Taking In The Sights ... and the Silos

Our acoustic cleaning technology is used in many countries far and wide.  I have mentioned before in this blog that the variety of applications for which acoustic cleaners are used and the range of industries that need our products as part of their MPM work means that we are constantly in demand to supply our equipment.

One of the greatest demands comes from the cement industry. It is not surprising therefore that when our Technical Director Alex Bergus travels to conduct a site inspection or installation, a cement plant will often figure on his itinerary.

These photographs were taken by Alex on two entirely different trips, to countries with very different cultures. Yet they share a common theme – colourful local sights .... and silos!

India - away from site, a colourful street in Mumbai

India - on site with PAS-75S acoustic cleaner on a cement silo

Egypt - away from site, camel mounted police at the Great Pyramids

Egypt - on site in the hot sun looking up at a silo

Whilst the landscapes, cities, people, languages and culture that appear on Alex's itinerary may vary, there is one thing for certain .... wherever he goes, if they have cement plants with the all too often associated problems of silo bridging and ratholing, they will have an equal need for the help that our acoustic cleaning technology can offer. Long may it be that we can help this type of plant, wherever it may be ... cement production plays a crucial role in countries being able to develop and improve their infrastructure and thus, hopefully, improve the lives of their people.

Hammering The Hopper - A Rash Move For Cleaning

As we know from solving many silo bridging and ratholing problems, the discharge section of a silo or hopper can off be an area of concern for silo operations managers.  One thing we have encountered numerous times over the years is a phenomenon called hammer rash. Ironically it is created in an attempt to actually remedy a problem - when a silo operative uses a metal hammer or iron bar to hit the hopper discharge point to dislodge a blockage such as cement buildup. 

If a rubber hammer were used the ‘rash’ would not occur but often tools like this are mislaid so when a blockage needs dislodging – and plant operators like to tackle these things quickly to avoid downtime – then anything that’s handy will be used to hammer against the side of the metal section.

Over time this kind of hammering takes its toll  and the metal sections ultimately have to be replaced – an expensive exercise both in terms of materials, manpower and downtime.

The first photograph shows a  gypsum silo hopper discharge point with such severe  hammer rash that it had to be replaced, despite the installation of a Bin Activator which is supposed to aid material flow.

This second photograph shows a gypsum hopper already damaged by hammer rash but where the plant installed one of our acoustic cleaners in sufficient time to prevent it from being replaced.

The truth is that manual intervention can be avoided by installing acoustic cleaners for hopper cleaning. The audiosonic sound waves generated keep the gypsum material flowing at the maximum discharge rate so there is no buildup, no blockage and no resulting hammer rash and damage to the discharge points.

Silo Cleaning & Stats

Statistics are a very useful analytical tool in business and we study carefully the analytical data in relation to visitors to our three web sites. Taking the main Primasonics International web site, time and time again the greatest numbers of visitors are seeking solutions to their silo storage problems.

The three main areas which concern them are:-

How can we clear our silos totally safely, quickly, efficiently without the need for manual entry?
Our answer is simple .... the Primasonics Prima Whip and Prima Lance facilitate excellent silo cleaning without any human risk.

How can we prevent continuing side wall material build-up and ratholing?
Again our answer is simply to install one of our powerful low frequency Primasonics Acoustic Cleaners on top of the silo and 'hey presto!' side wall build up is eliminated. This is especially true with our mega powerful PAS-60 (60 Hz) - currently the most powerful acoustic cleaner in the world - which has been proven to prevent this problem from occurring in silos with capacities of up to 33,000 tonnes.

Finally, how can we prevent material bridging in the hopper and discharge sections of the silo?
You’ve guessed it ... simply by installing a higher frequency Primasonics Acoustic Cleaner on the hopper section. Depending on the size of hopper and the material we usually recommend either a PAS-350 or PAS-230 model.

I was just looking through our sales statistics and we have now solved silo build up and blockage problems in over fifty countries worldwide and over a wide range of industries such as cement, chemicals, petrochemicals, carbon black, coal, wood flour, food materials and products  and many more.

However, I am sure that still thousands of silo owners with material flow problems who could benefit from our practical and professional help. So just come and talk to me personally about your need for silo cleaning - via Skype (donald-primasonics) or email sound@primasonics.com. I and my acoustic cleaning team supported by our international network of agents will be glad to help.

Ratholing – When Acoustic Cleaners Come Into Their Own

According to Wiktionary (the wiki-based open content dictionary), ratholing is an uncountable noun - ie. it has no plural form just as, for example, the word 'information'. According to Wiktionary and a range of other sources on the web, ratholing has several meanings and all of them poles apart!

The average person in the street might never have heard of the word ratholing but speak to any of the following and they will know the word well:

a) a poker player

b) a computer network/server technician

c) a cement plant manager

A poker player will be accused of ratholing if they have been seen removing poker chips from the table whilst a poker game is being played. This is just one of many poker card tricks used by poker players.

A computer network/server technician will encounter ratholing in an entirely different context as the term relates to the process where a proxy server identifies a client who is causing problems by generating too much traffic and is subsequently blacklisted.

A cement plant engineer worries about ratholing in silos and hoppers at the plant. Also referred to as funnel flow, ratholing in this context is when the silo or hopper is emptied and the central core of the cement inside drops but an outer ring close to the side walls remains and doesn't drop and empty. Ideally the plant manager needs to see all the cement emptied from the silo or hopper and the best way to avoid this kind of ratholing is to use acoustic cleaners.

I can’t say that I’m familiar with definitions a) and b) but when it comes to silo cleaning, I’m proud to have done my fair share of combat against ratholing!