Understanding The Function Of Air Slide Conveyor

Posted by Kunal Sutar on September 26th, 2018

Also known as Pneumatic Gravity Conveyor, Air Slides provide some of the most proficient and practical methods of transmission of bulk powder material. All we require is some low pressure air, an ventilation bed and a small incline (gravity) and we can pass on tons of products over lengthy distances.

Air Slide Conveyors are utilized broadly in conveying homogenous dry powder in several industries comprising of minerals and mining where it is made used in fly ash, cement and lime. Further, the food industry also utilizes air slides on flour and various powders in the chemical industry are preferably suited to air slide conveyors.  

Air Slides has no moving parts and are time and again a far better solution in comparison to using belt conveyors, screw conveyors and drag chains.

Learning The Basic Air Slide Conveyor Features

These are some of the vital features of Pneumatic Gravity Conveyor systems which are as follows:

• Typical height and width of the aeration bed of Air Slide section dictates the conveying rate

• Turning box (pots) is utilized to redirect the flow from one direction to another.

• The aeration fabric which is usually woven permeable polyester 

• Blower or Fan to offer the aeration air all the way through the aeration fabric.

• Weir plates which are utilized to regulate the depth of aeration bed.

• Air control valves which can be utilized to regulate the quantity of aeration air being used.

• Inspection ports that offer admission to visually examine inside the air slide conveyor section.

• Dust collection vents to get rid of the spent air that is exhausted from the product during the process of conveying.

• A typical air slide conveyor installation in a cement depot will transmit material from a silo discharge to some distance where it ultimately releases cement through a loading chute into a cement tanker.

• Unlike other conveyors, Pneumatic Gravity Conveyor perforate and install a metal support sheet beneath the aeration fabric that offers steadiness and less movement of the cloth while conveying, that finally will extend the durability of the cloth.

Operating Principle Behind The Air Slide Conveyor System

The principle of operation behind an Air Slide Conveyor is explained below:

The fluidizing air, after transmission via the bed of material sliding over the membrane, runs on top of the bed of material and is released through an appropriate filtration unit.

As the material is well-maintained by way of the regular air flow, it runs liberally down the slope, even when the inclination angle is moderately small.

The quantity of air used is kept to the minimum required to decrease the inter-particle force & the frictional forces between particles and surfaces of the inner channels, adequate to permit the flow of material.

How Are The dimensions Of An Air Slide Conveyor Calculated?

The dimensions of the Air Slide Conveyor comprise of:

• Length

• Width

• Angle of inclination

These dimensions are calculated as follow: 

The width of an Air Slide Conveyorsystem is well calculated based on the power potential and the fabric density of the powder transmitted. 

The angle of inclination might vary conditional on the kind of material being conveyed. It is rooted in the principle that the more fluid the material is, the lesser the Air Slide Conveyoris required to be inclined.

As far as the length of the air slide system is concerned, there is absolutely no limitation to it. 

Pneumatic Gravity ConveyorSystems: The Best Choice Of Industries

Pneumatic Gravity Conveyor system is the best choice of many businesses owing to its:

• Reliability

• Relatively economical nature

• Extremely promising and considerable development potential  

This makes Pneumatic Gravity Conveyor a perfect choice for the following applications:

• Delivery from bucket elevators to storage silos

• Assembling under baghouses / precipitators

• Feed to progression

• Feed to several other conveyors

• Convenient load out from bulk silos to trucks, railcars or barges

• In-plant conveying

• Storage silo or bin removal