RAW MATERIAL

PREPARATION

RAW MATERIAL PROCESSING

TECHNIQUES
 LEARNING OUTCOMES

Students should be able to:

 Identify various types of processing, classification, separation
and hydro cyclone techniques of clay and other ceramic
materials

 Explain how clay, feldspar, bauxite and sand material being

beneficiated and processed

 Identify and type of processing technique that suitable with

respective raw materials.
 2.1
Powder
Processing &
Comminution
2.7 2.2
Magnetic Air
Separation Classification

CONTENT
2.6 2.3
Eletrostatic
Hydrocyclone Separation

2.5 2.4
Gravity Froth
Separation Flotation
INTRODUCTION
• Ceramics have a unique combination of
mechanical, physical and chemical properties:
High strength
Hardness
Low density
High stiffness (modulus of elasticity)
Good tribological properties (e.g., excellent
resistance to different types of wear}
Very low electric conductivity
Very low thermal conductivity
High refractoriness and thermal stability
Good corrosion resistance
 INTRODUCTION
• In studying ceramics processing it is necessary to
be familiar with the types of raw materials
available.
• Clay minerals, which provide plasticity when
mixed with water; feldspar, which acts as a
nonplastic filler on forming and a fluxing liquid on
firing; and silica, which is a filler that resists fusion,
have been the back bone of the traditional
ceramic porcelains
 INTRODUCTION (CONT..)
• Clay processing has the objective to produce a
fired product at an acceptable cost
• To be fit for its purpose the fired product requires
appropriate values for its behavioral properties,
desired shape, dimensions and surface finish.
• Behavioral properties depend on characteristic
properties
• The characteristic are considered to be of two
types:
constitutional and
structural characteristics
 Constitutional Characteristics

Type And Amounts Of The Phase Presents in

Solid

Type And Amounts Of The Phase Presents in

Pores

The Composition Of The Solid Phases

 Structural Characteristics
Sizes Of The Phase Region Of Solid
Sizes Of The Phase Region Of Pores
Shapes Of These Regions
Phase Regions Oriented
Crystal Structures And Structural Perfection
Of The Solid Phases
Dimension And Shape Of The Intermediate
And Final Products
 Step Development

Raw Materials

Mixing

Milling

.. Screening .
. ..
.. ...... .
Large particle
mesh Slip
Small particle
Screening
Mineral Processing
 2.1
POWDER PROCESSING / COMMUNITION
• Comminution, a term used for the techniques for reducing particles size in
ceramics processing, deliver mechanical energy in various forms. Two general
types of comminution operations are distinguished: crushing and grinding

• crushing (coarse feed material, bigger than 50 to 100 mm)

• Machines for comminution are:

 jaw crusher,

 cone and gyratory crusher,

 roller crusher, impact crusher,

 tube mills (e.g. ball mills or autogenous mills),

 vertical roller mills,

 roller presses and others

 Preparation of Raw Materials
 Most shaping processes for traditional ceramics
require the starting material to be a plastic paste

 This paste is comprised of fine ceramic powders

mixed with water

 The starting raw ceramic material usually occurs in

nature as rocky lumps

 Purpose of the preparation step is to reduce the rocky

lumps to powder
 Comminution
Comminution : The act or process of reduction of particle size
with attendant increase in surface area and population of
particles.

Fine Grinding
Reduce
Comminution Crushing
Particle Size

Grinding

Milling
 Aims Size Reduction:
 De-agglomerate by separating particles from clusters.

 Decreases the size of powder to eliminate unwanted

coarse particles above a certain size.

 Increase specific surface area by producing a large

quantity of very fine size particles.

 Provides surface activation without causing large-scale

size reduction.

 Homogenize powder-solvent mixtures

 Carries out surface chemical and bulk chemical reactions

 Modify Shape

 Liberate Impurities
 Communition
Forces

Friction / Interparticle
Compression Impact
Shear contact
What’s Next?
Chapter 2.2

Air Classifier
 2.2
AIR CLASSIFICATION
• The purpose of classification is generally
separation by size
• Other factors affect the separation, such as:
ʘ particle density and shape,
ʘ fluid flow
ʘ hindered particle flow
2.2
AIR CLASSIFICATION
• Air classification is a method of separating
materials on the basis of differences in
particle size
• Normally accomplished by screening on
wire mesh sieves
• But this becomes progressively less effective
with decreasing particle size, particularly
when feeds in dry state and become
inefficient below 60 mesh (250m), even
though in wet condition
2.2
AIR CLASSIFICATION

Figure 3a: Laboratory scale air classifier

 2.2
An air classifier is an industrial machine which sorts materials by a combination of
size, shape, and density.

It works by injecting the material stream to be sorted into a chamber which

contains a column of rising air
PRINCIPLES OF AIR CLASSIFICATION

Inside the separation chamber, air drag on the objects supplies an upward force
which counteracts the force of gravity and lifts the material to be sorted up into
the air

Due to dependence of air drag on object size and shape, objects in moving air
column sorted vertically and can be separated
The fraction passing downward through the air stream is coarse, granular and of
higher density
Finer in particle size discharged through an air cyclone is, of lower density, flatter,
platy particles
Air classifiers commonly employed in industrial processes where a large volume
of mixed materials with differing physical characteristics need to be sorted quickly
and efficiently
Example?
 2.2
PRINCIPLES OF AIR CLASSIFICATION

Figure 3b: Air classification principle

 2.2 AIR CLASSIFICATION

• Types of Air Classification

Gravity Air Classifier

Centrifugal Air Classifier

Prater Air Classifier

Alpine Stratoplex High Effeciency Classifier

 GRAVITY AIR CLASSIFIER

• An appropriate machine for treating coarse

sized feed from 100m up to 6mm
• It is contain long zig-zag tube in which
separation takes place
• The only variables are the quantity of air
passing up the tube and the feed rate of
material to be separated
 Centrifugal Air Classifier

• Used for fine material below 250m

• The speed of classifying wheel can be controlled and
varied separating condition
• machines have been utilized for over the years are mineral
classification, metals classification, chemicals
classification, food products and fine grinding mill circuits
• In standard operation, the fine fraction is the finished
product
• Also remove excess fines from a coarse product
• In aggregate plants, fine limestone may be removed in the
air classifier to be used in agricultural limestone
• The coarse fraction is collected in one area requiring no
venting
• fine fraction is collected in a bin which requires only
enough venting (and dust collection equipment)
Operation

• The upper or circulating fan causes the air in the separator to

flow upward through the inner, separating chamber and
downward in the outer, collecting chamber

• The amount of air flow is controlled by external adjustment of

the shutters under the circulating fan

• The lower centrifugal fan controls the angular velocity of the

air and the centrifugal force which is the principle factor in
separation in the air classifier balancing the air flow and the
centrifugal force

• separation of most materials can be controlled in a particle

size range of from 60 mesh (250 microns) down to 400 mesh
(37 microns)

• 9/1/2012
 Product Finest until 3 micron

Centrifugal Air Classifier

 Prater Air Classifiers separate particles based on the
opposing principles of centrifugal force and aerodynamic
drag force

As product enters the primary air inlet, individual

particles are subjected to aerodynamic drag forces by the
conveying air

This drag force varies with the size and density of the
Prater Air Classifier

individual particles density of the individual particles

As particles spiral toward the classifier rotor, one of

two things occurs:
2.2.3

1) Drag force exceeds the centrifugal force exerted by the rotor

and particles pass through the machine as fines;

2) Centrifugal force overcomes the drag force, causing particles

to accelerate away from the rotor, Cut-point is determined
when the forces are equal, in which case particles have a
50/50 chance of passing as fines. Cut-point is variable and
can be controlled by adjusting the rotor speed. A secondary
air inlet introduces a controllable amount of air that moves
upward into the classification zone, increasing the residence
time of agglomerated particles
 Prater Air Classifier

Figure 4: Prater air classifier

 Alpine Stratoplex High Efficiency

• Alpine Stratoplex air classifiers are newly

developed high-efficiency air classifiers for the
fine to medium separation range with a d97 of
approximately 10-200µm.
• Even at high feed rates, the quality of
classification is maintained.
• With a pressure drop of only approximately 30-40
inches water column for the entire classifying
system, low-energy operations are guaranteed
 2.2.4
Alpine Stratoplex High Efficiency
Alpine Stratoplex air classifiers are newly developed
high-efficiency air classifiers for the fine to medium
separation range with a d97 of approximately 10-
200µm.

Even at high feed rates, the quality of classification

is maintained. With a pressure drop of only
approximately 30-40 inches water column for the
entire classifying system, low-energy operations are
guaranteed.

The Stratoplex is a compact and modular system

and permits not only top performance but also a
trouble-free, space saving system installation. Many
sizes are available with capacities of up to 100 tons/hr
feed.

Figure 5: Alpine Stratoplex air classifier

Quiz:

• What are the main properties of materials

that is most influence the efficiency of
separation process by air.