EXPERIMENTATION

SIEVE SHAKER

INTRODUCTION

SIEVE SHAKERS are used for mechanical separation of dry, hard grains ordinarily

pass without trouble through screens. Screens, which are rapidly vibrated with

small amplitude, are less likely to blind (a screen plugged with solid is said to be

blinded.) than are gyrating screen. Mechanical vibrations are usually transmitted

from high –speed eccentrics to the casing of the unit and from there to screens.

Ordinarily no more than three decks are used in vibrating screens.

The objective if screen is to accept mixture of particles of various sizes and

separate it into two fractions, an underflow that is passes through screen and an

overflow that is rejected by screen. Either one or both of these streams may be a

product.

AIM:

To determine the screen effectiveness of screens.

PROCEDURE:

1. Start SIEVE SHAKER and set for a known time.

2. Weigh sample accurately.

3. Pour sample on screen and allow the sample to screen thoroughly.

4. Remove screens from unit carefully.

5. Weigh sample retained on each screen.

6. Calculate weight fraction of each sample retained on every screen.

7. Calculate screen effectiveness.

Material balances over screen,

Simple material balances can be written over a screen, which are useful in

calculating the ratios of feed, oversize and underflow from the screen analyses of

the three streams and knowledge of the desired cut dia.

F = Mass flow rate of the feed.

D = Mass flow rate of overflow.

B = Mass flow rate of under flow.

Xf = Mass fraction of material A in feed.

Xd = Mass fraction of material A in overflow.

Xb = Mass fraction of material A in underflow.

The mass fraction material B in feed, overflow, and underflow are 1- Xf, 1-Xd and

1-Xb. Since the total material feed to the screen must leave it either as overflow

or as underflow.

F=D+B -------------------------------- ( 1 )

The material A in the feed must also leave in the streams and

FXf = DXd = BXb -------------------------------- ( 2 )

Elimination of B from equations ( 1) and ( 2 ) gives.

D = Xf - Xb

F = Xd – Xb

Elimination of D gives,

B = Xd – Xf

F = Xd – Xb

Screen effectiveness of a screen (often called as a screen efficiency) is a measure

of the success of a screen in closely separating material A & B. If a screen

functioned perfectly. All material should be in overflow and all of the material B
would be in underflow. A common measure of screen effectiveness is the ratio of

oversize material A that is actually in the overflow to the amount of a entering with

the feed. These quantities are DXd and FXf respectively. Thus,

Ea = Dxd

FXf

Where Ea is the screen effectiveness based on the oversize. Similarly an

effectiveness Eb based on the undersize material is given by

Eb = B(1 – Xb)

F(1 – Xf )

A combined overall effectiveness can be defined as the product of the two

individual ratios and denoted by E,

E = Ea Eb = D. Xd ( 1-xb)

FXf (1 – Xf )

Substituting D/F and B/F from equations (3) and (4),

E = (Xf – Xb) (Xd-Xf) Xd ( 1-Xb)

(Xd – Xb)  ( 1- Xf) Xf.

Screen Size Mass of particle Mass fraction Cumulative mass

No. in Retained on screen gms. Fraction of oversize

M.M. A B C A B A B C

Here A = feed. B = Overflow, c = underflow

Plot a graph of screen size v/s cumulative mass fraction.