Process for micronizing materials
AssigneePulseWave LLC
InventorsWilliam E. Hahn, Charles A. Arnold
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The invention provides methods of disintegrating or reducing the particle size of elemental materials, such as various forms of carbon, and organic crystals that contain minerals and that do not contain minerals. The method include the steps of entraining the material in a gas flow through an inlet of a housing, subjecting the flowing material to a plurality of alternating pressure increases and decreases within the housing, disintegrating the flowing material with the pressure increases and decreases, thereby reducing the mean particle size of the material, and discharging the disintegrated material though an outlet of the housing.
Claims27
A continuous flow method of reducing the mean particle size of a particulate carbon material that consists of at least 90% carbon by weight, the method comprising:
- entraining the carbon material in a gas flow through an inlet of a housing;
- subjecting the flowing carbon material to a plurality of alternating pressure increases and decreases within the housing;
- disintegrating the flowing carbon material with the pressure increases and decreases, thereby reducing the mean particle size of the carbon material;
- and
- discharging the disintegrated carbon material though an outlet of the housing.
A powdered form of amorphous carbon, consisting essentially of particles that when dispersed in water are characterized by essentially 100% of the particles being about 5 microns or less, and by about 90% of the volume of the particles being about 1 micron or less.
A powdered form of carbon char, consisting essentially of particles that when dispersed in water are characterized by essentially 100% of the particles being about 30 microns or less.
A continuous flow method of reducing the particle size of crystals of an organic molecule, wherein the initial particle size of the crystals is at least about +80 mesh;
- comprising:
- entraining the crystals in a gas flow through an inlet into a housing;
- and
- subjecting the crystals to a plurality of pressure increases and decreases while flowing through the housing;
- disintegrating the flowing crystals with the pressure increases and decreases, thereby reducing the mean particle size of the crystals;
- and
- discharging the disintegrated crystals though an outlet of the housing, wherein substantially all the discharged crystals have a particle size that is about −270 mesh.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.