Evaluation of a solid-bowl centrifuge

for ultrafine size separations

A.P. Pinkerton and M.S. Klima
Graduate student and associate professor, respectively, The Pennsylvania State University,
Dept. of Energy and Geo-Environmental Engineering, University Park, Pennsylvania

Abstract
Solid-bowl (decanter) centrifuges are used extensively to dewater slurries in a wide range of industries.
However, the application of decanters as classification devices is not as common. In this study, the
peiformance of a continuous, pilot-scale, solid-bowl centrifuge was evaluated when classifying an ultrafine
coal slurry containing nearly 60% material less than 10 fJm. The test conditions included centrifuge bowl and
scroll speeds, volumetric feed rate, solids concentration and pond depth. Centrifuge peiformance was
evaluated using size selectivity curves and the corresponding performance parameters, along with product
yields and solids concentrations.
Key words: Classification, Fine-particle separation, Solid-bowl centrifuge, Coal slurry

Introduction hand, to increase the g-force in a hydrocyclone, the volumetric

Centrifugation is a process in which slurry is spun at high
speed to separate the solid and liquid fractions. In the case of
a solid-bowl centrifuge, the solids are compacted and concen-
trated within the centrifuge bowl before being discharged as
a thickened sludge. The liquid forced out of the feed slurry is
pooled inside the centrifuge and is discharged hydraulically at
the opposite end of the centrifuge.
The solid-bowl centrifuge is either a cocurrent unit, in
which the centrifuge receives the feed slurry and thickens it in
the same direction as the solids flow, or a counter-current unit,
in which the thickened cake is discharged at the feed end. In
both cases, the centrate moves in the opposite direction than
the thickened sludge and flows over adjustable weir plates.
The horizontal conical conveyor, which is located concentri-
cally within the bowl, conveys the thickened solids to the
discharge of the bowl at the apex of the cone. The scroll
operates at a speed slightly slower than that of the bowl.
Solid-bowl centrifuges are primarily used for solid-liquid
separations. They have been found to be an ideal choice for
dewatering sludges found in the wastewater treatment plants
of the paper, steel, textile and mineral industries (Sullivan and
Vesilind, 1986). The primary goal of centrifugation as a
dewatering technique is to maximize the output of dewatered
solids, while minimizing the moisture content in the dis-
charged cake solids and the level of suspended solids in the
liquid centrate. Moisture contents under 10% can be achieved
in certain applications (Letki, 1998).
Solid-bowl centrifuges have also been used for size classi-
fication and offer several advantages over hydrocyclones
when separating very fine material. For example, the retention
time of the material and the g-force can be controlled indepen-
dently in a centrifuge by varying the volumetric feed rate and
bowl speed, respectively (Klima et aI., 1995). On the other
feed rate (and pressure drop) is increased, which decreases the
retention time in the unit. Although a higher g-force can be
achieved using a smaller diameter hydrocyclone, this results
in a reduction in capacity. Moreover, hydrocyclones are
typically limited to cut sizes above about 10 IlID (Scheffler and
Zahr, 1980).
Solid-bowl centrifuges have proven successful in the sepa-
ration of valuable fractions from slimes that were previously
discarded to waste. In particular, test results and operational
experience have been obtained with such machines in classi-
fying zirconium sand, phosphate ore, calcium carbonate and
kaolin slime. For instance, classification at a cut size of 6 IlID
has been achieved when classifying and simultaneously sort-
ing -40-1lID slimes during phosphate beneficiation (Scheffler
and Zahr, 1980). These units have also been used for ultrafine
classification in the kaolin clay industry (Williamson and
Bacon, 1977; Leung et aI., 1999).
The performance of the solid-bowl centrifuge depends on
the bowl speed, scroll speed, pool depth, feed rate, and
chemical conditioning (Sullivan and Vesilind, 1986). In this
study, a pilot-scale centrifuge was tested under various oper-
ating conditions when treating coal slurry containing more
than 95% -30-1lID material. The separations were evaluated
using size selectivity curves and the corresponding character-
istic performance parameters. Solids yields and solids con-
centrations were also measured. This testing was conducted as
part of a study aimed at thickening ultrafine coal-water slur-
ries (Pinkerton et aI., 1999).
Experimental approach
Feed material. The coal used for this testing was obtained
from the Homer City Coal Cleaning Plant, Homer City,
Pennsylvania. The plant processes bituminous coal from

Preprint number 00-111, presented at the SME Annual Meeting, February 28-March 1,2000, Salt Lake City, UT. Revised
manuscript accepted for publication January 2001. Discussion of this peer-reviewed and approved paper is invited and
must be submitted to SME Publications Dept. prior to Feb. 28, 2002. Copyright 2001, Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and
Exploration, Inc.

AUGUST 2001 • VOL. 18 NO.3 162 MINERALS & METALLURGICAL PROCESSING

various mines throughout the area. The feed material was 13.81 ill.
collected from the combined discharge (centrate) streams
from several screen-bowl centrifuges, which were dewatering
the clean coal product from a froth flotation circuit. The
scree~-bowl centrate averaged 5% solids (by weight) and
cont~med nearly 60% material finer than 10 j..lIl1. The average
densIty of the material was 1.47 g/cm 3, as measured with a
helium pycnometer.
9.75 ill.

Test circuit. The centrifuge circuit consisted of a variable- Weir settings Radius of discharge
sp.eed progressive cavity pump, a 57-L (l5-gal) sump, a
mIxer, a flowmeter and the centrifuge. This circuit was de- 1 (shallow) 2.812 in.
2 2.867 in.
signed such that the slurry could be pumped through the
3 2.562 in.
centrifuge or recirculated. In both cases, the slurry was passed
4 (deepest) 2.375 in.
through an ABB K-Flow mass flowmeter, which measured
the flow rate in gallons per minute (gpm). A variable-fre-
quency c~ntroller was used to change pump speed and, hence, Figu~e 1 - Dimensions of the Sharples P660 solid-bowl
the centnfuge feed rate. Another pump circuit, which was centrifuge.
use? to add slurry to the centrifuge circuit, consisted of a
vanabl.e-speed progressive cavity pump, 380-L (1 OO-gal sump)
19-L (5-gal) buckets. This was done one minute after the
and mIXer. As the sump level in the centrifuge circuit de-
solids began to discharge from the centrifuge. After the
creased, makeup slurry was pumped from the larger circuit.
s.amples were taken, the flow was diverted through the bypass
A Sharples, Model P-660, countercurrent solid-bowl (de-
lme back to the sump. The proper adjustments were made to
canter) centrifuge was used for all tests. It has a bowl diameter
the centrifuge operating conditions, and another test was
o~ 152-mm (6 in.) at the end of the overflow discharge and a
conducted. During the testing, the smaller sump was refilled
dI~meter of 119-mm (4.68 in.) at the end of cake discharge
as needed. The feed slurry was sampled at the recirculation
(FIg. I). The bowl length is 353 mm (13.88 in.) and begins to
line dis~harge. All samples were weighed (slurry weight),
taper at 248-mm (9.75 in.). The bowl speed and the back drive
oven dned, weighed again (solids weight) and then placed in
(scroll) speed are driven independently using 7.5- and 2-hp
bags for storage.
motors, respectively. The slurry enters through a feed tube at
the cake discharge end. The tube extends into the center of the
Sample analysis. A size analysis of each centrifuge product
bowl. Manually adjustable weirs located on the end opposite
was performed using a Leeds and Northrup Microtrac, Model
from the feed are used to control the depth of the pool (Fig. I).
X-I00. To assure proper dispersion of the solids prior to size
The unit can be operated up to a speed of 6,000 rpm, which
analysis, a representative sample of each product was dis-
corresponds to approximately 3,000 g.
persed in a solution containing 0.1 % sodium metaphosphate
and 0.1 % Coal Master A23-M. This mixture was agitated
Test procedure. Prior to testing, feed slurry was added to the
using an ultrasonic probe for several seconds. The entire
380-L (I OO-gal) sump, where it was recirculated to ensure
sample was then transferred to the Microtrac.
proper mixing. Sufficient material was then pumped to fill the
The size data were used to reconstitute the feed values by
centrifuge sump. This material was also recirculated. While
this material was mixing, the desired centrifuge bowl and , tiC+qi
scroll speeds were set. The bowl speed was calculated based Pi = 1 +C (3)
on the desired gravity effect
where
N g x70,471 C is the circulation ratio calculated by the least absolute
N= (I) sum method (Klimpel, 1980)
d
n-l
where
N is the bowl speed in rpm, Llpi-qil
N g is the number of g's and C= i=l
n-l
d IS the centrifuge diameter in inches. (4)
Llti -q;j
Back-drive speed (rpm) was then determined by the de- i=l

sired differential Pi' t; and qi are the weight fractions of material in size
SS = BS - (GR x Difj) (2) interval i in the feed, underflow (scroll discharge) and
overflow (centrate) streams, respectively and
where n is the number of size intervals.
SS is the scroll speed in rpm,
BS is the bowl speed in rpm, The partition (size selectivity) values were calculated by
GR is the gear ratio and
Dijfis the bowl/scroll differential. s. =
t·C
I
(5)
I (I+C)p;
For this unit, the gear ratio (GR) was 0.95.
For each test, samples of the underflow and the overflow . T~ese values were then plotted against the top size of the
streams were taken simultaneously and collected in sealable SIze mterval on semi log paper to generate the partition curves.

MINERALS & METALLURGICAL PROCESSING 163 VOL. 18, NO.3. AUGUST 2001
 Table 1- Summary of the centrifuge operating conditions and results. (8)
Feed Bowl UlF where
rate, speed, d50 yield, Solids, d 25 and d75 are the particle sizes in the
gpm Diff. Weir rpm fJ.IT1 a-bypass SI % 0/0 feed in which 25% and 75% (by
weight), respectively, report to the
20 5,735 2.05 0.44 0.63 92.3 59.0 underflow.
3 20 5,735 3.12 0.17 0.56 80.7 59.6
5 20 5,735 4.70 0.11 0.64 69.7 62.7 Results and discussions
5 10 5,735 5.20 0.10 0.67 65.3 63.4 Reproducibility. A series of tests was
5 40 5735 4.70 0.12 0.64 69.4 59.4 conducted to verify the reproducibility of
5 20 2 5,735 4.94 0.14 0.60 68.6 60.8 separations done with the centrifuge. The
5 20 3 5,735 4.60 0.13 0.57 70.6 61.3 tests were conducted on three different
5 20 4 5,735 4.62 0.11 0.62 71.8 61.3 days at a bowl speed of 5,735 rpm, which
5 20 4 4,055 6.15 0.08 0.56 62.7 57.7 corresponds to 2,800 g, and at a feed rate
5 20 4 2,867 8.01 0.07 0.42 62.7 51.8
of 11.4 Umin (3 gpm). The scroll speed
was set to produce a differential of 20.
5 10 4 5,735 4.92 0.10 0.67 69.9 62.1
Figure 2, which includes both the actual
5 10 4 5,735 11.27 0.16 0.36 52.1 62.1
and fitted values, demonstrates that the
centrifuge results were reproducible at
these conditions. The cut size remained constant at 3.4 /JIll
1.0
with a sharpness index (Sf) of 0.61 and an apparent bypass of
• Day 1 0.14. Overall, the Sf ranged from 0.56 to 0.68, with deviations
• Day 2
only occurring at the extreme operating conditions.
• Day 3
0.8
Effect of pond setting. These tests were carried out to
evaluate the effects of pond settings on centrifuge perfor-

-
~ mance. The pond settings (1 through 4) determine the pool
:~ 0.6 depth in the cylindrical portion of the bowl. In all cases, the
( ,)
Q)
bowl speed was kept constant at approximately 5,735 rpm.
4i Slurry feed rates of3.8, 11.4 and 18.9 Umin (1, 3 and 5 gpm)
III were used at differentials of 10, 20 and 40 at each feed rate.
~ 0.4 From these tests, it was found that a change in the pond
en depth had little or no effect on the size selectivity values under
all conditions (Table I). This can also be seen in Fig. 3, which
illustrates the size selectivity values at a feed rate of 18.9 Umin
••
0.2
(5 gpm) and a differential of 20 .

Effect of bowVscroll differential. Centrifuge tests were

O.O~--~--------~~--~--------~~--~ conducted to determine the effects of back drive speed on
0.1 1 10 centrifuge performance. In all cases, the bowl speed was kept
Size, ~m constant at approximately 5,735 rpm. Slurry feed rates of 3.8,
11.4 and 18.9 Umin (l, 3 and 5 gpm) were used. The scroll
Figure 2 - Partition curves for reproducibility tests done speed was varied to produce differentials of 10, 20 and 40 at
at a bowl speed of 5,735 rpm, 3 gpm, a differential of 20 each feed rate. All pond depths were studied.
and at the deepest pond depth.
Figure 4 shows that changing the differential had a minimal
effect on the size selectivity values. A similar effect was seen
In general, the partition curves must be corrected for in the underflow yield (solids recovery), where the change in
apparent bypass (a) as follows the solids recovery for this series of tests was insignificant
(Table I).
s· -a
c· =-'-- (6)
, 1- a Effect of slurry feed rate. This series of tests investigated the
The corrected partition values were fitted to the log- effects of slurry feed rate for various bowl/scroll differen-
logistic function given as tials. In all cases, bowl speed was kept constant at approxi-
mately 5,735 rpm. All pond depths, along with slurry feed
I rates on.8, 11.4 and 18.9 Umin (l, 3 and 5 gpm), were tested.
c· = ----"""7.:""-:-=::-::-=<"
, I ( /d )(2.1972/lnsJ) (7) The scroll speed was varied to produce differentials of 10, 20
+ Xi 50
and 40 at each feed rate. One set of product size distributions,
where along with the feed and reconstituted feed streams, is shown
d 50 is the cut size, which is defined as the particle size that on Fig. 5.
reports 50% by weight to the underflow and 50% by As can be seen in Fig. 5, the actual and reconstituted feed
weight to the overflow. size distributions are nearly identical, indicating that sam-
pling errors were minimal. The product size distribution
The sharpness index (Sf) is a measure of the steepness of curves represent the fine (overflow) and the coarse (under-
the partition curve and is defined as flow) streams obtained at three feed rates at a differential of

AUGUST 2001 • VOL. 18 NO.3 164 MINERALS & METALLURGICAL PROCESSING

 • weir 1 • Feed
•
•.. weir 2
- - - Recon. Feed
• I GPM OfF
0.8
weir 3
weir 4 80 • 3 GPM OfF •
• •
." .. 5 GPM Off
CI)
N o I GPM UfF
'0 o 3 GPM UfF

-
I: t:. 5 GPM UfF •
~
'S; 0.6 ~ 60 •
~ •

-
I/)
CI)
"ii .!!
I/)
••
• •.
III
0.4 5:l
. ...
CI) 40
,t::!
en ~

0.2
~
20
. ...
6.

0.0 L..-_-'--"'"-"'"-'-................J_ _......................- ' -..............J.._-.J

0.1 1 10 10 100
Size, 101m Size, IJm
Figure 5 - Feed and product size distributions for various
Figure 3 - Partition curves for different pond depths at a feed rates at a bowl speed of 5,735 rpm, a differential of 20
bowl speed of 5,735 rpm, 5 gpm and a differential of 20. and at the shallowest pond depth.

1.0 r--..,......-..........,...........,...,....,...,.,..---.,..-..,......":""S....~~......
• 10 differential
• 20 differential • 1 GPM
.. 40 differential • 3 GPM
0.8 ~8 .. 5GPM

~ ~
'S; 0.6 'S; 0.6
:;:
U
CI) ~
CI)
"ii "ii
III III
CI)
N 0.4 ~ 0.4
en en
0.2 0.2
•
o.o~-~-~~-'-~U--~- ........~~..~-~ 0.0 ~- .......- ................................L-_ _ _.........................u..l.._--.J
0.1 1 10 0.1 1 10
Size, IJm Size, IJm

Figure 4 - Partition curves for various differentials at a Figure 6 - Partition curves for various slurry feed rates at
bowl speed of 5,735 rpm, 5 gpm, and at the shallowest a bowl speed of 5,735 rpm, a differential of 20 and at the
pond depth. shallowest pond depth.

20 and at the shallowest pond depth. As expected, there was
a distinct difference between the fine and coarse streams.
The overflow size distributions shifted to the left as the slurry
feed rate decreased. The finer separations can be attributed to
the increase in retention time at the slower feed rates,
allowing additional time for the finer particles to settle and
be carried to the scroll discharge. This trend is also evident
in the size selectivity curves (Fig. 6) for the same tests. As can
be seen, the curves shifted to the left as the slurry feed rate
decreased, resulting in a finer cut size (Table I). The finer
separations are also reflected in the solids recovery in the
scroll discharge (coarse yield), which increased from 70% to
90% as the feed rate decreased from 18.9 to 3.8 Llmin (5 to
I gpm) (Table I). However, Fig. 6 shows an increase in the
apparent bypass (a) (0.11 to 0.44) as the feed rate decreased.
This could be attributed in part to the small amount of -1-J.U11
material present in the feed, which made subsequent analysis
difficult.
Effect of bowl speed. A series of tests was conducted to
examine the effects of bowl speed on centrifuge performance.
In these tests, bowl speeds of approximately 5,735, 4,055, and

MINERALS & METALLURGICAL PROCESSING 165 VOL. 18, NO.3. AUGUST 2001
 0.8
~0.6
>
;:
~ GI
Q)
I/)
GI 0.4
N N
en
• 700 9
0.2
• 1,400 9
... 2,800 9
0.0 L...._ _......._ _.................................J...._ _......._ .......................I
1 10 60
Size, ~m
Figure 7 - Partition curves for various bowl speeds at a
differential of 20,5 gpm and at the deepest pond depth.
2,867 rpm were used, which correspond to 2,800, 1,400 and
700 g, respectively. The deepest pond setting was used for all
tests. Slurry feed rates of 3.8, 11.4 and 18.9 Llmin (1, 3, and
5 gpm) were used. The scroll speed was varied to produce
differentials of 10 and 20 at each feed rate.
Figure 7 shows the variation in the partition curves with the
changes in bowl speed. As expected, the curves shifted to a
coarser cut size (4.6 to 8.0 /lill) as the speed of the bowl
decreased. The solids content of the underflow also decreased
as the g-force decreased. This can be attributed to the lower
force induced on the slurry at the lower bowl speeds, reducing
the settling rate of the coal particles, resulting in coarser cut
sizes and lower underflow solids concentrations (Table 1).
Effect of solids concentration. Centrifuge tests were also
conducted to examine the effects of back dri ve speed and feed
rate on centrifuge performance using the deepest pond setting
with a thickened feed. Slurry feed rates of 3.8 and 18.9 Llmin
(1 and 5 gpm) were used. The scroll speed was varied to
produce differentials of 10 and 40 for feed solids of 6%, 13%
and 17% (by weight). In all cases, the bowl speed was kept
constant at approximately 5,735 rpm.
Figure 8 shows the partition curves for tests that were
conducted at a feed rate of 18.9 Llmin (5 gpm) for a
differential of 10. As the size selectivity plots indicate, the
separations at 6% and 13% solids were similar. However, the
separation worsened at a feed solids of 17%. At this condi-
tion, the curve flattened out and the sharpness index (Sf)
decreased from 0.67 to 0.36. The cut size increased from 5
/lill to more than 11 /lill. One explanation may be attributed
to a hindered-settling effect at the higher solid concentra-
tions, reducing the settling rate, resulting in the flatter parti-
tion curve and a coarser cut.
AUGUST 2001 • VOL. 18 NO.3
~ 0.6
>
~
Q)
I/)
GI 0.4
en
0.2
0.0 L..--'_..............................!.--_ _............................u...._...........................
0.1 10
Size, ~m
Figure 8 - Partition curves for various feed solids
concentrations at a differential of 10, 5,735 rpm and at the
deepest pond depth.
Summary and conclusions
The results presented in this paper demonstrate that the solid-
bowl centrifuge is effective in classifying ultrafine coal-water
slurries. Cut sizes below 5 /lill are possible, with sharpness
indexes (Sf) ranging from 0.40 to 0.68 and apparent bypasses
(a) from 0.1 to 0.4. The cut size decreases with either an
increase in bowl speed or a decrease in the slurry feed rate.
Overall, the solids concentrations were increased from 5%
solids in the feed to between 55% and 65% in the product.
Acknowledgments
Funding for this project was provided by EPRI's Upgraded
Coal Interest Group and The Pennsylvania State University's
Energy Institute. Tom Cole and Tom Terebus from the Homer
City Coal Cleaning Plant are acknowledged for providing the
feed material.
References
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166 MINERALS & METALLURGICAL PROCESSING