Go With the Flow: An Overview of Industrial Hoppers

Res POWERTHERM CONTRACT SERVICES LTD www.powertherm.co.uk Go With the Flow: An Overview of Industrial Hoppers Hoppers are an essential component for material flow and control of bulk material handling. They are important to a number of different industries such as construction, food services and waste disposal. There are different types of hopper for a variety of applications. Sometimes they are required to operate at hot or cold temperatures and can be made more efficient through the implementation of well installed insulation, and in some situations electrical trace heating systems to maintain optimunm temperatures. How does a hopper work? Typically hoppers have a conical or wedge-like shape. The force of gravity moves materials down the bin of the hopper towards the narrow outlet at the bottom. Although relatively simple in function, a lot of complex design and engineering actually goes into making an efficient hopper. The fundamental properties needed to predict the flow behaviour of bulk solids must be determined. These are: Cohesive Strength O Compressibility Internal Friction Wall Friction Permeability Bin Design and Flow Patterns Stagnant Material Mass Flow Funnel Flow Expanded Flow The design of the bin takes into account a number of factors that affect the type of flow patterns that can occur. Hopper Insulation Some hoppers, such as drying hoppers, operate at temperature. In these situations, insulating the hopper bin helps to reduce heat loss and increase efficiency. Reduced Heat loss Heat loss Hopper Without Hopper With Insulation Insulation Insulation performs a vitally important role for several reasons. Not only does the insulation system improve process efficiencies, protect assets from the surrounding environment and help preserve energy and reduce costs, but importantly, provides critical personnel protection for people. For more details on industrial insulation please visit: www.powertherm.co.uk/services/insulation Re. POWERTHERM nga. nga. nqa. CONTRACT SERVICES LTD ISO 9001 ISO 14001 ISO 45001 HEALTH QUALITY ENVIRONMENTAL & SAFETY MANAGEMENT MANAGEMENT MANAGEMENT 0114 288 9119 [email protected] www.powertherm.co.uk Francis House, Orgreave Drive, Handsworth, Sheffield, S13 9NR