Pneumatic Conveying

CONTACT

Associate Professor Peter Wypych
Centre for Bulk Solids and Particulate Technologies
University of Wollongong
Northfields Avenue
Wollongong, 2522
Australia

PHONE: +61 (0)2 4221 3488 (direct)
PHONE: +61 (0)2 4221 3491 (administration)
FAX: +61 (0)2 4221 4577

PNEUMATIC CONVEYING STAFF

Peter Wypych - Associate Professor
Ian Frew - Senior Technical Officer EMAIL
David Hastie - Professional Officer EMAIL

MODES OF PNEUMATIC CONVEYING (DIAGRAM)

PNEUMATIC CONVEYING IMAGE GALLERY

PNEUMATIC CONVEYING CAPABILITIES (Bulk Solids Handling Laboratory)

• Dilute-phase (suspension) flow of powders and granules (particles up to 50 mm in size).
• Fluidised dense-phase conveying of powders (eg cement, magnesia).
• Low-velocity slug-flow of fragile materials (eg grain, food stuffs, poly pellets).
• Low-velocity plug-flow of fragile/cohesive/sticky materials (eg milk powder, cocoa).
• Bypass dense-phase conveying of fine granular materials (eg alumina, sand).
• Extrusion flow of wet/sticky materials (eg fish chunks or meat lumps in gravy).
• Single-slug dense-phase conveying of coarse/abrasive materials (eg blue metal, diamond ore).

Glass pipeline demonstration facility (200 litre blow tank, 50 mm full-bore air pump, 50 mm ID glass pipeline, demonstrating: dilute-phase and low-velocity conveying; segregation during dilute-phase; flow around bends and up inclines).

Conveying rates range from 1 to 100 t/h.
Conveying distances up to 1.2 km.

Click HERE for a list of equipment present in the Laboratory

RECENT RESEARCH

• Minimum transport velocity for dilute-phase pneumatic conveying
• Pipeline and bend pressure drop (eg continually improving models and procedures for various products and industries)
• Analysis, design and operation of air-jet pump feeders/injectors
• Development of bench-scale experiments and models to predict the pressure drop in low-velocity conveying systems
  

RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT OF NEW TECHNOLOGIES & PROCESSES

• Atomisation and pneumatic conveying of aluminium powder in 1.8 m diameter ducts;
• Bypass dense-phase conveying of alumina and aluminium powder;
• Low-velocity dense-phase conveying of wet explosives through 20 m long hoses;
• Pneumatic injection of -10 mm mill scale into hot metal processes;
• Dense-phase conveying of highly explosible fine powders without using filtration.