Brian Vernet

Bentonite Slurry Make-Up System

Application Notes & Case Studies /

The customer was moving their manufacturing facility to a new location and needed to duplicate their capabilities while maintaining operability at the existing site along with upgrading the process for improved quality and future growth. The slurry material is used in the process of manufacturing black pipe in the integrated foundry. The system includes a complete delivery system for the bentonite material that is installed in a sealed process room to help control airborne dust concerns, and a complete storage and delivery system for the feldspar (including a reserve bulk bag discharger to prevent lapses in bulk supply concerns) installed outside of the main building. The batch is started by partially filling the blending tank with approximately 2/3rds of the required water and starting the integrated high-shear mixer at low speed; the two (2) materials are then fed (by weight) into the mixing tank based on pre-set recipe details. The mixer is ramped up to full speed to ensure the materials are properly sheared to meet Q/A requirements. Once the chemistry is approved by quality control, the viscosity is adjusted by adding water to reach the desired consistency. The final batch is then transferred using the integral pump skid to the holding/process tank. The slurry is transferred through filtration to remove any unwanted agglomerates larger than 200 mesh to ensure reliable use by the foundry. The finished slurry is fed from the process tank into process bins that are used to interface directly with the foundry process. The system includes complete recipe-based controls with all necessary instrumentation and devices to provide the specified slurry at the desired consistency.

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Kraton Polymer Pellet Discharging and Feeding System

Application Notes & Case Studies /

NBE has a wide range of experience in handling the various grades of Kraton available in the marketplace. In this application the customer was developing a new project related to the production of asphalt. The customer was receiving the polymer in supersacks and would charge a bulk surge bin with enough capacity to cover a full 24 hr day. The supersacks were received without spouts and discharged using a piercing hopper. The bulk Kraton was stored in custom surge bins with integrated agitator hoppers. The additive ingredient was discharged from a small bag dump station. Both ingredients were refilled into weigh feeders which metered the material into transfer augers supplying the customer’s wetting tank. NBE designed the platforms and supports so that the system can be expanded into multiple duplicate stations serving additional lines in the future.

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Portable Single Drum Fill Station for Zinc Stearate & Calcium Carbonate

Application Notes & Case Studies /

Portable single drum fill station designed to integrate with the current bulk bag filler. An operator will manually position the drum filler under the existing Bulk Bag Filler. The equipment includes independent pneumatic knife gate, drum filler controls with a load cell scale package. The controls will open and close an existing feed valve.

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Modular Bulk Bag Unloader Forklift Frame for Ceramic Powders

Application Notes & Case Studies /

The customer needed to discharge and screen ceramic powder from supersacks and fill back into supersacks or surge bins. This bulk bag discharger includes a removable upper frame with bag hanger, bag support pan, and forklift pockets. This allows to a minimum load height for operator safety and provides additional loading provisions when working with ceiling height restrictions

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Low Profile Sanitary Bulk Bag Discharger Design with Combo Hopper for Ascorbic Acid & Calcium Carbonate

Application Notes & Case Studies /

NBE provided a sanitary bulk bag discharger with a combo hopper and u-trough agitator designed to fit into a low headroom location. The upper frame utilized NBE’s low profile design along with NBE’s low profile bag hanger. The unit was constructed from 316 stainless steel for product contact along with 304 stainless steel for non-product contact. A NEMA 4X watershed enclosure along with stainless steel conduit was provided to handle the washdown requirements in between product changeover. NBE also designed and provided an all stainless steel operator platform.

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Lift and Seal Drum Dumper with Integrated Flexible Screw Conveyor for H3 Aluminum and AP Powders

Application Notes & Case Studies /

Customer required a drum discharger and portable screw conveyor to contain dust while discharging and conveying. The area was rated general area, but the material is considered an explosive, so the system utilized anti-static tubing for the conveyor and was bonded and grounded.

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Forklift Bulk Bag Discharger for Potassium Nitrate Salt

Application Notes & Case Studies /

Customer needed to transfer potassium nitrate by weight to a downstream mix tank. Due to the agglomerated nature when its discharged out of the bulk bag, a heavy duty Crumbler was required to break the material down to its original Prill state so it could be pneumatically transferred. The NBE scale package and Crumbler were tied to the customers transfer system for a controlled weight transfer to the mix tank.

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Five-Station Bulk Bag Discharging System for Polymer & Fiberglass

Application Notes & Case Studies /

Each station included a hoist and bag hanger for loading the bulk bag into the discharger frame, pneumatic pinch valve, untie box and a transition hopper to a customer supplied gate valve for open and close metering into customer supplied refill feeders. The footprint of each discharger was reduced to 60”, to minimize the overall space required. One bulk bag discharging station included actuated doors and is fully enclosed for additional operator protection from material exposure.

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Bulk Bag Discharger with Dual Screw Transfer and Dual Container Fill Station for Aluminum Oxide

Application Notes & Case Studies /

NBE was asked to evaluate an existing bulk bag discharger that a customer had repurposed and was experiencing rate and severe “house cleaning” issues. The existing bulk bag discharger was not designed to handle the challenging characteristics of aluminum oxide. The main issues are picking up and transferring the material as well as lacking any type of dust containment. The discharge of the screw conveyor included a cardboard fabricated dust collection hood over a container fill station. After our on-site evaluation, we completed material testing at our Innovation Center to further analyze the aluminum oxide handling issues and completed material transfer (rate) and densification testing. NBE was asked to provide dust collection, increase throughput and maximize the material volume in each container. To increase the rate, we supplied an agitator hopper, dual discharge screw conveyors feeding two separate fill stations that included independent scales. A central dust collection system located on the bulk bag discharger was provided to control and reclaim any captured dust. The NBE system is filling 33%more material per container and double the throughput. Understanding the application requirements, NBE conducted a test with the customer at our Innovation Center and Application Workshop. We used a bulk bag discharger with integral lump breaker (with screen), along with a screw conveyor, to unload the bag and process it into a consistent supply of material. The salt was broken down back to nearly original particle size. The customer was thrilled with the outcome.

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Rotary Batch Mixer Facilitates Proprietary Nutraceutical Processes

Application Notes & Case Studies /

The company’s products range from anti-aging supplements and sports nutrition to vitamins and meal replacements. The company has developed proprietary manufacturing processes that rely on a model 700-TS-50-SS Rotary Batch Mixer from Munson Machinery. Most batches include one or more liquid additions, which are introduced into the 50 cu ft (1,416 L) mixer through spray bars with exchangeable spray tips, enabling the addition of aqueous and oil-based liquids by the liter or milliliter and as a fine vapor. The spray bars operate in conjunction with subsystems for heating and cooling the liquids and dehumidifying and pressurizing the mixer vessel.
In the case of nutraceuticals, another clear goal is the removal of all possible contaminants, including products of previous processing: bits of paper and bag liners, closures, scale from processing equipment upstream, etc., that ends up in the product fraction.

Whether a particular ingredient requires sifting/screening, scalping, de-lumping or conditioning to create a homogeneous powder ready for blending, manufacturers generally have a choice of these innovative technologies.

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