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Frequently Asked Questions
A Ploughshare Mixer is often suitable for materials that tend to agglomerate.
Its plough-shaped mixing tools generate intensive circulation of the material, while optional high-speed choppers can break up lumps and agglomerates during mixing.
The final selection should be based on the material characteristics and process requirements.
Vortex mixers are designed for a wide variety of powders, granules, and powder-liquid mixtures.
Typical applications include chemical powders, food ingredients, pharmaceutical powders, animal feed, dry mortar, ceramics, battery materials, fertilizers, pesticides, minerals, refractory materials, and other bulk solids. The actual mixer configuration should be selected according to the physical and chemical properties of the material.
Vortex manufacture a wide range of industrial powder and bulk solids mixing equipment, including:
- Horizontal Ribbon Mixers
- Ploughshare Mixers
- Double Shaft Paddle Mixers (Paddle Mixers / “No-Gravity” Mixers)
- Conical Twin-Screw Mixers
- Vertical Screw Ribbon Mixers
- Double Cone Mixers
- V-Type Mixers
- 3D Motion Mixers
- Customized mixing systems and complete mixing lines
The most suitable mixer depends on your materials, production capacity, mixing ratio, required mixing time, and process conditions.
Mixer capacity should be evaluated using both the total vessel volume and the effective working volume. The required volume depends on material bulk density, batch weight, filling ratio and the mixing principle of the selected machine. A mixer should not normally be filled to its total geometric volume because sufficient space is required for material movement and effective mixing. For this reason, selecting a mixer based only on vessel volume can result in an unsuitable configuration.
The appropriate industrial powder mixer depends on several factors, including:
- Material characteristics
- Bulk density
- Particle size
- Required mixing uniformity
- Batch size or production capacity
- Moisture content
- Whether heating or drying is required
- Whether liquid addition is required
- Required discharge configuration
- Production and automation requirements
Vortex provides different powder mixer designs so that equipment can be selected according to the specific process requirements.
Vortex powder mixer selection depends on several factors, including:
- Material type and characteristics
- Bulk density and particle size
- Material flowability
- Moisture content
- Viscosity
- Mixing ratio
- Batch size or required production capacity
- Whether liquid addition is required
- Required mixing uniformity
- Temperature, pressure, vacuum, or other process requirements
Vortex engineers can recommend a suitable powder mixer based on your material and process requirements.
Yes, We can supply simple stand alone panels or automated PLC controlled systems. We normally install and test all controls on our mixers before they are shipped.
Yes, we normally test the mixers before they are shipped and mark out the wire need to connect on the control box.
We manufacture specialty mixing equipment for powder & bulk materials. Included are ribbon blender, plough mixer, conical screw mixer, twin shaft paddle mixer, V blender, double cone blender and other auxiliary equipment such as screw conveyor, quantitive auger filler.
We sell across the world, our cusotmers distribute 5 continents.
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Plough Shear Mixer for Drying Application
Plough Shear Mixer is the most widely used for multiple application such as mixing, coating, drying and reaction. In different places, the name of plough shear mixer is different. In Europe, people like to call it Plough Share Mixer. In US, people like to call Plow Mixer. In Asia, people like to call Plough Shear Mixer. Anyway, the principle is the same which is making material in fluidizing action with high speed to get homogeneity mixing in short time.
Vortex got an order from a Thailand customer who produce food product. This customer need mixer for drying function to make 20% moisture product into 3% water content dry powder. The process is as following:
A. Firstly, the worker feed raw material into mixer by manual before starting the mixer.
B. Then start the mixer slowing first with inverter control.
C. Using heating jacket to increase temperature inside the mxier by 120 degree.
D. Vacuum pump to connect with mixer to extract steam vapor out to increase drying effect.
E. After final drying, increase the speed of mixer to increase drying speed.
According to our experience, the drive unit must be strong enough for drying mixer because the material will be sticky during drying period, especially in the middle stage of drying because the material is in semi-dry status. Furthermore, the shaft speed should be variable control because the Plough Shear Mixer needn’t use high speed in the early and middle stage during drying. After final but before totally dried, the shaft will be fast to increase drying speed.
As for heating medium, it could be steam, hot water or hot oil but steam and hot oil is better. The jacket will be design according to the pressure of process. Insulation layer is a must in order to keep temperature and avoid heat hurt outside.
As for vacuum filter, we shall take consideration during vacuum pump extract vapor out. The filter will avoid the fine powder material take out together with vapor and block the nozzle of vacuum pump.
Regarding seal part, packing seal is necessary for normal drying. If there is much pressure inside the vessel, mechanical seal will be a better choice but we must pay highly attention on mechanical seal because not all of the product can be suitable to use mechanical seal.
Generally speaking, the whole drying period is at least 1-2 hours depending on the water content of raw material. The first and middle stage will be faster than final stage because the water component is hard to be dried at final stage.
Nowadays, more and more customers prefer using one machine to fulfill multiple functions. Plough Shear Mixer is the best choice to be designed in different options. Vortex is willing to share our experience to every customers for helping them to get the right mixing solution.
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