ALL NEGATIVE ALUMINUM CONVEYING
Get all the benefits of our virtually maintenance-free Venturi system with the minimum possible operating horsepower using our all negative conveying system. The system vacuums the material into a large chamber or separator, where the air velocity is dramatically reduced and the material falls out of the conveying air stream. The conveying air continues to be pulled from the chamber and exhausted either through a filter or directly to the atmosphere. Using a series of dampers, the system can be designed to help segregate different metals and alloys in order to maximize the value of the recyclable material.
ALUMINUM SCRAP ALL NEGATIVE CONVEYING CASE STUDY
BACKGROUND
A Quickdraft customer since the 1960s and a world leader in rolled aluminum products operates an automotive scrap aluminum recycling operation. The aluminum mill provides car manufacturers with aluminum, which helps to “lightweight” vehicles, a process that increases MPG standards. Then, when the car manufacturer is done stamping the aluminum, they send the scrap aluminum back to to recycle back into its operation.
PROBLEM
For this project, the aluminum producer needed a way to convey the aluminum scrap coming back into the plant from the auto manufacturer. The materials arrive at the plant in a trailer, are unloaded, and then pass through a drying system. The plant then needed a way to convey up to 500 pounds of scrap per minute from the drier, directly to the furnace 700 feet away. The challenge in this design was not only the length of the conveying system, but also the various obstacles the conveying duct needed to avoid. There was also limited space above the furnace, and the customer wanted the option to be able to discharge material into a holding bin instead of the furnace, if needed. And the system needed to be efficient, streamlined and easy to use.
SOLUTION
Our Quickdraft team designed a dependable and essentially maintenance-free Aluminum Scrap All Negative System to pneumatically convey the scrap from the dryer to the furnace. The system conveys 30,000 pounds of aluminum per hour, and maintains necessary conveying vacuum pressure from start to finish, even when the scrap is discharged from the system. We also added a diverter so the customer could discharge material into a holding bin instead of the furnace, as requested.
RESULTS
The plant is extremely pleased with the efficiency of their new metal conveying system. This system will be part of their overall recycling efforts, which they estimate will allow them to process as much as 20 million pounds of recycled scrap per month. Most importantly, they are able to continue investing in their sustainability efforts, and we are proud to have supported them on their latest project.