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Powder and Bulk Engineering, March 2001 73
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Thomas Godbey Donaldson Co., Dust CollectionGroup

for cleaning dust particles from air -is mounted on each

receiving bin. (The bin vent can also be applied to a vac-
Bulk solids processors typically spend a lot of time uum pneumatic conveying system; in this case, the bin
designing and selecting major components for a vent -often called afiZter-receiver- must withstand the
pneumatic conveying system. But choosing a bin differentialpressure between the system’s vacuum and at-
vent for the receiving bin at the system’s end often mospheric pressure.)
getsshort shrift. This article explainshow a bin vent
functions in a pneumatic conveying system, what In operation, the air mover draws air from the air inlet at
types of bin vents are available,and how to choose a the system’s start and pushes it down the conveying line.
bin vent that will help your system perform to your The material feeder meters material into the line. The air
speciiications. in the line entrains the material and conveys it down the
line to the receiving bin. As the coarse particles drop out of
the air and fill the bin, the dust-laden conveying air flows
upward into the bin vent. In the bin vent, the filters collect
the dust particles from the air, then return the particles to

T
he fact that bin vent suppliers often receive rush or- the bin when the filters are cleaned. The clean air is ex-
ders for bin vents is a telltale clue that many plants hausted into the atmosphere.
install a new pneumatic conveying system without
thinking much about what kinds of bin vents are available
and what type is best suited to their conveying system. What bin vent types are available
Don’t let your system’s bin vent choice be an afterthought.
Consider the following information about bin vents with Two types of bin vents are common: a shaker bin vent for
the same level of care you apply to choosing components intermittent operation and a pulse-jet bin vent for continu-
for the rest of your pneumatic conveyingsystem.’ ous operation. Both are specialized versions of standard
dust collectors. You can find more detailed information
about them in Table I.
How a bin vent works in a pneumatic
conveying system Shaker bin vent. The shaker bin vent, shown in Figure 2,
A simple pneumatic conveying system operating under consists of a housing enclosing multiple bag (round tube
pressure, shown in Figure 1, typically consists of a con- or envelope) filters. These filters are made of woven cot-
veying line and various equipment components,including ton or polyester media. During the pneumatic conveying
an air mover (such as a blower), a material feeder (such as system’s operation, dust particles from the conveying air-
a rotary airlock that feeds material from a supply hopper’s flow collect on the bin vent’s filters as the air passes up-
outlet), and a receiving bin (or bins) that stores the con- ward through the receiving bin. At intervals, the bin vent
veyed material at the system’s end. A bin vent -basically, shakes the filters to dislodge the dust, but this can only
a specialized dust collector equipped with filter elements occur when the upward conveying airflow is stopped so
36 Powder and Bulk Engineering, March 2001

the dislodged dust can fall back down into the receiving Pulse-jet bin vent. The pulse-jet bin vent, shown in Figure
bin. This makes the shaker bin vent suitable only for a 3, also consists of a housing enclosing several filters.
pneumatic conveying system that can be stopped periodi- These can be bag filters, made of felted media, or pleated
cally for filter cleaning.

The interval between shaker cleaning cycles is determined

by the pressure drop -that is, the resistance -across the
filter media, as measured by a pressure sensor. The pres-
sure drop is determined by the dust’s fineness and the
thickness of the dust cake on the filter surface: the finer the
dust, the denser and more impervious the dust cake, and
the thicker the dust cake, the greater the resistance. The
dust cake’s thickness is affected by how much air volume
passes through the filter media and the time interval since
the filter was last cleaned. When the pressure drop across
the filter media increases to the point where airflow
through the filter is restricted and the receiving bin’s fill-
ing rate slows, or dust escapes through the filter media or
the receiving bin openings, or the receiving bin’s relief
pressure is exceeded, the pneumatic conveying system
must be stopped so the bin vent can shake the bag filters
clean and the dust can drop into the receiving bin.
 0
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38 Powder and Bulk Engineering, March 2001 73
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cartridge filters, which are available in several types of and back into the receiving bin. Very small, light particles 5
media, generally for finer or difficult-to-handle dusts. But are re-entrained into the conveying airflow and rede- d

unlike the shaker bin vent, the pulse-jet bin vent can clean posited onto the filter media until the particles agglomer- 0
the filters while the pneumatic conveying system is oper- ate with other particles and become large and dense
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ating, thus providing continuous operation. To clean the enough to make the journey back to the receiving bin.
filters, the bin vent injects a high-pressure jet of com-
pressed airinto some of the filters, dislodging the collected
dust from the media while the other filters remain online. The pulse-jet bin vent’s filter-cleaning effectiveness is
The pulse-jet cleaning continues in sequence until all fil- thus clearly influenced by the can velocity, which depends
ters in the bin vent are cleaned and the dislodged dust has on the bin vent’s bottom opening area, the particle density,
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dropped into the receiving bin. and the particles’ ability to agglomerate (that is, stick to 0
other particles). Very fine, low-density, nonagglomerating d
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particles, such as fumed silica and activated carbon parti- %
Because the bin vent cleans the filters during pneumatic cles, are the most difficult to clean from the filters. Effec- P,
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conveying operation, the dust dislodged from the filters tively dislodging such particles can require that the bin Q
must fall through the conveying airflow that’s moving up- vent have a very large bottom opening and, thus, a low can m
ward through the receiving bin into the bin vent. The air- velocity. Such a large opening requires a correspondingly r_
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f l o w ’ ~upward velocity -called the can velocity -is large opening in the receiving bin’s roof, which not only
calculated by dividing the airflow rate by the cross-sec- reduces the bin’s structural strength but leaves less room
tional area of the bin vent’s bottom opening. The smaller on the roof for vents, valves, and other componentsand for
the bin vent’s bottom opening, the higher the can velocity. workers to access the bin vent.
The larger and denser the dislodged particle, the more eas- 1.
3
ily it will fall from the filter through the upward airflow ra
One way to overcome this limitation is to install a pulse-jet
bin vent inside -rather than on top of -the receiving
bin. Such a bin vent arrangement, called an insertable bin
40 Powder and Bulk Engineering, March 2001

vent, is shown in Figure 4. In this arrangement the filters feet per minute by square feet) -a filtration velocity of 3
aren’t enclosed by a housing, so they’re fully exposed to fpm. Thus, a bin vent that must provide a 3-to-1 air-to-
the airflow in the receiving bin. This allows the airflow to cloth ratio for a specific application at a 600-cfm airflow
contact the filters from all directions, minimizingor elimi- requires 200 square feet of filter media.
nating the rising airflow’s can velocity. While this type of
bin vent requires short filters -typically 3 feet or under
-to minimize the receiving bin’s requiredfieeboard area The bin vent manufacturerwill base the unit’s air-to-cloth
(that is, the space between the bin roof and the stored mate- ratio on your material. If you have a fine, light-density,
rial’s surface), the large freeboard area also produces a free-flowing material, the manufacturer will use a lower
slower airflow velocity. This allows most of the captured air-to-cloth ratio regardless of the bin vent type. The man-
particles to fall easily into the receiving bin without being ufacturer will also use a lower ratio and, thus, more filter
re-entrained. As long as the receiving bin has sufficient media, for materials such as sugar, soda ash, and others
freeboard area for this arrangement,the insertable bin vent that tend to form a hard, crusty dust cake on the media sur-
provides better filtering performancethan a roof-mounted face over time in humid environments. Such a cake can be
pulse-jet bin vent. almost imperviousto airflow, so more filter media surface
area is required to compensatefor this blockage.

Work with your bin vent manufacturerto size the unit for
your application:
The smaller the bin vent’s bottom opening, the highei
the can velocity.
*Shakerbin vent: Size a shaker bin vent to provide
enough filter media surface area to allow the dust cake to
build and the pressure drop to increase between cleaning
cycles without reaching an excessively high pressure
drop -typically, no more than 8 to 10 inches water -
A note about cartridgefilters in pulse-jet bin vents. It’s before your pneumatic conveying system fills the receiv-
true that pleated cartridge filters have been used most often ing bin with material. Thus, the longer your system’s fill-
in pulse-jet dust collection equipment for light-dust-load- ing cycle, the lower the bin vent’s air-to-cloth ratio must
ing applications that filter fine dusts rather than in bin be - and the more filter media surface area and the
vents that handle pneumatic conveying airflows with larger the bin vent you’ll need.
heavy dust loadings. But today’s cartridge filters with
wide, shallow pleats allow pulse-jet equipment to be used
for pneumatic conveying bin vents handling heavier dust Pulse-jet bin vent: Size a pulse-jet bin vent to provide
loadings. A pulse-jet bin vent that uses these cartridge fil- enough filter media surface area to allow a uniform pres-
ters also uses fewer filter elements and is easier to maintain sure drop of 6 to 8 inches water without excessive pulse-
than a pulse-jet bin vent with bag filters. The cartridge- jet cleaning. The bin vent must also accommodate your
style bin vent is more compact, allowing it to be used in ap- material’s can velocity restrictions: If you have a light-
plications with limited headroom. The cartridge filter density material, the can velocity through the bin vent
media can also filter extremely fine free-flowing materi- shouldn’t exceed 150 fpm, but if you have a heavier ma-
als, such as aluminaand toner dust. These can become per- terial, the can velocity can be as high as 200 fpm.
manently embedded in conventional woven or felted
fabric media, leading to the filter’s early failure because of
uncontrolled pressure drop. How conveying system type affects your
bin vent choice
How to size your bin vent Every pneumatic conveying system operates under a
To size a bin vent for your pneumatic conveying system’s unique set of variables. Your pneumaticconveying system
receiving bin, you need to know how much filter media sur- type determines how much the system’s operating vari-
face area your application requires. This depends on your ables will affect your bin vent selection and sizing. Let’s
conveying system, the bin vent type, the airflow volume take a closer look at various pneumaticconveying systems
through the bin vent, and your material’s characteristics. and how their operation varies.

The bin vent manufacturer determines a bin vent’s optimal Three pneumatic conveying system types -dilute-phase,
filtration velocity, commonly called the air-to-clothratio, two-phase, and dense-phase -are used in general con-
for various materials based on the unit’s design. For exam- veying applications in handling and processing plants.
ple, a 3-to-1 air-to-cloth ratio represents 3 cfm/ft2of filter The fourth type -bulk unloading -conveys material
media, or- with dimensional analysis (dividing the cubic from a bulk truck to adant’s storage silo.
 0
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Powder and Bulk Engineering, March 2001 41
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Dilute-phasesystem. In a dilute-phasepneumatic convey- well-known, and both the airflow rate and material load- 5
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ing system, material is entrained in the conveying air and ing are constant. This simplifiesyour bin vent choice for a
transferred in dilutephase, or streamflow, through the con- dilute-phase system because you don’t need to choose a 0
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veying line. The material travels at a slightly slower veloc- unit to handle wide variations in airflow rate and material 0
ity than the airflow. loading.

Almost any dry bulk material can be conveyed in dilute Two-phase system. In a two-phase (also called medium-
phase. Typically, the airflow rate through the system is phase) pneumatic conveying system, the system’soperat-

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42 Powder and Bulk Engineering, March 2001 0
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ing pressure is slightly higher and the conveying line di-
ameter is slightly smaller. Material settles on the bottom of
During most of the unloading process -generally lasting
from 60 to 90 minutes -the airflow rate through the sys-
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the conveying line’s horizontal sections, forming a tem to the silo is typically between 550 and 600 inlet cubic d

saltated layer that reduces the line’s cross-sectional area. feet per minute (icfm), a unit of measure that accuratelyre- 0
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The airflow rate above the saltated layer increases and flects the actual airflow rate through a bin vent when it’s o
causes material to be conveyed in dilute phase above the exhausting the clean air to the atmosphere. But as the ma- -0
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layer. terial is nearly emptied from one truck compartment, a E
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magnified receiver effect, called a surge, occurs. The air- cn
flow rate during the surge can be four to five times the sys- s
Unlike a dilute-phase system, which can handle many tem’s normal airflow rate and can last 3 to 10 seconds. ca3
types of material, a two-phase system is primarily used to Although the surge usually occurs only once, just as the -0
convey fly ash and cement. The system’s airflow rate is entire truck empties, it can occur several times, as each 0
lower than that in a dilute-phase system and the material compartment empties.
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loading is typically higher, but both the airflow rate and %
material loading are relatively constant, with variations P,
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typically less than 20 percent from the average airflow rate If you select and size the silo’s bin vent to handle only the Q
and material loading. As a result, choosing a bin vent for average airflow rate through the bulk unloading system, m
this system is also relatively simple. rather than the surge, several consequences are likely: r_
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Dense-phase system. In a dense-phase (also calledpiston- Particles will be forced deep into and through the bin E.
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flow)pneumatic conveying system, the conveying line fills vent’s filter media during the surge, resulting in visible (D

with material and air can’t flow through, causing the dust emissions from the bin vent. 2.
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material to form a piston. Introducing air behind the piston ra
creates a pressure differential across the piston that causes Conventionalfilter cleaning won’t be able to remove the
the piston to move. The airflow rate determines the pis- particles forced deep into the filter media, and each sub-
ton’s speed through the line. The system’s operating pres- sequent surge will further block the media’s pores until
sure is often higher than that of other systems. the pressure drop in the bin vent reaches an unacceptable
level during the unloading system’s normal conveying
cycle.
The system can convey many different materials. A pres-
sure tank (also called apressurepot or blowpot) feeds ma-
terial intermittently into the system, which results in large, The high pressure drop can overpressurize the silo and
frequent variations in both the airflow rate and material cause its pressure relief valve to open, releasing a large
loading. As a result, the airflow rate and material loading amount of dust into the atmosphere.
for the system are each given as a time-weighted average.
However, these averages don’t accurately identify the bur-
den placed on the bin vent at a given moment: The airflow The overpressurizationcan damage seals and housings in
rate can vary from near zero to twice the average rate, and both the silo and bin vent.
sometimes the airflow rate can briefly reach three to five
times the average rate (called the receiver efsect). The bin
To prevent these problems, some bin vent manufacturers
vent reacts to instantaneous conditions, not averagecondi-
recommend choosing an oversized bin vent that will com-
tions, and so the bin vent you choose must be able to han-
pensate for the factors that affect the surge’s magnitude
dle this receiver effect and operate effectively during the
and duration. These factors include the operator’s unload-
brief periods of higher airflow rates. If the bin vent can’t
ing practices, the truck’s condition, the material being un-
handle the receiver effect, the consequences can be severe:
loaded, and the unloading system’s conveying line length.
Dust will pass through rather than collect on the filters, the How much to oversize the bin vent is somewhat subjective
bin vent filter cleaning cycles will be less effective,and the
but depends largely on the manufacturer’sexperience.
receiving bin can be overpressurized,which can cause the
pressure relief valve to open and degrade the equipment’s
seals and housings, creating dust leaks. Apulse-jet bin vent is best for a bulk unloading system be-
cause the bin vent’s continuous pulse-jet cleaning during
the system’s 60- to 90-minute normal unloading cycle
Bulk unloading system. In a bulk unloading system, ma- maintains a low pressure drop across the filters. This al-
terial is pneumatically conveyed from one of the compart- lows the bin vent to handle the system’s brief surge with-
ments in a bulk truck to a silo (or other storage vessel). In out an excessivepressure drop or its consequences.
this case, the bin vent is located on the silo. The system,
which typically provides dense-phase conveying, war-
rants special discussion here because of the magnitude of Nonetheless, many users choose a shaker bin vent for a
the system’s airflow rate fluctuations and the effect this bulk unloading system because the bin vent is mechani-
will have on your bin vent selection and sizing. cally cleaned and doesn’t require a compressed-air supply,
 0
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44 Powder and Bulk Engineering, March 2001
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thus avoiding the problems long associated with using 5
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compressed air in silos. (These are typically moisture
problems, such as moisture contaminating hygroscopic 0
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materials, freezing in the air lines, rusting equipment,and 0
so on. Filtering the compressedair can eliminate the prob- 77
lems.) Unfortunately, the shaker bin vent isn’t the best can-
didate for the bulk unloading system because the bin
vent’s filters are cleaned only intermittently and thus are
less able to handle the unloading system’s surge. Because
the bin vent isn’t cleaned during the system’s normal un- -0
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loading cycle, a thick dust cake forms on the filters, pro- d
ducing a pressure drop that’s at its highest level at the Q
surge’s onset. To ensure that the shaker bin vent performs %
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pulse-jet bin vent.2 r_
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Making your bin vent choice

Choosing a bin vent shouldn’t be a last-minute step in de-
signing your pneumatic conveying system. To select a bin
vent that efficiently cleans the air exhausted from your re-
ceiving bin and is correctly sized for your application, work
closely with your bin vent manufacturerand consider the
factors listed in Table I. Devoting as much care to this
process as you do to choosing other major componentsin
your pneumaticconveying system will help ensure that the
entire system performs up to your expectations. PBE

Editor’s notes
1. Bin vents are also used on receiving bins in mechanical conveying
applications. These systems are affected by fewer variables than
pneumatic conveying systems and thus it’s typically easier to select a
bin vent and size it for a mechanical conveying system. Contact the
author for more information.

2. Find more information on handling a bulk unloading system’s surge

in these Powder and Bulk Engineering articles: “Pneumatic
unloading: Staying ahead of the surge,” Darren A. Traub, October
1998, page 17, and “Engineering study: Solving a bin vent problem
in a pneumatic unloading system,” Donald A. Siefers, March 1996,
page 51.

For further reading

Find more information on pneumatic conveying, bin
vents, and other dust collection equipmentin articles listed
under “Pneumatic conveying” and “Dust collection” in
Powder and Bulk Engineering’s comprehensive“Index to
articles” (in the December 2000 issue and at www.pow
derbulk.com).

Thomas Godbey is technical consulting manager for

Donaldson Co., Dust Collection Group, I 1 301 Electron
Drive, Louisville, KY 40299-3867; 502-267-0707, ext.
216,fax 502-267-4490 ([email protected]).
He holds a BS in engineeringfrom the Universityof Ken-
tucky in Lexington and teaches industrial ventilation at
schools and universitiesthroughout the US and Canada.