‘Moving In A New Direction’ – Article Preview

A conveyor is defined as a contrivance for carrying objects from place to place. Conveyor systems are exceptionally versatile, and can be designed to accommodate a wide range of applications and materials to be conveyed. Conveyors range from basic free-rolling mechanical conveyors to complex automated conveyors. Some of the most common types of conveyors include belt conveyors, roller conveyors (free rolling or motor powered), screws/augers, drag conveyors, pneumatic conveyors (pressure or vacuum), robotics, and more.

When choosing an industrial conveyor, several criteria must be considered. The material’s characteristics, such as bulk density, cohesiveness, temperature, moisture content, particle size, degradation, and abrasion are important to review. Other considerations include distance, the volume of material, cross-contamination, power requirements, and space considerations. Creating viable solutions might require additional equipment to integrate the conveyors (i.e. staging and pacing conveyors, surge hoppers, isolation valves, and more).

The following study utilises pneumatic conveying to transfer abrasive products from PD trucks to storage silos and pressure dense phase conveyance from the silo skirts into the packaging area.

In the packaging area, various conveyors, including roller and chain conveyors, fill and transfer 50 lb bags and up to 3000 lb bulk bags.

Case study: The Quartz Corp.

• Product handled: Quartz sand (quartz, mica, feldspar).
• Particle Size: 3 – 240 µm.
• Bulk density: 38.6 – 89.5 PCF.
• Bag type & capacity: 50 lb valve bags on the Model A valve bag, 1000 lb and 2000 lb bulk bags on the IBC3000 bulk bag loading station.
• Dense phase convey rate: 36 000 lb/hr.
• Plant location: North Carolina.

Application summary

The Quartz Corp. is a key supplier of high-purity quartz sand and several different purities for the solar, semiconductor, and fibre optic markets. Though headquartered in Oslo, Norway, the company’s quartz is sourced in Spruce Pine, North Carolina, a 3.9 square mile town nestled in the Appalachian Mountains, 2559 ft above sea level. Spruce Pine’s unique geology presents the world’s highest purity quartz deposits mined from a mountainside.

The Quartz Corp. was already producing 50 lb bags and bulk bags at a nearby facility. Yet, market demand for this quartz sand skyrocketed so high that, with the current rates the company was yielding, it could not keep up. The Spruce Pine location became a new production facility in an existing building that The Quartz Corp. acquired to produce much more of this valuable commodity.

This is a preview of an article that was originally published in the Winter 2022 issue of Dry Bulk Magazine. The full version can be read here.

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Read the article online at: https://www.drybulkmagazine.com/material-handling/28122022/moving-in-a-new-direction-article-preview/