Processing, June 2018
Mixing Blending S i m p l i f y your mixing operation Production ef ciency depends on a well developed strategy By Christine Banaszek Charles Ross Son Company well developed mixing strategy is essential to production ef ciency Ideally mixing equipment and procedures are evaluated periodically as production needs change or when new formulations come through the pipeline However mixing is often overlooked A in terms of upgrades at least until it becomes a source of drastic losses whether because of low yield recurring contamination inconsistent product quality or excessive labor hours In mixing it is not too di cult to nd something that works Yet while there may be several ways to make good product not all are e cient competitive or even sustainable Limitations in capital expenditure and overreliance on legacy equipment are common obstacles that keep processes stagnant for years and decades even as various aspects of the business are constantly undergoing significant changes The irony is that a careful re evaluation of mixing procedures can reveal achievable steps to significantly reduce costs One technique is to examine the entire production flow and determine if multiple mixing operations can be performed in a single machine without sacrificing product quality One major benefit to one pot processing is the reduction of energy consumption though many other incentives are equally justifiable including faster throughput easier cleanup less transfer steps and lower operating cost Table 1 shows a few examples where multiple mixing steps were successfully consolidated into a single mixer In each case the simpli ed mixing operation gained tremendous competitive advantage for the manufacturer 40 Processing JUNE 2018 Figure 1 Multishaft mixer equipped with three independently driven agitators three wing anchor high speed disperser and high shear rotor stator mixer This con guration is well suited for medium to high viscosity applications such as slurries pastes and suspensions up to several hundred thousand centipoise cP All graphics courtesy of Charles Ross Son Company Figure 3 A batch style ultra high shear mixer capable of reducing measured particle size comparable to one or two passes through a media mill Figure 2 Planetary disperser used for highly lled viscous products up to around 2 million cP The rectangular stirrer blade and high speed disperser revolve around the batch while rotating on their own axes at variable speeds Figure 4 All stainless steel laboratory doubleplanetary mixer When equipped with high viscosity HV Blades US Patent No 6652137 a double planetary mixer as shown can ef ciently handle thick formulations up to 6 million cP or more This mixer type is also recommended for many shear sensitive and abrasive materials
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