Advantages and Disadvantages in Particle Size Reduction Techniques

Mark Heimann Applications Manager Roskamp Champion 2975 Airline Circle Waterloo, Iowa 50703 USA Tel +1 319 232 8444 Fax +1 319 236 0481

Why Particle Size Reduction?

Increased Surface Area
Expose to heat, moisture, enzymes

Increased Digestibility and Palatability Reduced Sorting & Selective Feeding Preparation for Secondary Operations
Mixing Pelleting & Extrusion Handling & Conveying

Roller Mill Ground Corn

Hammermill Ground Corn

Particle Shape and Texture

Roller Mill and Hammermill
Roller Mill Particle Attributes: Elongated, Sliver or Flake Like Rough Edges L/D Ratio of 1.87 Lower Bulk Density Hammermill Particle Attributes: Spherical, Cubic Shaped Particles Smooth, Polished Edges L/D Ratio of 1.4:1 Higher Bulk Density

Surface Area Comparison

Roller Mill
908 mean particle diameter 55 cm/gm calculated surface area 1281 cm/gm measured surface area

Hammermill
962 mean particle diameter 68 cm/gm calculated surface area 1217 cm/gm measures surface area

Particle Size vs Cost to Produce

Grinding U.S. #2 Yellow Corn
1.6 1.4 $/Ton to Grind 1.2 1 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2 0 100 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000

Aquaculture----Chicks--Pigs-Chickens---Turkeys-------Cattle Hammermill Roller Mill

Roller Mill and Hammermill

Roller Mill
Roll Corrugations Fast Roll Speeds Differential Roll Speeds

Hammermill
Tip Speed Screen Hole Size Hammer Pattern and Position

Fixed Operating Parameters

Variable Operating Parameters

Feed Rate Motor Load Roll Spacing Feed Rate Motor Load

Roller Mill or Hammermill?

Cracking, Crimping, Minimum Fines, Dust

Coarse Grinding, Textured Feeds Grinding for Pelleting Corn, Wheat, Milo Grinding for Pelleting Oats, Barley, Fiber Rendering Applications Wood, Hulls, Etc.

Roller Mill Advantages

Energy Savings
More tons processed per kWh Savings range from 15-85% or more

Product Quality
More uniform, less fines & oversize particles Less heating
Roller Mill 0-3 , Hammermill up to 10

Less moisture loss

Roller mill < %, Hammermill 1-3% typical

Roller Mill Advantages

Less Noise, Less Dust
Better work environment Reduce safety hazards

No Aspiration Required
Reduces connected HP & space required Less auxiliary equipment to maintain

Efficiency Comparison on Corn

Roller Mills and Hammermills
Efficiency - #/H.P.-HR 1200 1000 800 600 400 200 0 350
HM

400
DP

450
TP

500

600

700

800

900

1000

Mean Particle Size - Microns

Ground Corn
Roller Mill and Hammermill - 700 Microns
35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 4 6 8 10 14 20 30 40 50 70 100 140 200 270 Pan
U.S. Sieve

Percent On
Roller Mill - 712 Hammermill - 708

Roller Mill Disadvantages

Works best on easy to grind materials
Corn, cereal grains, extracted meals Not effective on fiber, two dimensional products

Heavy machine
Additional bearings & drives Rolls are heavy
Equipment needed for routine roll change

Additional operator inputs required

Adjust rolls to suit grind requirements

Typical DP Roller Mill

Optimizing the Roller Mill System

Match Corrugations to Products / Sizes
Coarse corrugations for large products and coarse products
High capacity, long life

Fine corrugations for small products, fine finished particle size

Lower capacity, fewer tons before recorrugation

Mean Particle Size - Microns x 1000

Finished Particle Size / Corrugations Roller Mills

4 0 4 1 2 3

10

12

14

16

18

20

22

24

30 Smooth

Corrugations
Min Max

Optimizing the Roller Mill System

Equipping the System
Two or Three pair high machines for grinding
Fine grinding Multiple products

Differential Drives
Improves grinding efficiency Finer grinds possible, better product consistency

Rolls must be properly adjusted

In Tram and Parallel

Annual Operating Costs

Roller Mill and Hammermill
3.264 Roller Mill - 1200 7.36 Hammermill - 1200 10.368 Roller Mill - 600 14.4 Hammermill - 600 0 2 4 6 8 10 Maintenance Electrical $ X 1000 Grinding 32,000 Tons of corn annually 12 14 16 18

Hammermill Advantages
Easy to Use
Select screen size Turn it on

Versatile
Process a wide range of materials
Grain, High fiber, High protein Can be set up for very fine grinding (90%-60 mesh)

Must be configured per application

Hammermills are generally understood

Hammermill Disadvantages
More expensive to operate
High energy cost

Lower product quality

More oversize bits, more fines Heating of product drive off moisture
Condensation in bins and ductwork

Poor material flow characteristics

Many hammermills vibrate and are noisy Risk of fire/dust explosion

Typical HM Hammermill

Contact Point

"Flow Director"

Primary Destruction Zone Full Hammer Tip Speed Zone

Acceleration Zone

"Regrind Chamber"

Hammermill Operating Costs

Consider This
Maintenance parts costs are low
$0.03 to $0.06 per ton

Energy costs are high

$0.25 to $0.70 per ton on livestock feeds $0.50 to $1.00 per ton for pet foods $0.75 to $1.50 per ton for aquaculture applications

Annual Operating Costs

Hammermill - Good vs. Poor Maintenance
14.4 $0.05/Ton

18.56 $0.02/Ton

0 Maintenance

5 Electrical

10

15 20 $ X 1000

25

Grinding 32,000 Tons of corn annually

Optimizing Hammermill Performance Designing the System

Tip Speed Screen Area Hammer Pattern Hammer Position Feeder Takeaway System

Optimizing Hammermill Performance Match Tip Speed and Screen Hole Size
Use high tip speeds for fine grinding, high fiber, and tough to grind materials
>90 M/Sec Screens 3 mm and smaller

Use low tip speeds for coarser, more uniform finished products
<65 M/Sec Screens 4 mm and larger

Tip Speed vs. Particle Size

38", 44", and 54" @ 1800 RPM
Mean Particle Size - Microns 1200 1000 800 600 400 200 0 1.6 2.5 3.2 4 5 Hammermill Screen Size in mm 54" Hammermill 44" Hammermill 38" Hammermill

Tip Speed vs. Efficiency

38", 44", and 54" @ 1800 RPM
Efficiency #/HP-HR 600 500 400 300 200 100 0 1.6 2.5 38" Hammermill 3.2 44" Hammermill 4 54" Hammermill 5 Hammermill screen size mm

Hammermill Tip Speeds

Motor RPM Model Diameter Viking 16 Challenger 22 Impactor 28 Standard 38 Magnum/HM 44 Intl Magnum 54 HM High Speed 54 1200 NA NA NA 60 70 86 86 1500 NA NA 55 76 87 111 111 1800 NA 52 66 91 105 NA 129 3000 64 88 111 NA NA NA NA 3600 76 105 NA NA NA NA NA

Tip speed in Meters per Second (M/Sec)

Hammermill Screen Area

10 to 20 In/HP Typical Range
85 to 170 cm/kW

12 to 16 In/HP for grain and easy to grind

100 to 140 cm/kW

14 to 20 In/HP for high fiber, tough to grind

120 to 170 cm/kW Less In/HP increases heating & moisture loss Less In/HP produces finer grind More In/HP increases capacity & efficiency Ideally screen open area is >4 In/HP (35 cm/kW)

Hammermill Screen Area

Length x Width x N = Screen area (In2)
Use 14 In/HP typical (120 cm/kW) Up to 12 to14 In/HP for finer grinding 100-120 cm/kW Use 2.5 to 3.5 In of open area per HP for finer finished products (20 to 30 cm/kW) Excessive power/In can create problems Excess product heating Loss in efficiency Excessive screen wear and damage Leakage at screen sealing areas

Hammer Pattern

Hammer Position

Coarse position for pre grind

Clearance is 7/16 (11-12 mm)

Fine position for final grind

Clearance is 7/32 (4-5 mm) 8 and 12 pin all fine rotors available

Hammer Position
Coarse position is further from screen Fine position is closer to screen

Hammermill Feeders Rotary Pocket Feeders are preferred

Even feeding across mill width Easy to automate Available with self cleaning magnet

Some materials require a Screw Feeder

Less uniform distribution

Rotary Pocket Feeder

Air Assist with Screw Conveyor

Step Grind System with Single Pair Roller Mill Raw materials in, grain, pellets, meal

Roller Mill, initial reduction

Hammermill, secondary grinder

Finished, ground meal, to further processing

Step Grind System with SP Roller Mill and HM Hammermill

Advantages of Roller Mill/Hammermill Step Grinding System (Primarily Grain)

Greater efficiency lower energy cost Lower cost, longer life wear parts Larger diameter, thicker screens Increased hammer life for final grinder (up to 3 times) Increase hammermill capacity (30-50%)

Disadvantages of Roller Mill/Hammermill Step Grinding System

Increased capital costs Increased space requirements More complicated to operate and maintain

Advantages of Roller Mill/Hammermill Step Grinding System (Primarily Grain)

Greater efficiency lower energy cost Lower cost, longer life wear parts Larger diameter, thicker screens Increased hammer life for final grinder (up to 3 times) Increase hammermill capacity (30-50%)

100 HP Hammermill, 3mm screen on corn will achieve 600 @ 12 MTH, $0.31/ton electrical + $0.04/ton parts = $0.35/ton 15 HP Roller Mill + 100 HP Hammermill, 5 mm screen on corn will achieve 600 @ 16 MTH, $0.26/ton electrical + $0.04/ton parts = $0.30/ton 33% increase in capacity and 15% reduction in grinding cost

Champion Dedicated Fine Grind Hammermills Production Capabilities

Model HP Screen Area Capacity 90%-500 HM54-16 HM54-24 HM54-32 HM54-40 HM54-48 150 250 350 400 500 2350 In(1.5 M) 3530 In(2.3M) 90%-250

4.0-5.0 MTH 2.0-3.0 MTH 5.5-6.5 MTH 3.0-4.0 MTH

4700 In(3.0M) 9.0-10.0 MTH 5.0-6.0 MTH 5880 In(3.8M) 11.0-12.0 MTH 6.0-7.5 MTH 7050 In(4.5M) 14.0-15.0 MTH 8.0-10 MTH

Actual finished particle sizing and hammermill capacity will vary depending on the feed formulation and raw material conditions (protein, moisture, temperature, fat content, etc.), aspiration air flow, and the condition of the wear parts within the hammermill. The figures indicated above reflect typical feed formulations used to produce extruded pet foods (90% <500) and feeds for aquaculture applications (90% <250).

Champion Dedicated Fine Grind Hammermills Operation and Maintenance Costs

Size range Energy Costs* (per ton) Maintenance Costs (per ton) Total Grinding Costs 90% <500 $1.10-$1.40 $0.10-$0.15 $1.20-$1.55 90%<250 $1.85-$2.25 $0.20-$0.25 $2.05-$2.50

Pulverizers achieving 1 MTH @ 100 HP cost $3.75/ton for electrical energy alone. Maintenance parts cost often average $0.25 to $0.50 per ton. Air classifiers may require up to 75 HP, adding an additional $2.75/ton for electrical energy costs. Total grinding costs for air swept pulverizers can exceed $7.00 per ton. * Electrical costs based on $0.05/kWh

AVRHM

AVRHM Advantages
Relatively Easy to Use
Select screen Turn it on

Coarse textured grinds

Compared to other hammermills

Ease of screen and Hammer Change No Aspiration Air Required

AVRHM Disadvantages
High Temperature Material Discharge*
Roller Mill Hammermill AVRH <3C 7C 9C Nil 0.5% 0.5 to 2%

Higher moisture loss*

Roller mill AVRM Hammermill

Short life of wearing parts Lower efficiency than conventional hammermill

* IFF study, 01/95

AVRHM Disadvantages
Summary of Testing Betagro Northern 01/07 Buhler AVRH 2x110 kW motors
6 trials, 520, 2.406 Dgw, 26 MTH, 8.5 kW/ton 2.5 and 3 mm screens

Champion HM54-40 1x315 kW motor

6 trials, 385, 2.344 Dgw, 40 MTH, 7.9 kW/ton 3 mm screens

Air Swept Pulverizers

Air Swept Pulverizers

Air Swept Pulverizer Advantages

Relatively Easy to Use
Select screen and/or grinding elements Turn it on

Very fine grinds achievable Built in Air Classifiers

Control finished particle sizing

Air Swept Pulverizer Disadvantages

Limited to Very fine grinding High Aspiration required
High moisture loss

Higher cost
Initial equipment cost Operating costs
Electrical costs can be > $5.00/ton Parts cost can be > $0.50/ton

High noise level generation Complicated machines & systems

Disc Mills

Disc Mills

Disc Mills / Attrition Mills

Generally Low Capacity
75 HP (55 kW) maximum connected power

Replacement parts are specialized

Limited availability single source supply

Compromise between roller mills and hammermills

More noise & fines than roller mill Less noise & fines than hammermill Limited effectiveness on fibrous materials

Little data available for comparison

Chinese Vibrating Screen Hammermill

Chinese Vibrating Screen Hammermill

Low Output/kW when like products are produced
1200 VSH 600 Conventional Hammermill

Additional mechanism
Screen vibrators Additional wear

Very little data available for comparison

Energy consumption vs particle size Maintenance cost/ton Installed cost, aspiration requirements, etc.