Solid material comminution or disintegration – Apparatus – With automatic control
Patent
1987-07-06
1989-01-31
Rosenbaum, Mark
Solid material comminution or disintegration
Apparatus
With automatic control
241166, 2412612, B02C 706
Patent
active
048010987
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to methods of and apparatus for pulverizing materials. It is particularly but not exclusively suited to reducing mineral samples.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Geological or mineral samples have to be reduced to a fine powder for assaying purposes and normally this is carried out in a sample pulverizing machine. Conventional sample pulverizing machines comprise a pair of anvils one of which is rotatable about a horizontal axis and the other being mounted for pivotal movement between co-operating and remote positions with respect to the rotating anvil to permit pulverizing of sample and subsequent access for manual cleaning of the anvils.
Sample grinding times are relatively short, for example up to about thirty seconds. However the subsequent cleaning of the apparatus which is necessary to prevent cross-contamination of samples takes considerable time and thus the full grinding and cleaning cycle averages about three minutes per sample. This is partly due to the configuration of the anvil cavity but mainly it is due to the need to physically open up the apparatus to provide access to the anvils for cleaning.
Many geological samples are very abrasive. Thus the anvils wear quickly and regular adjustment is necessary to compensate for this wear. This can lead to variations in sample particle size if the necessary adjustments are not detected and made. Of course this is undesirable and considerable time is spent checking the wear on conventional pulverizers.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
This invention aims to alleviate the abovementioned disadvantages associated with the presently available apparatus and to provide methods of apparatus for pulverizing samples which will be reliable and efficient in use. Other objects and advantages of this invention will hereinafter become apparent.
With the foregoing and other objects in view, this invention in one aspect resides broadly in a mill assembly for reducing sample particles to a desired particle size. The mill assembly includes a pulverizing mill having a mill chamber into which sample may be introduced for reduction to the desired particle size. An enclosure assembly confines reduced sample discharged from the pulverizing mill for collection in a sample collection device. A cleaning fluid supply device associated with the pulverizing mill introduces cleaning fluid to the mill chamber and the enclosure assembly. A mill release device permits large particles remaining in the pulverizing mill to be discharged with the cleaning fluid.
Suitably the pulverizing device and the fluid supply device are oerated automatically and there are provided sensing devices associated with selected components of the mill assembly whereby selected functions can be monitored in order to satisfy preselected conditions before respective stages of operation of the mill assembly are commenced. The cleaning fluid supply device may supply an air blast to the anvil faces for cleansing the latter or it may supply a suspension of particulate material in air, such as snd, sawdust or pearlite. It may also be a suitable liquid if necessary. An alarm device may be provided to indicate a malfunction. Manual override controls may also provided so that the mill may be manually operated if desired.
Preferably the pulverizing device is a rotary pulverizing mill having a pair of co-operating disc-like anvils at least one of which is rotatable. The anvils are adapted to be supported in a face to face abutting relationship so as to define substantially abutting peripheral portions between which the pulverized substance may pass and an inner mill chamber into which the substance may be introduced. However a cone type mill or an orbital anvil mill may be used if desired. The pulverizing device is preferably adapted to pulverize mineral samples for assaying and for this purpose the reduced particle size may be in the range 50 to 200 microns and suitably in the rage 100-150 microns. It is also preferred that the rotary pulverizing mill is so formed that after pulv
REFERENCES:
patent: 3219282 (1965-11-01), Horstman
patent: 3302893 (1967-02-01), Feder et al.
patent: 4052012 (1977-10-01), Feist
patent: 4275851 (1981-06-01), Weese
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