Feed systems are used on High-Rate Thickeners to achieve roughly 12 times the throughput of conventional machines of similar size while substantially reducing water consumption and saving on flocculant costs. In operation, slurry is pulled into the open-top mix channel and water from the clear zone of the thickener is educted into the mix channel for efficient feed dilution.
Feed Dilution System Advantages
- Highest capacity / Lowest flocculant consumption
- Boost settling rates and dramatically reduce polymer consumption
- Utilize influent energy for polymer mixing, eliminating all moving parts
- Retrofits are available for most conventional thickeners
FLSmidth Minerals offers several different kinds of feed dilution systems that can be specified to your thickener application including:
- E-Duc® Feed Dilution System (Patented)
- Variable Dilution Feed System
- DynaFloc® Feedwell
- Dynacharge Feed Dilution System
See below for more information about each of these Feed Dilution Systems...
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E-DUC® Feedwell System
The basic components of an EIMCO E-DUC® System are the eductor nozzle and slurry mix tube or channel. The head of the undiluted feed is used as the driving force for the eductor nozzle which is located just below the liquid level. Supernatant is pulled into the mix tube for feed dilution and flocculant is added at the nozzle where it is thoroughly mixed in a low-shear environment to minimize floc breakup. A thorough analysis of test data is made for each application to determine the geometry and sizing of all components necessary to optimize performance. Since its development in 1991, FLSmidth Minerals has installed E-DUC® Systems at over 200 sites around the word. About half of these are retrofits of existing thickeners.
Features and Benefits - Can achieve very large dilution flows - installations up to 128m diameter handles high dilution rations and very high tonnages
- Easy to install/retrofit - low capital cost - short downtime
- No moving parts - low maintenance
- Reduces flocculant consumption - lower operating cost (up to 60% flocculant cost reduction)
- Internal dilution - no pumps required
- Dilutes and mixes prior to the feedwell
- Increases thickener capacity - less area required
- Increases underflow concentration
- Improves overflow clarity
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Variable Dilution Feed System
Building on the patented technology of the E-Duc system, the Variable Dilution Feed system offers greater flexibility for your thickener's dilution control system. Axial flow pumps have been added and designed to provide infinite flow regulation of the dilution to match any variation in feed solids or changes in the settling characteristics of different ore bodies.
This flexible system eliminates any need for additional head requirements to meet variations in feed/slurry characteristics. The pumps also maintain the flocculant and dilution levels at the optimum ratio.
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All FLSmidth Minerals feed dilution systems are easy to install or retrofit on existing thickeners. Please contact us to find out more about how you can increase your thickener's capacity and increase your thickener's underflow concentration.