Separation of fine granular materials
AssigneeThe University of Nottingham
InventorsPeter John King, Michael Robert Swift, Nasreen Burtally
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Abstract
This application concerns the separation of fine granular mixtures that may occur when the grains are suitably vibrated within fluid. In particular, the present invention provides a method of separating a particulate mixture comprising different particle types, comprising subjecting a supported particle bed comprising a fluid and said particulate mixture to a vibration thereby to effect separation of the particulate mixture into strata each of which is preferentially rich in substantially one particle type. Apparatus for effecting the above method also provided.
Claims13
A method of separating a particulate mixture comprising different particle types comprising:
- supporting the particulate mixture by a fluid impermeable support;
- and
- vibrating the fluid impermeable support to drive fluid, interstitial to particles of the particulate mixture, through the particulate mixture at an amplitude and frequency to produce damping forces on substantially all the particles wherein a difference between the damping forces on each particle type causes the particulate mixture to separate into strata, each stratum being rich in at least one particle type.
A method of separating a particulate mixture comprising different particle types, the method comprising:
- supporting the particulate mixture by a fluid impermeable support;
- driving fluid, interstitial to particles of the particulate mixture, through the particulate mixture by vibrating the fluid impermeable support in order to separate the particulate mixture into strata, each stratum being rich in at least one particle type;
- and
- selecting a frequency and an amplitude of the vibration of the fluid impermeable support to have a value of gamma between 2 and 18 and a frequency between 0 Hertz and 200 Hertz.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.