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Home » equipment » What Is Agglomeration?

What Is Agglomeration?
Wolfgang Pietsch February 27, 2008 0

Agglomeration, the sticking of particles to one another or to solid surfaces, is a natural phenomenon. For powders and bulk
solids, agglomeration can be unwanted, resulting in uncontrolled buildup, caking, bridging, or lumping. It can also be a
beneficial process, utilizing the controlled enlargement of particles to improve powder properties and obtain high-quality
products.

Size enlargement through agglomeration is one of the four unit operations of mechanical process engineering (powder and
bulk solids technologies). It involves combining particles to create products with new particle sizes. Products can come in
many different forms—granules, tablets, briquettes, extrudates, pellets, bricks, or compacts—and/or they may have brand-
related names.

Size enlargement through agglomeration is done to obtain a product with larger particle dimensions. The resulting entity is
only apparently a new unit. The original solid particles are still present in the structure—often with completely unaltered
shape and size—and are held together by binding mechanisms. Also, the new entity features porosity—void spaces
between the agglomerate-forming particles. This porosity is beneficial for making easily dispersible food and pigment
granules, for “designer” foods, and for catalyst carriers. It is undesirable in highly reactive materials for which pressure
agglomeration (densification) is used for passivation.

Agglomeration also changes the bulk characteristics of particulate solids—usually for the better. Larger particles have less
dust, exhibit improved flow behavior, and feature reduced sticking tendencies. Storage, handling, and feeding of materials
with large particles are less risky, even for difficult materials.

Three methods enlarge particulate solids through agglomeration: tumble/growth agglomeration, pressure agglomeration,
and agglomeration using heat (sintering).

In tumble/growth agglomeration, the adhesion of particles to one another is controlled by the competition between volume-
related separation and surface-related adhesion forces. To cause permanent adhesion, the sum of all separation forces in
the system (e.g., gravity, inertia, drag, etc.) must be smaller than the attraction forces between the adhering partners. If
solids are in the micron, submicron, or nano range (starting at approximately 10 µm), adhesion occurs naturally even when
the agglomerate-forming particles are dry. In the case of larger particles, adhesion forces must be produced by the addition
of binders, or they must be enhanced by conditioning. Also, the probability of particle collisions must be increased by
providing a high concentration of particulate solids. Such conditions are obtained in inclined disks (pans), rotating drums,
powder mixers, and fluidized beds.
In pressure agglomeration, enlarged entities are formed by applying external forces to essentially dry particulate solids in
more or less closed dies that define the shape of the agglomerated product. Since the level of force applied is the most
distinguishing factor, there are low-, medium-, and high-pressure techniques. In low- and medium-pressure agglomeration,
materials are passed (extruded) through openings in die plates; in high-pressure agglomeration, punch-and-die and roller
presses are used. Compacts are often crushed and screened to yield granular products.

In agglomeration using heat (sintering), atoms and molecules begin to migrate across the interface where particles touch
each other. This happens at a certain elevated temperature, which is different for various materials. While still in solid state,
diffused matter forms bridge-like structures between the surfaces, which solidify upon cooling. In the posttreatment of
agglomerates, this phenomenon produces strong permanent bonds and/or specific final properties in parts that may have
been manufactured by virtually any of the other agglomeration techniques.

Agglomeration is not always used for size enlargement. In some technologies, agglomeration changes or improves the
properties of particulate solids or modifies the surfaces of solids. The oldest such method is coating, which has evolved
into an important field of solids processing and is used in almost all industries, often for functionalizing the surfaces of
agglomerates. Other new and innovative technologies manipulate individual particles. For example, ultrafine particles are
deposited onto substrates in a controlled manner and subsequently bonded with the base material or with one another to
create microdevices or microstructures.

Wolfgang Pietsch, PhD, was a senior consultant at Compactconsult Inc. (Naples, FL). He received BS and MS degrees in
mechanical and chemical engineering and a PhD in agglomeration. A researcher, teacher, process developer, designer,
vendor, and user of mechanical process technologies, Pietsch held nine patents and is the author of more than 170 papers
and five books, including Size Enlargement by Agglomeration, Agglomeration Processes—Phenomena, Technologies,
Equipment, and Agglomeration in Industry—Occurrence and Applications

More articles about agglomeration:

Criteria for Selecting Vibratory or Tumbler Screeners

What to Do about Lumps: Selecting Crushers and Lump Breakers

For related articles, equipment reviews, and news on Agglomeration, visit our Particle Enlargers & Formers Equipment
Zone
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