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Smart Industry article 5/6: dense phase transport optimized
Smart Industry article 5/6: dense phase transport optimized
In Smart Industry's article (5/6), Melvin van der Hilst shares his knowledge about dense-phase transport and Dinnissen's approach to projects involving pneumatic transport.
He talks about the D-Innocenter, where we do our in-house testing, and about the benefits of dense-phase transport systems. The biggest advantage? Less productdamage. Read the article below.
Don't work harder, work smarter. That's the motto at Dinnissen. Because also when conveying bulk goods, there's an ever increasing need for ‘greater precision’ and ‘maximum hygiene’. One of the most common techniques used to transport bulk goods pneumatically is using air or gas by means of either negative or positive pressure: known as dense phase conveying.
We can perform every possible conveying test in our D-Innocenter. Our focus is on getting it right first time.”
With dense phase conveying you transport a large quantity of product with relatively little air. This is done at lower speeds than with conventional conveying methods. Project manager Melvin van der Hilst graduated on the subject of pneumatic conveying and has been working at Dinnissen for twelve years now. “The biggest advantage of dense phase conveying? Less product damage. There is also an energy advantage; you can bridge longer distances at lower air and gas consumption levels. The next step we are currently working on is to make use of smart systems in order to easily set and adjust variable distances.”
Conveying tests
The system is tested on a daily basis at Dinnissen. “We can test everything in relation to our customers' products. That's necessary, too, because every powder behaves differently and has different properties. With our powder tester we can carry out shear tests to determine the product characteristics. We can also perform every possible conveying test in our D-Innocenter, thus reducing the chance of any issues on site at the customer. Our focus is on getting it right first time.”
Solve issues on the spot
Dinnissen can remotely connect to the customer's system and monitor the controls. If necessary, an expert visits the customer in person to find a solution locally. Quick response times and a flexible attitude are essential in doing this successfully. Take a project in Uruguay that was completed in early 2020. “We came up with a system that eliminates the need for locks. The dosing takes place using a Dinnissen Feeder Valve that we normally use for weighing purposes. After some figuring out and measuring, we made the conveying work in such a way that we no longer need a lock. The main benefit of this is that there is no metal-to-metal contact.”
Improving
The Project manager emphasizes that every project is different and always requires customization. “A basic pneumatic transport system is usually a good solution, but we always try to see if and how it can be done even smarter. For such improvements, we need the entire chain within our company to make a project a success. ”
