Long-distance conveyance using a pneumatic system

1 Report of the ma-terials to be conveyed

2 The Claudius Peters raw material laboratory

3 Design of the system‘s measuring and control technology

4 Schematic representation of the conveyance

5 Pressure vessel 1

6 Pressure vessel 2

7 The newly developed segmented ball valve

8 Pressure transmitters in the pipe (right-hand margin)

9 External nitrogen accumulators

10 The type EM 17 ball mill used for grinding the coal dust

11 General layout of the plant for which the conveying system is intended

12 Typical long-distance pneumatic conveying system

13 Velocity gradient from the material
infeed point to the receiving silo

14 Pressure gradient over the conveying route. The individual curves represent the pressures from the start of the conveying pipe (PIT 108) up to the receiving silo (PIT 119)

15 The small amount of material deposited on the bottom of the pipe are an indicator of the uniform material conveyance

16 The conveying distance can be shortened by simple reconnection at the pipe bends

The simulated long-distance transport line on the grounds of Claudius Peters

The basis for designing a pneumatic conveying system is precise knowledge of the material to be conveyed. This is gained by means of raw material analyses that determine, for instance, the granulometric distribution, bulk density, moisture content and surface properties. On the basis of the specified system parameters and the determined material data, the process technological designing of the system is carried out, generally using special computing programs.

We are often asked about the physical limits of pneumatic conveying systems. The idea of long-distance pneumatic conveyance over distances of several kilometres is regarded sceptically and there are hardly any systems in existence with conveying distances exceeding 2 km. Within the framework of a project including the pneumatic conveyance of coal dust over a distance of 30 km, Claudius Peters decided to install the world‘s longest test line for pneumatic conveyance, stretching 5.1 km on the premises of the company‘s technical centre. Aside from the challenging nature of the involved process...