EXPERIMENTAL-STUDY ON SHAPE SEPARATION OF PARTICLES BY USING RADIAL SETTLING CHARACTERISTICS THROUGH STATIONARY LIQUID IN ROTATING VESSEL

For the purpose of wet separation of particles differing in shape, par ticle settling characteristics have been investigated in a stationary liquid simultaneously subjected to centrifugal and gravitational force s, Several kinds of irregularly shaped particles were settled through viscous silicone oil at rest in a closed rectangular vessel rotated at low speeds. The settling trajectories of the particles in the liquid were measured in the laminar flow region. When the initial settling or ientation of each particle was set in a given and appropriate directio n, the radial settling displacement of the particle depended approxima tely on the particle shape, regardless of the size, By devising a simp le feeding method, it was possible to make the initial settling orient ation of particles automatically uniform. Continuous shape separation of particles in the liquid could be expected by applying a feeding met hod to the separation field receiving both centrifugal and gravitation al forces as used in this paper.