Performance monitoring of a hydrocyclone based on underflow discharge angle

Abstract

The performance of a hydrocyclone as a separation device is never perfect and rigorous research efforts are still continuing along various directions towards achieving optimum solutions. The modus operandi of performance optimization is important for quick and non-invasive monitoring of hydrocyclone performance. Therefore, in the present study, an application potential of spray angle as a performance monitoring tool has been explored to investigate the operation state of a hydrocyclone. In this context, phenomenological features of spray discharge over a wide range of injection pressure and feed solid concentration have been investigated. The emphasis of the present study is to verse the amendment of the hydrocyclone operational state with the corresponding change in underflow discharge pattern. The pattern of the underflow discharge profile was captured using a digital camera and analyzed based on an image processing algorithm to detect the discharge angle under different operating and design conditions. Stability and reproducibility of the spray angle at fixed operating condition have also been confirmed. Subsequent analysis shows that the spray angle is sensitive to variations of operating and design variables. More specifically the effect of feed slurry concentration has been characterized and is of major importance for the transition to roping. On this basis, an attempt has also been made to develop an empirical correlation based on experimental data. The developed correlation shows that the discharge angle could possibly be used as a reliable tool to monitor hydrocyclone performance.

A combined hydrocyclone - electrocoagulation treatment for different types of industrial wastewater

“…On the other hand, more water going to underflow. This result agrees with the results obtained by other investigators (Ahmed et al, 2009;Dubey et al, 2016;Dueck et al, 2014).…”

Determination of Rare Earth Elements Content in Hard Coal Type 31.1

“…The hydrocyclone (Fig. 6) consists of: a cylindrical part (1), giving the mixture a swirl motion; a conical part (2), where a separation occurs due to different grain sizes; an inlet nozzle (3), introducing the mixture, an overflow nozzle (4), receiving fine grains and an outflow nozzle (5), collecting coarse grains [5,8,18,24].…”

Designing the Spigot Structure of Hydrocyclones to Reduce Fine Particle Misplacement in Underflow

“…Pérez et al [14] researched that the discharge angle of a hydrocyclone was an effective indicator to monitor the separation process, coarse feeding, and high-flow velocity conditions triggered the phenomenon of rope discharge in underflow, which reduced the separation accuracy and was accompanied by low-frequency vibration. Dubey et al [15] combined high-speed photography and numerical simulation to quantify the relationship between the discharge angle and each structural parameter. Su et al [16] reported that the design of a thick-walled, smalldiameter vortex finder promoted the suppression of short-circuit flow, reduced coarse particle enrichment within overflow, and minimized the separation cut size.…”