAN's expertise in turnkey-engineered
vacuum conveying systems can be seen in two such applications which handle incoming plant concentrate.
The advantage of this type of system is its simplicity and reduced operator involvement.

For the past decade BATEMAN has successfully applied its in-house pneumatic conveying technology to
diamondiferous materials and has installed systems throughout sub-Sarahan Africa and as far afield as
Canada. This in-house expertise covers both positive and negative pressure pneumatic conveying as well
as the patented Pneumo-drier; more than ten of the latter installations are already operating successfully in
the diamond processing industry.

Dilute-phase pneumatic conveying

Pressure and vacuum systems

BATEMAN systems collect and discharge granular material from one or many points and are particularly
economic and efficient for conveying relatively low tonnages over short routes.

• Use pressure systems for multi-discharge point-transfer systems.
• Use vacuum systems for multi-collection point-transfer systems.
• Convey food, plastics, chemicals, powders, wood chip, sawdust, tobacco, cement, scrap metal, ores, etc.

BATEMAN dilute-phase conveyors

• Are hygienic - vital for food products.
• Have optimum availability - require minimal maintenance.
• Specifications:
  • throughputs from a few kilogrammes per hour to over 50 tonne/h
  • handle particle sizes from 1 mm to 40 mm
  • conveying routes may be horizontal, vertical and tortuous, from a few metres to
    over 200 m
  • the propelling force is provided by Roots-type blowers;
    • pressure systems typically use a maximum pressure of 60 kPa (g)
    • vacuum systems typically use a maximum vacuum of -40 kPa (g)

Dilute-phase pneumatic conveying - Track Record

Cyclonaire acknowledges successful pneumatic-conveying partnership

BATEMAN has been awarded a “5-year dedicated service” award by Cyclonaire of the United States
in honour of its successful relationship with the company as a licensee for Southern Africa for
Cyclonaire’s range of pneumatic-conveying and materials-handling systems.

Since it was appointed licensee in 1997, BATEMAN has successfully installed Cyclonaire’s range of
pneumatic-conveying technologies in numerous systems in the iron and steel, detergent, and minerals
and mining industries. The range, which covers dense-, semi-dense- and dilute-phase pneumatic
conveying, also has application in many other industries, such as cement and food, where innovative
solutions are required for moving powdered, granular or pellet- like materials.

One of the most efficient conveying methods, dense-phase pneumatic conveying is the optimal solution
in applications where high transfer rates of difficult-to-handle abrasive or friable materials are required.
Cyclonaire’s gravity and vacuum loaded units, with both top and bottom discharge, handle either aeratable
or non-aeratable materials. Consumption of air is low and may obviate the need for a dedicated compressor.
Conveying capacities range from 1 to about 400 t/h over distances up to 750 m, depending on the properties
of the conveyed material.

Semi-dense-phase pneumatic conveying is ideal for handling abrasive materials such as cement and
friable materials like plastic pellets, with typical applications including railcar and road vehicle unloading,
fully integrated bulk container and bulk bag handling, and the reclaiming of high- temperature dust.
Cyclonaire’s semi- dense ‘suck-and-blow’ systems require a conveying-air pressure of only 100 kPa (g),
making them particularly economical, while the Venturi vacuum-induction loading models provide conveying
capacities up to 80 t/h.

Dilute-phase pneumatic conveying is suitable when continuous conveying is required and product
degradation and abrasive wear are not limiting factors. It is ideally suited to free-flowing powders,
granules (typically up to 60 mm) or smaller pellets. Custom-engineered solutions and a complete
range of off-the-shelf equipment for this method of conveying are available, including rotary valves,
pressure and vacuum pumps, filter receivers and dust- collection equipment.

Demonstrations of product conveying can be arranged at BATEMAN’s pneumatic-conveying test plant
in Johannesburg to ensure that the correct equipment is selected. Tests can also be carried out in the
Cyclonaire facility abroad.

Medium-phase systems

These systems provide the optimum solution for the medium-rate transfer of aeratable abrasive or
friable materials.

• Specifications:
  • capacities of up to 80 tonne/h are possible through various modes of loading and unloading
  • air is delivered via a Roots-type blower at pressures up to 120 kPa (g).

Boosted dense-phase systems

These systems utilise the low-velocity and high-pressure conditions ideal for the high-rate conveying of
aeratable or non-aeratable abrasive or friable powdered materials.

BATEMAN boosted dense-phase pneumatic conveyors

• Minimise pipeline wear
  - due to the ultra-low conveying velocities.

• Specifications:

  • capacities of a few tonne/h to more than 400 tonne/h can be achieved through either top
    discharge or bottom discharge conveyor vessels

  • distances of up to 2 kilometres can be achieved utilising the 'Cyclonaire' injector technology

  • the motive force is a high-pressure, low-volume air supply. Pressures are typically in the range
    of 100 kPa up to 600 kPa.

Cyclonaire Injectors

Injectors are fitted to BATEMAN dense-phase pneumatic-conveying systems handling powdered materials
which tend to pack under pressure. The small particle size of powdered material usually prevents any air
from flowing through slugs of such a material in the pipeline.

When the length of a 'non-porous' slug becomes too long, the friction against the pipe wall becomes greater
than the available force (pressure) pushing it along the pipe. At this point the slug becomes a plug and
blocks the pipe.

The injectors control slug lengths in the pipe, preventing blockages and making it possible to re-start the
flow of material when the line is full. They are typically set up to operate at 120 kPa above the conveying-line
pressure.

BATEMAN BATCAT - Capsule-carrier conveying systems

BATEMAN's high-security capsule / tube-mail system gently transports valuable and friable materials.
Use the BATCAT to transport diamonds, diamond and precious metal concentrates, pharmaceuticals,
chemical products and other precious materials.

The BATEMAN BATCAT

• Has high levels of security:
  
  
  • no direct personnel access to transported material during commissioning, operation or
    maintenance
  • fully automated, remotely-controlled system, robust and tamper resistant
  • self-cleaning operation, with no material hang-up or spillage at transfer points.
    
    
• Transports gently and caringly:
  
  
  • minimal inter-particle abrasion or impact during encapsulated point-to-point transport
  • gravity drops of no more than 100 mm at transfer points.
    
    
• Is versatile - adaptable to virtually any project size.

 

More information can be obtained on the main
BATEMAN Engineering NV Website:

<< Pneumatic Conveying Systems Home | BATEMAN Engineering NV | Pneumatics | Project Management | Contact us

| Google | Yahoo | MSN | Ananzi | Alltheweb |

© Copyright BATEMAN Engineering NV