CHE132

SCREENING
Outline
Definition: Screening
Industries
Importance of Screening
Importance of Screening
Types of Screening
Types of Screening
Methods of Indicating Particle Size Distribution
Screen Analysis
Screen Analysis
Screen Analysis
Industrial Screening Equipment
Industrial Screening Equipment
Industrial Screening Equipment
Industrial Screening Equipment
Industrial Screening Equipment
Industrial Screening Equipment
Types of Testing Sieves
Ideal Screen and Actual Screen
Ideal Screen and Actual Screen
Material Balances Over Screen
Material Balances Over Screen
Material Balances Over Screen
Material Balances Over Screen
Sample Problem
Sample Problem
Sample Problem
Sample Problem
Sample Problem
Sample Problem
Capacity and Effectiveness of a Screen
Capacity and Effectiveness of a Screen
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 CHE132
SIZE ENLARGEMENT
 Objectives

Identify the processes and mechanisms

involve in particle enlargement and the
corresponding equipment involve.
(CO1, CO2, CO4)
Solve problems relating to size
enlargement; and do calculations on
screening based on screening
data/analysis. (CO1, CO3)
 Definition: Size Enlargemetn

Process by which smaller particles

are put together to form larger
masses in which the original
particles can still be identified.
 Definition: Size Enlargement
Why increase the mean size of a product or intermediate?

Reduction of dust hazard (explosion hazard or health

hazard)
Reduce caking and lump formation
Improve flow properties
Increase bulk density for storage
Creation of non-segregating mixtures of ingredients of
differing original size
Provide a defined metered quantity of active ingredient
(e.g.
pharmaceutical drug formulations)
Control of surface to volume ratio (e.g. in catalyst
Size Enlargement

DISCUSSIO
N
Interparticle
Forces
Granulation
 Van der Waals Forces
Molecularly based attractive forces existing
between all
solids
Energy of these forces is of the order of 0.1 eV
and decreases with the sixth power of the
distance between molecules
 Van der Waals Forces

The attractive force, Fvw, between a sphere

and a plane surface as a result of van der
Waals forces was derived by Hamaker (1937)
and is usually presented in the form:
KH is the Hamaker constant
R is the radius of the sphere
Y is the gap between the Sphere and the
plane.
 Forces due to Absorbed Liquid Layers

Particles in the presence of a condensable

vapour
The strength of the bond is dependent on the
area of contact and the tensile strength of the
adsorbed layers
Increasing thickness and strength of the
layers = increasing partial pressure of the
vapour in the surrounding atmosphere
According to Coelho and Harnby (1978)
there is a critical partial pressure at which the
adsorbed layer bonding gives way to liquid
 Forces due to Liquid Bridges

Newitt and Conway-Jones (1958) identified four types

of liquid states depending on the proportion of liquid
present between groups of particles:
 How does this matter? (Granulation)

pendular bridges give rise to strong granules in

which the quantity of liquid is not critical but
should be less than that required to move into the
funicular and capillary regimes
NOTE: provided with the increase in the
proportion of liquid resulting with the increase in
the resistance of the bond to rupture since the
particles can be pulled further apart
withoutrupture of bridges.)
 How does this matter? (Granulation)

The saturation can also be increased by

reducing the voidage or porosity and
moving the particles closer together (i.e.
densifying the granule).
This reduces the open pore space
available for liquid, and the granule
saturation gradually increases from the
funicular state through to the droplet
state
 Electrostatic Forces
occurs as a result of friction via interparticle collisions
and frequent rubbing of particles against equipment
surfaces during processing
may be attractive or repulsive, do not require contact
between particles and can act over relatively long
distances compared with adhesional forces which
require contact.
 Solid Bridges

More permanent bonding within the granule is created

by solid
bridges formed as liquid is removed from the original
granule.
It may take 3 forms:
crystalline bridges: If the material of the particles is soluble in
the liquid
added to create granules, it may be formed when the liquid
evaporates.
Liquid Binder: the liquid used initially to form the granules
may contain a binder or glue which takes effect upon
evaporation of solvent.
Solid Binder:This is a finely ground solid which
Comparison and Interaction Between Forces

all interparticle forces act simultaneously.

The relative importance of the forces varies
with changes in particle properties and with
changes in the humidity of the surrounding
atmosphere.
There is considerable interaction between the
bonding forces
GRANULATIO
N

Granulation Rate Process

Wetting and nucleation of the original
particles
Coalescence or growth to form granules
Attrition or breakage of the granule
 GRANULATION

Wetting
Process by which air within the voids between particles is
replaced by liquid
Governed by the surface tension of the liquid and the angle
it forms with the material of the particles.
Nucleation
• The initial process of combining primary solid particles with
a liquid drop to form new granules or nuclei.
 Washburn Equation

8b
Eq. 21-9
Eq. 13.3 PERRY’S
RHODES HB

Where:

z is the penetration distance of the liquid into the

powder
t is the time
is the dynamic contact angle of the liquid with
the solid of the powder is the surface tension is the
viscosity
is the average pore radius
 Drop Penetration Time

Eq. 21-98b
Eq. 13.4
PERRY’S
RHODES
HB

Where:
V is the volume of drop is the porosity
is the dynamic contact angle of the liquid
with the solid of the powder
is the viscosity R is the pore radius
 Dimensionless Spray Flux

Eq. 13.5
RHODES

Where: Drop footprints will not overlap and

each drop will form a separate
nucleus granule
Q is the solution flow rate
V is the powder velocity
in the
spray zone There will be significant overlap of
d is the average drop diameter drops hitting the power bed
w is the width of the spray
 Consolidation and Coalescence

Consolidation
 The term used to describe the increase in granule density caused by
closer packing of primary particles as liquid is squeezed out as a
result of collisions.
 Determines the porosity and density of the final granule

Coalescence
 Breakage and Attrition
Breakage
Also called fragmentation
 The fracture of a granule to form two or more pieces.

Attrition
• Also called erosion
• The reduction size of a granule by loss of primary particles from
its surface
 Granulation Equipment

Tumbling Granulator
In tumbling granulators a tumbling
motion is imparted to the particles in an
inclined
cylinder (drum granulator) or pan.
Tumbling granulators operate in
continuous mode and are able to deal with
large throughputs
Granulation Equipment
 Granulation Equipment
Mixed Granulator
In mixer granulators, the motion of the particles is
brought about by some form of agitator rotating at low or
high speed on a vertical or horizontal axis.
 Granulation Equipment

Fluidized Bed Granulator

In fluidized bed granulators the particles are set in motion by
fluidizing air.
 Sample Problem
A pharmaceutical product is being scaled up from a pilot scale mixer
granulator with a batch size of 15 kg to a full scale mixer granulator with a 75
kg batch size. In the pilot scale mixer, 3 kg of water is added to the mixer
over 6 min. through a nozzle producing 200μm diameter spray
drops across a 0.2m wide spray. During scale-up, the ratio of liquid to
dry powder is kept constant but the solution flow rate can be
scaled to maintain constant spray time or constant spray rate
through the nozzle. If the flow rate is increased to maintain
constant time, the new nozzle produces 400 μm drops over a
0.3m wide spray zone. Powder velocity in the spray zone is currently
0.7 m/s at pilot scale. At full scale, the powder velocities are 0.55
m/s and 1 m/s at the ‘low’ and ‘high’ impeller speeds,
respectively. Calculate the change in dimensionless spray flux for
the following cases:

•Base case at pilot scale

•Scale-up to full scale using spray time of 6 min and low impeller
speed
•Full scale using constant spray rate and low impeller speed
•Full scale using constant spray rate and high impeller speed
Answer
 Sample Problem 2

When the spray flux is 0.1, 0.2, 0.5 and 1.0;

•Calculate the fraction of the spray zone
wetted
•Calculate the number of nucleus formed
from only one drop
 Reference

Rhodes, M. (2008). Introduction

to Particle Technology (Second
ed.). USA: John Wiley & Sons.