Case studies show how our products perform in different industries and different material clogging problems.
This time, I would like to talk about the bridge problem that occurred at the manufacturing site of lithium carbonate .
Albemarle Ltd. is Chile's second largest extractor of lithium chloride and lithium carbonate from lithium brines. Its manufacturing process begins with the treatment of natural brine, pumped from the heart of the Atacama Desert, in an open-air pool that receives the intense solar energy of the Atacama Desert.
The natural brine Albemarle uses in its production process has a lithium concentration of nearly 0.2%. It is then circulated between different pools until it reaches a lithium content of 6%, enriched by solar evaporation. The concentrated brine is transported by tank truck to the La Negra chemical plant in Antofagasta. Here, saltwater mined from the Atacama Salt Flat is purified and chemically processed to produce products such as lithium carbonate batteries used in electronic devices, electric vehicles, and safety devices.
[problem] Clogging problem occurs due to high water content!
At Albemarle's La Negra plant, blockages of treated lithium carbonate flowing through the drop chute and discharge pipes were an ongoing problem due to the high moisture content of the lithium carbonate.
The lithium carbonate had a moisture content of 10-25% and a density of 35-100 lbs/ft3 and a bulk density of 561-1601 kg/m3 while maintaining a powder/talc consistency. Until then, materials stuck in the drop chute had to be hit with a hammer to clear the clog. The chute is 10 inches (25.4 cm) in diameter, stainless steel, and the walls are lined with PTFE (Teflon). From the drop chute/discharge pipe system, the raw materials were filled into vessels via screw feeders and fed to various silos.
[solution] Easy installation and maintenance is also a feature of Air Sweep!
Initially, 24 VA-06 (small size) stainless steel air sweep units were proposed for the project . Upon closer inspection, the common weld and bolt installation method using the VA-06 standard mount coupling was not possible due to the PTFE coating on the inside wall of the drop chute.
ControlConcept therefore recommended an 'outside do-in' mounting coupling (optional) that allows the air sweep unit to be attached to the vessel without welding or bolting . The installation problem is now resolved and all 24 VA-06s are installed. A hole was drilled in the refractory and mounted with an "outside-in" coupling above the inlet duct .
[Results]
Michelle Williams, senior project manager at Albemarle's La Negra plant, reports that the air sweep system has eliminated material blockages and poor flow, achieving the target of 1.65 tonnes per hour of material fill time. increase.
What's more, workers never had to raise heavy hammers again. After the first successful test, it has been adopted in two more projects and new uses are being considered.
