Oleochemical
An oleochemical plant, an industrial facility processing natural oils and fats from plant and animal sources, produces a range of oleochemical products like cooking oil, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and detergents. Throughout the processes, certain chemical powders are utilized to enhance or stabilize the final product, depending on specific applications and desired properties.
Challenges
- Moisture sensitivity : Some chemical powders exhibit high hygroscopicity, absorb moisture easily from the air. This can cause clumping or caking, leading to flow problems in conveying system like pipelines blockages and reduces efficiency.
- Abrasiveness : Certain powders possess corrosive properties, cause wear and tear on the conveying system components such as pipes, bends, and valves. Over time, this can lead to equipment degradation and higher maintenance costs.
- Flowability issues : Some powder can exhibit poor flow characteristics, including cohesion and rat-holing. This can lead to flow interruptions, blockages, and reduced conveying efficiency.
Solutions
- To address the moisture issue, employing storage tank with an insulation layer can prevent condensation inside the tank. Moreover, integrating moisture detector sensors can monitor moisture level within the storage tank. Alternatively, employing dehumidifier equipment effectively reducing moisture levels and ensuring the powder remains consistently dry.
- For the abrasive type powder, applying special coatings to pipes and bends can decrease the frequency of wear and tear.
- Installing discharge aid by air, impaction or vibration can enhance the powder flowability and prevent caking issue. Furthermore, with surface finishing or specialized coatings to the inner of walls of storage tank can minimize powder adhesion, facilitating smoother discharge.
