U-Trough Screw Conveyors are used in the animal feed, food and general industrial markets, including industries like biomass, waste and recycling. In addition, these conveyors are used in many parts of the world and handle a wide range of bulk materials.
They are made popular through robust design and easy access for routine maintenance and often provide cost-effective and versatile conveying capabilities.
To get the most out of a new u-trough screw conveyor system, it’s essential to specify your requirements and ensure the conveyor offers:
- The right features
- A suitable set-up
- Can handle the materials to suit your specific product
The Wrights Dowson Group’s engineers will help advise you towards the u-trough screw conveyor for your requirements. To get this process started, here are some of the considerations you should keep in mind.
Choosing the Right Screw for your Product Type
Depending on precisely what product you’re conveying system to handle, you will need to pick a screw that suits the viscosity and size of your bulk product.
Liquids and Flowing Powders
Materials that tend to flow like liquids such as alumina, cocoa, fly ash, limestone dust and talk, require a larger diameter screw with a short pitch. The pitch is the distance between the flights of the screw. Shorter pitches allow for slow material flow through the conveyor to help reduce the risk of flooding. This is especially important if your material will flow downwards. Further, minimize surging by using double flight short-pitch screws.
Viscous and Sticky Product
Suppose your product isn’t free-flowing and is instead sticky or viscous, like green malt, sewage sludge and wet beet sugar. In that case, the material can collect in the spaces between the screw flight and pipe and build up over time. This reduces the conveyer’s capacity. For sticky materials, choose a shaftless screw without a pipe at the centre or a single-flight ribbon screw that comes with an open space between the flight and pipe. This ensures the material has enough room to move along without building up.
Irregular, Interlocking Product
Products with varying particle sizes, like woodchips and paper pulp, can easily mat or interlock. However, these can jam the conveyor, forcing a higher power requirement. If your product interlocks, choose conveyors with screws that have a large pipe and thicker flights. You can then safely convey your product at a controlled rate.
Handling Dangerous Materials
Suppose you are handling a product that can’t be contaminated or could present a risk to your equipment or even your workforce. In that case, you should consider when choosing the right u trough screw conveyor.
Abrasive Materials
For abrasive materials like cement clinker, iron ore, sand, etc., you will need to specify non-abrasive components for your conveyor trough, screw, bearings and other parts. This will ensure that your product doesn’t quickly wear down the different parts of your conveyor system. Abrasion-resistant materials include hardened or hard-surfaced steel.
Hygroscopic Materials
A dry and absorbent product like soap granules, salt and salicylic acid will readily absorb moisture and build up your conveying system. To avoid this, make sure your u trough screw conveyor comes with a dust-tight shaft seal and other seals that prevent moisture entering. You can further avoid buildup material with a single-flight ribbon screw or shaftless screw.
Toxic or Explosive Materials
Finally, you should take extra care when handling hazardous products and choose a U-trough screw conveyor system that effectively contains toxic or explosive materials. Examples include asbestos, arsenic, caustic soda and lead oxide. In addition, your screw conveyor will need a vaporant dust-tight housing through which dangerous fumes can’t escape.
If your product comes with risks of explosions, your conveyor should also withstand explosion pressures. The flight-tip-to-trough clearance must also be large enough to prevent metal from rubbing against other metal during the conveying. A conveyor constructed from different metals is also less likely to produce sparks under friction. Finally, ask your supplier about dust control systems to capture and remove unwanted dust at the discharge point.
Find the Right U Trough Screw Conveyor for Your Specific Product Needs
With these considerations in mind, contact us at the Wrights Dowson Group for a consultation. We will be happy to answer your technical questions and design a conveyor system that fits your needs. Our expert engineers will build a U trough screw conveyor system that meets your product specifications.
Get a quote today!
