Ian Frew

Nonintrusive Monitoring of Slug Sequence and Flow Stability in Dense-Phase Pneumatic Conveying

This article presents three sensing methods developed for the nonintrusive monitoring of important flow parameters in dense-phase pneumatic conveying. With the optical measurement system, images of the flow are acquired and an image analysis is used to determine the sequence, length, and velocity of slugs for given materials and operating conditions. The conveying parameters of interest are also monitored with a capacitive sensor by means of exploiting electrical properties of the flowing media. The charge-based measurement system uses a field meter to determine the electric field strength caused by charged particles and provides information about the sequence and regularity of the moving slugs. The noninvasive principle of all three methods avoids concerns about particle contact effects (e.g., wear of the measurement equipment or interference with the flow). All three prototype sensors have been tested under slug flow conditions. A comparison of the three sensing methods against key requirements in pneumatic conveying reveals that capacitive sensing seems to be best suited for reliable flow determination in slug flow.

An experimental investigation into the feed rate capacity of rotary valve and blow tank feeders

Industry widely uses rotary valves and blow tanks for the pneumatic conveying of products, each having their pros and cons depending on the specific application. This article shows the differing results obtained when low-velocity conveying a product through a common pipeline using both a drop-through rotary valve and a bottom-discharge blow tank feeder. A number of issues arise in the rotary valve system, the main one being rotary valve air leakage. A blow tank system, on the other hand, does not leak, as it is an enclosed system. The experimental results show dramatic differences in product throughput. Further exploration leads to a novel modification being made to the rotary valve system in an attempt to increase its capacity. The result of this modification shows a slight increase in output tonnage, but still significantly less than that obtained from the blow tank.