Zinc Concentrate Bagging Bin
This is an example of a bagging bin designed specifically to handle difficult flowing cohesive materials such as zinc concentrate and cobalt hydroxide filter cake.
Why Conventional Bagging Hoppers Suffer from Chronic Plugging and Inconsistent Discharge
Standard bagging bins use small or narrow hoppers discharged using a range of feeders include screw feeders, vibratory feeders, and rotary feeders.
In summary, standard bagging systems suffer from chronic plugging when handling difficult flowing cohesive materials for two reasons: 1) incorrect bin geometry, including poor choice of bin shape, too small openings, and improper choice of sloping wall angles; and 2) the feeder behavior promotes a funnel flow discharge pattern. Funnel flow (which is a first-in, last-out discharge pattern) can be made to work with large bins with large discharge outlets. However, when the discharge outlet is small, gravity is insufficient to overcome the strength of the bulk solid at the discharge outlet, and hence chronic bridging and rat-holing is expected.
Kamengo’s Solution
The solution to a reliable bagging bin that is capable of handling difficult flowing cohesive materials has two parts. The first half of the solution is to choose a bin with correct geometry. Kamengo typically recommends a plane flow hopper shape with a wide and long discharge opening. A plane flow hopper only converges in one plane at a time, and is vertical in the opposite plane. The plane flow hopper is the most conservative hopper shape. The purpose of using a conservative bin shape with a long and wide discharge outlet is to employ a geometry where if the Feeder were removed, the entire bin would self-empty with gravity in a mass flow or first-in, first-out discharge pattern.
The second half of the solution is to pair the plane flow hopper with a fully effective feeder such as a Kamengo Feeder. A fully effective feeder is one that withdraws material evenly from its entire opening, which by definition is necessary to actually achieve a mass flow discharge pattern in the hopper, which is necessary when handling a difficult flowing, cohesive bulk solid.
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To learn more about the physics of storage bin and feeder design as well as the root causes of bin plugging, please visit KamengoU.
Crushed Glass Metering Bin
This is an example of a small metering hopper designed to handle crushed glass.
Why Conventional Equipment Often Suffer from Chronic Plugging and Inconsistent Discharge
Typical metering hoppers handling crushed glass use a pyramid hopper that converge to a small opening that is discharged using a screw feeder.
In summary, a pyramid hopper with a small opening is typically a poor choice of bin shape for handling difficult flowing materials. The bin shape promotes a funnel flow discharge pattern. Funnel flow (which is a first-in, last-out discharge pattern) can be made to work with large bins with large discharge outlets. However, when the discharge outlet is small, gravity is insufficient to overcome the strength of the bulk solid at the discharge outlet, and hence chronic bridging and rat-holing is expected.
In addition, the pyramid hopper is discharged by a feeder that preferentially withdraws material from the hopper outlet, which again, promotes a funnel flow discharge pattern.
Kamengo’s Solution
The solution to a reliable crushed glass metering hopper has two parts.
The first half of the solution is to choose a conservative hopper shape. Kamengo prefers using a plane flow hopper with a wide and long discharge opening. A plane flow hopper only converges in one plane at a time, and is vertical in the opposite plane. The purpose of using a conservative bin shape with a long and wide discharge outlet is to employ a geometry where if the Feeder were removed, the entire bin would self-empty with gravity in a mass flow or first-in, first-out discharge pattern.
The second half of the solution is to pair the plane flow hopper with a fully-effective feeder – that is a feeder that withdraws material evenly from its entire infeed opening. By definition, to achieve mass flow, where the stored material comes down as a single body, the feeder must withdraw material evenly from its entire opening. If the Feeder withdraws material selectively from the bin discharge outlet, sections of material in the bin will be stagnant and funnel flow will ensue.
A great example of a fully-effective feeder is the Kamengo Feeder. In addition to being fully-effective, the Feeder offers consistent metering, and can be made as wide as needed and as long as wanted. As a result, the Kamengo Feeder offers valuable advantages when designing for a difficult flowing material.
Learn More
To learn more about the physics of storage bin and feeder design as well as the root causes of bin plugging, please download our white paper entitled: The Design of Reliable Storage Bins and Feeders for the Recycling Industry.
Construction & Demolition Debris Truck Load-Out Bin
This is an example of a tall 30,000 cu-ft (825 cu-m) truck load out storage bin designed to handle construction and demolition wood waste and other difficult flowing fibrous materials.
Why the Material is Challenging
Processed construction and demolition wood waste gains strength very quickly when it is subject to compaction, including compaction under its own weight in a storage bin. When processed C&D wood waste compacts it gains shear strength very quickly. Compact C&D wood waste enough and you will form bricks that have the strength of a cement block. It is this strength that enables the material to bridge over wide openings.
Processed construction and demolition wood waste is a relatively low-density material, and this means that the force supplied by gravity to keep the material moving is less relative to other bulk solids. With gravity being the primary force for emptying the storage bin, it is easy to design a storage and feed system where the strength that C&D wood waste gains under compaction exceeds what gravity can break. These storage bins suffer from erratic discharge and/or chronic plugging.
Processed construction and demolition wood waste is a highly variable material. It can be stringy and have long sticks. A conservative design includes using a wide and long bin opening, steep and lined bin sloping walls, and using a feeder that pulls evenly from the entire opening of the storage bin.
Why Conventional Storage and Feed Solutions Often Suffer from Chronic Bridging and Inconsistent Discharge
Standard truck load out bins use clam shell gates to control discharge. The problem is that when the clam shell is partially open, a funnel flow discharge pattern is induced, which introduces a high risk of bridging and rat-holing. Further, there is little control in how the truck is filled and the loads that are transferred to the truck.
Kamengo’s Solution
The solution to a reliable C&D waste truck load out bin that provides a controlled discharge of material has two parts.
The first half of the solution is to use a plane flow hopper shape with a wide and long discharge opening. A plane flow hopper only converges in one plane at a time, and is vertical in the opposite plane. The plane flow hopper is the most conservative hopper shape. The purpose of using a conservative bin shape with a long and wide discharge outlet is to employ a geometry where if the Feeder were removed, the entire bin would self-empty with gravity in a mass flow or first-in, first-out discharge pattern.
The second half of the solution is to pair the plane flow hopper with a fully-effective feeder, which withdraws material evenly from its entire opening. A fully effective feeder is, by definition, necessary to actually achieve a mass flow discharge pattern in the hopper, which is necessary when handling a difficult flowing fibrous bulk solid.
Kamengo’s proposal is to use a plane flow shaped truck load-out storage bin with a vertical section and roof to provide up to 30,000 cu-ft (825 cu-m) of live storage. The storage bin has steep sloping walls, and each sloping wall is lined with a single seamless sheet of UHMW. The storage bin has a wide and long 6-foot by 24-foot opening, which is necessary to overcome the bridging dimension of C&D waste.
The storage bin is paired with a Kamengo Feeder. The Kamengo Feeder is capable of filling a range of truck beds. Of critical importance, the Kamengo Feeder withdraws material evenly across both its entire length and width. The result is that the stored material is withdrawn evenly from the full discharge outlet of the truck load out bin. An even withdrawal of material is absolutely required to achieve a first-in, first-out discharge. The Kamengo supplied PLC has a user interface where the truck driver selects their truck-type and is given instructions on starting the loading procedure. Based on the truck type, the Kamengo Feeder, which delivers a consistent, predictable volumetric discharge, will deliver the volume desired for the chosen trailer type.
Learn More
To learn more about the physics of storage bin and feeder design as well as the root causes of bin plugging, please download our white paper entitled: The Design of Reliable Storage Bins and Feeders for the Biomass Industry.