CHAPTER 5 AREAS OF APPLICATION AND OPERATIONAL CHARACTERISTICS Areas of application can be conveniently divided into the different phase separations, that is: Solid from liquid Solid from solid Liquid from liquid Gas from liquid and others of a miscellaneous nature. ‘These areas of application will be reviewed in this Chapter to illustrate the many uses of the cyclone. Details of these uses, and of the cyclone design requirements and performance for these uses, wll be deferred until Chapter 9. This review is primarily to provide the reader with a basis for detailed general discussion of design and per- formance in the intervening Chapters. The Chapter will conclude with a discussion of the operational characteristics and particulary the advantages and disadvantages which dictate the use of the cyclone in the areas described. Sl. SEPARATION OF SOLIDS FROM LIQUID A cyclone used for this duty is usually referred to as a cyclone thickener, and is designed for maximum efficiency with respect to recovery of all of the solids which are fed to it. The cyclone is most usefully applied to the separa- tion of particles in the 5 to 200 p size range. Larger particles than 200 4 (€.g. coal up to } in.) can be handled provided that aperture sizes are made large enough. It is unusual, however, for it to bbe possible for an economic case to be made for the use of a cyclone to thicken suspensions of very large particles. Large particles settle readily under gravity to make the use of settling tanks attractive whilst they also rain readily to make the use of either stationary or vibrating screens attrac- tive. A cyclone can still offer advantages, however, of savings in space in the former case and simplicity of installation in the later. Smaller particles than 5 1 can be handled provided that the density dif- ference between the solid and the liquid medium is high enough. A cyclone cannot, however, be considered for the separation of eub-micron material, 4aa ‘THE HYDROCYCLONE and even at 2 j the density difference needs to be abnormally high to get effective separation in a cyclone. To achieve separation of small particles a small diameter cyclone is required. This statement should, however, be qualified since it has been shown that the main variables in cyclone per- formance are feed diameter and overflow diameter, not eyclone diameter (see Chapter 7). Diameter only becomes effective through the need to preserve proportions. Small cyclones have a lower capacity at the same pressure drop and consequently this has led to the introduction of the multicyclone, an arrangement of a number of small cyclones in parallel with common feed, overflow, and underflow headers. Even with the use of such units a limit of around 2 j1 is, however, imposed practically. Settling velocities of particles smaller than this are too low to permit separation even under the high centri- fugal forces which exist in small cyclones and it becomes more economic in this case to reconsider the use of centrifuges or gravitational settling tanks. In the latter case gravitational force is much lower but setling velocities can be assisted by flocculation. Flocculation is rarely of value in cyclone opera- tion where floces present in the feed are broken by shear in the rotating liquid such that the settling velocity reverts to that for the basic particles. Centrifuges and gravitational thickeners also have the considerable advantage in these cases of giving a thicker sludge discharge, in the latter case by the gentle action of the rake mechanism which moves through the settled bed to create a path for uprising but normally trapped pockets of liquid. The range of application of a cyclone thickener can thus be summarized in terms of particle size and characteristics as being around 4 in to a practical minimum corresponding to a value of diameter x /(density difference) equal to 6. An absolute minimum can be given as 2 2. All of these figures relate to the basic particles rather than floces with an equivalent composite size. Under the general heading of the separation of solid from liquid two extreme cases can be recognised. These are “clarification” and “dewatering”, the separation of solid from liquid and the separation of liquid from solid respectively. Only the former is amenable to theoretical treatment owing to particle mutual interference in the handling of high solids concentrations in the latter ease. In each case the removal of liquid from the solid product is limited by the necessity for the underflow to remain capable of flow. To achieve high concentrations starting with a dilute feed will probably require the connection of eyclones in series since the underflow liquid volume in normal eyclone practice is not less than ~ 1/50th of the feed volume. Less than 1/50th can only be achieved by impractically small underflow apertures, very large overflow apertures or high back pressure at the underflow. ‘The latter two features decrease performance efficiency and the former is likely to decrease operational efficiency through blockage and overloading. It is, therefore, desirable to have cyclones in series where concentration is achievedAREAS OF APPLICATION AND OPERATIONAL CHARACTERISTICS 43 ‘without departing from normal practice. A further advantage is that the inefficiencies which result from a high underflow concentration can be com- pensated by recycling arrangements. For example, the second to last cyclone of a series of cyclones can be arranged to deliver a maximum underflow solids content, with consequent loss of solids to the overflow. These solids can be recovered by the last cyclone of the series. This cyclone operates on the dilute overflow with a maximum efficiency and the underflow product can be recycled to the first cyclone feed. This arrangement is shown in Fig. 20 (a). Alternatively, the first cyclone of a series can be made to deliver Fret eet croton Concentrate @ Fees ey Fig, 20, Arrangement forthe series connection of eyclones. the concentrated product by the application of back pressure to the under- flow. The resultant loss of efficiency is then allowed for by further eyclones in the overflow line with recycle of their underflow products. This arrange- ‘ment, shown in Fig. 20 (b), is that normally used in connecting the multiple small diameter eyetones in series.” In either of these arrangements and in both of the cases of clarifica and dewatering the extent of removal of the sold from the liquid is governed by the feed size distribution, the feed slurry characteristics and the design and operating conditions ofthe cyclone or cyclones. All of these factors will be discussed later.