Pneumatic conveyance of fly ash to the smelter without production stoppages

Fly ash is not an easy material. It is fine, abrasive and often hot. When the transfer does not work, the whole process suffers.

Smelter production cannot withstand long interruptions. Yet many plants accept ash handling problems as part of daily life, even though they eat up capacity, increase maintenance costs and expose personnel to dust. Find out how pneumatic transport solve these challenges.

The uncontrolled disposal of cremation ashes costs more than you think

Open conveying systems and mechanical conveyors look like a cost-effective solution on paper. In reality, their maintenance, dust problems and production downtime increase the overall costs significantly.

Problems accumulate quickly in the handling of fly ash:

• Fine dust spreads into the environment, causing safety risks and environmental damage
• Hot and abrasive material wears out mechanical components quickly, leading to unexpected downtime
• Material wastage increases when ash escapes outside the process
• Personnel exposure to dust increases health and safety risks
• Repair and cleaning work takes time away from production

Every unplanned stoppage in the smelter process means a loss of production that is difficult to make up. Fly ash conveying in the smelter must not be the bottleneck that determines the efficiency of the entire line.

The material handling of a smelting plant is a system where every part must function reliably. When ash transfer does not work, it affects everything else. Contact us and tell us what kind of challenges you have with ash handling.

Closed pneumatic system for continuous ash transport

Pneumatic conveying solves the problems of fly ash transfer with a closed, fully automated system. The material travels through pipelines using compressed air without open transfer points or dust sources.

Pneumatic transport of fly ash offers tangible benefits for smelter conditions:

• Dust-free handling for the entire transfer journey, during which environmental and safety risks are significantly reduced
• Closed system prevents material waste and keeps the process under control
• Withstands high temperatures, up to 250 degrees Celsius, so hot ash is not a problem
• Long transfers are carried out flexibly without mechanical intermediate steps, through pipelines of up to 300 metres
• Full automation reduce manual work and enable integration into the plant control system
• Low material feed rate in dense phase conveying reduces pipeline wear and extends component service life

We prefer plug flow conveying whenever it is suitable for the material and the process. It uses less compressed air than dilute phase conveying, which directly reduces energy consumption and operating costs. The low gas velocity also means less wear and tear on the piping and valves.

The system can be built from carbon steel, wear-resistant steel or stainless steel depending on the properties of the ash and the process requirements. Each solution is sized according to the capacity needs of the specific process. Find out more to pneumatic conveying solutions.

Why over 25 smelter customers trust Kopar's solutions

Molten conditions are the most demanding environment in materials processing. High temperatures, abrasive materials and the pressure of continuous production place demands on equipment that cannot be tested anywhere other than in real conditions.

We have nearly 50 years of experience in the design and manufacture of pneumatic conveyors for metallurgical processes. In practice, this means:

• Understanding of how different ash materials behave in pneumatic conveying
• The ability to correctly size the system already at the design stage, rather than correcting it afterwards
• Our own testing facility, where new materials are tested before delivery
• Tailored solutions, not off-the-shelf packages that are a poor fit for demanding processes
• Experience of integration into various industrial environments around the world

Every smelter is different. That is why we approach each project with a careful analysis before recommending a solution. Incorrect sizing or an unsuitable method of transport becomes expensive, and we want to avoid that together with you.

You will see concrete examples of our deliveries from our list of references.

Get in touch and let's find the right solution for your process

Pneumatic conveyance of fly ash is an investment in process reliability. It reduces outages, improves safety and lowers long-term maintenance costs.

Getting started is straightforward:

1. Tell us about your process conditions: material properties, capacity requirement and conveying distance
2. We analyse the situation and propose a suitable solution
3. We design and deliver the system on schedule, including documentation

No rushed decisions, no one-size-fits-all solutions. We want to make sure the chosen system works in your exact process just as it should.

Contact us and let's figure out together what kind of pneumatic conveyor solution is best suited for handling the fly ash from your foundry.