Chemical & Pharmaceutical Industry
Continuous Emptying of Stainless Steel Hoppers with Powder – Vibration Prevents Bridging and Ratholing for Consistent Product Flow
In the chemical processing industry, smooth production processes are critical. A customer handling fine, powdery bulk solids faced significant challenges affecting the material flow in a 400-liter stainless steel hopper.
- Irregular material flow caused by build-up, bridging, and ratholing, disrupting the production process
- Material sticking to the hopper walls, leading to product loss and additional cleaning effort
- Undesired mixing of different products or batches, compromising product quality and requiring extensive cleaning
- Manual interventions, such as striking the hopper walls, were ineffective and caused potential damage to the equipment
Our solution
To address these challenges, the customer opted for an innovative solution using a pneumatic interval impactor (PKL). The PKL was installed on the hopper with sequence control: it delivers targeted vibrations to the hopper walls. Regular impact pulses improve material flow, prevent bridging, and keep the hopper walls clean, ensuring batch integrity.
Our advantages
- No residual material left in the hopper
- Maintained batch integrity
- Gentle handling of production material
- Consistently reliable material flow
- Reduced risk of downtime and operational issues
