Design criteria — Methods for separating the conveyed material from the air (gas)
Building on the information presented in his first and second series of columns, Paul E. Solt -- a private consultant with more than 38 years experience installing and troubleshooting pneumatic conveying systems -- presents a third series of columns discussing design criteria for a pneumatic conveying system. In a separate section, Solt also answers your pneumatic conveying questions.
In this eighth column, we'll look at methods for separating the conveyed material from the air in a pneumatic conveying system. The conveyed material's characteristics and the conveying system type will affect our separation choice. Obviously, a coarse material without any fines is easier to separate than a material containing 1-micron particles. And separation in a vacuum system using a positive displacement blower requires the air to be cleaned to protect the blower's mechanical components.