Flexicon debuts vacuum conveying system
The dual intake equipment can provide dust-free releasing of containers or bags.
Flexicon’s newest Pneumati-Con dilute phase vacuum conveying system is designed to facilitate dust-free manual dumping and the conveying of materials from small bags or sacks, the company says. Additionally, it includes the capability to unload materials from containers using a handheld pick-up wand.
Mounted on a carbon steel access platform, the bag dumping station includes a stainless steel hopper with a dust hood that features a glove box. Using the gloves, the operator can pull bags of material from an adjacent table through an opening in the hood’s sidewall and onto a grate. Each bag is emptied without any material contacting the operator's skin. Emptied bags are then passed through the opposite side wall opening into a bag compactor.
Dust generated from bag dumping, disposal, and compaction is drawn away from the operator and onto the system's two cartridge filters. Timed blasts of compressed air shake the dust build-up on the filter surfaces, which falls into the hopper. Filters are readily accessed and for removal and replacement.
The compactor’s cylinder can reportedly compress up to 80 bags into a removable bin. All compactor access points are equipped with safety interlocks that prevent operation of the compactor unless all points are closed.
A handheld pickup wand is used to unload open containers from floor level. The wand is plumbed to the conveying line via a flexible hose, constructed of clear PVC with a static conductive wire, and is compliant with regulations for handling dry food and pharmaceutical materials, Flexicon notes.
Both lines converge at a two-way diverter valve, which directs the flow of material from either source to the filter receiver. The filter receiver is typically mounted above a material use point and separates solids from the airstream using filter media and gravity. A rotary airlock valve at the base of the filter receiver meters the material into the receiving vessel. The filter receiver also features reverse-pulse jet filter cleaning to aim to dislodge accumulated particles from the filter surfaces.
All conveying lines can be routed vertically and in any horizontal direction. They can also pass through openings in walls or ceilings.
Related: Flexicon marks 50th anniversary
Looking for a reprint of this article?
From high-res PDFs to custom plaques, order your copy today!
