During the production and storage of nano powders, silo blockages are a common challenge affecting continuous operations. A nanomaterials company in Ma'anshan, Anhui, produced raw materials with extremely small particle sizes and large specific surface areas, causing frequent blockages such as bridges and mouse holes inside the silos, seriously affecting stable supply in downstream processes. Head Powder customized a set of nano powder silo arch breaking solutions tailored to the customer's specific working conditions, successfully achieving smooth silo discharge and supporting efficient production line operation.

Customer pain points

The nano powders used in customers' production processes have the following characteristics: particle sizes are usually below 100 nanometers, with strong van der Waals forces between particles, easily adhering to each other and forming agglomeration; At the same time, powder flowability is extremely poor, making bridging and arching easily occur in the silo and causing blockage at the discharge outlet. Traditional mechanical vibration or manual tapping methods are not only inefficient, but also prone to structural damage to the silo and cannot effectively improve powder hanging issues. Intermittent production interruptions caused frequent stoppages of subsequent mixing and packaging processes, resulting in significant capacity losses and the risk of dust exposure from manual cleaning.

Product advantages

Based on the unique rheological characteristics of nano powders, Head Powder adopts a design combining multi-stage pneumatic arch breaking with flexible vibration:

• Directional air blades shatter the arch: Multiple sets of air knife nozzles are arranged at the silo cone, using pulsed high-pressure gas to directly impact the bridge area, instantly damaging the powder overlap structure without causing powder splashing or dust.
• Low-frequency, high-amplitude vibrator: A specially designed low-frequency vibrator is installed on the outer wall of the silo wall. Amplitude and frequency can be automatically adjusted according to the powder condition, preventing fatigue damage to the silo wall while effectively promoting downward powder flow.
• Intelligent control feedback: Integrates a level gauge and pressure sensor to monitor feeding status in real time. When abnormal material flow is detected, the arch-breaking program is automatically activated, enabling unattended operation.
• Explosion-proof and wear-resistant design: All parts in contact with powder are made of stainless steel and polished to a mirror finish to reduce powder adhesion; All electrical components are selected according to explosion-proof standards and suitable for environments with nano powder dust.

After this solution was put into operation, the frequency of silo blockages dropped by over 90%, the feeding rate steadily increased, workshop production efficiency increased by about 30%, manual cleaning frequency decreased from three times daily to once a week, and dust leakage risks were eliminated, earning high recognition from customers.