US2833414A

US2833414A - Means for discharging granular products in wet treatment apparatus

Info

Publication number: US2833414A
Application number: US390176A
Authority: US
Inventors: Harvengt Edmond
Original assignee: Link Belt Co
Current assignee: Link Belt Co
Priority date: 1953-11-04
Filing date: 1953-11-04
Publication date: 1958-05-06
Anticipated expiration: 1975-05-06

Description

May. 6, 1958 ,E, HARYENGT 2,833,414

mmroa 'DISCHARGING GRANULAR PRODUCTS IN WET TREATMENT APPARATUS Filed Nov. 4, 1953 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 X 3 it! i a a as ALL I ITEM].

INVE N 7 0R Edmozid Han/6W BY 2 7D mm W ATTORNEY May 6,, 1958 E. HARVENGT 2,833,414 I MEANs FOR DISCHARGING GRANULAR PRODUCTS IN WET TREATMENT APPARATUS Filed Nov. 4, 1953 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 i p W ATTORNEY MEANS FOR DISCHARGING GRANULAR PROD-v UCTS IN WET TREATMENT APPARATUS Edmond Harvengt, Moustier-sur-Sambre, Belgium, assignorto Link-Belt Company, Chicago, 111., a corporation of Illinois Application November 4, 1953, Serial No. 390,176

3 Claims. (Cl. 209-490) The invention relates to the discharge of products in wet treatment apparatus or plants for ores, coals or other granular materials.

In Belgian specification No. 455,896 dated May 20, 1944, for Improvements in means for, in washing plants for coals, ores and the like, evacuating products, especially granular products, separated therefrom, it is proposed for evacuating such products from a graded washing bed by means of cones or similar apparatus, to have these cones provided with a discharge opening of a largely suflicient size to allow for the unhindered passage of the largest particles which may be present in the products separated from the bed and to create at the discharge opening of these cones a supported plug formed by a free heap of evacuated materials which closes the discharge opening while the quantity of material corresponding to the desired discharge is removed or discharged from the plug.

By these means, the essential conditions for a satisfactory operation of the washing plants, that is for the full level operation thereof may be fulfilled in order to avoid disarranging the Washing bed and to evacuate correctly particles of unusual shapes and sizes always encountered in the slimy or muddy products separated from a graded bed.

The necessity of avoiding disturbances in a grading or separating process and more generally in a wet treatment of granular materials is not-limited to the above mentioned cases,'and the present invention contemplates other applications wherein, to this end, 'the' discharge must be ensured by means of apparatus operating at full level; particularly the invention contemplates the extraction of the products in concentrating pans.

Until now, the concentrates resulting from the treatment in pans have been either'collected in pockets from which they are removed or discharged intermittently or evacuated by means of bucket elevators, partly immersed screws or drums, pocketed wheels or similar devices. The intermittent removal or discharge from collecting pockets requires a permanent watching and in the bucket elevators or the evacuating devices comprising a screw, a drum or a pocketed wheel, the wear due to thetreated materials on the parts or members is such that this evacuating method proves expensive; moreover frequently the locationof the plantsputs in an acute manner the; problem of the replacing of the worn out members or parts.

In this and the similar applications the invention remedy such inconveniences in permitting the safe continuous evacuation of the products by means of a simple device thejmembers of"which'show little liability to wear. out a'ndfmoreover' are easy and ,inexpensiveto replace.' f

"Accordingtotheinvention,there is associated with the product outlet of a treatment space or apparatus, particularly of a concentrating pan, ,a generally vertical conduit, which may be of cylindrical, or conical or part 2 v conical shape, and at a short distance below the botto end of said conduit a support is so arranged that the products occupying the conduit rest thereon inthe' form of a heap bounded by their natural slope, the support and the bottom end of the conduit, and thus closing the latter.

Preferably the support is inclined and conveniently arranged so that it may be placed under different inclinations; the conduit may be madein one piece, but also of several sections adapted for sliding movement relatively to each other as a telescopic device, in such an arrangement that by modifying the length of the conduit, or by modifying the inclination or slope of the'support, or both, the bulk and the outline of the heap formed by the products between the support and the bottom end of the conduit may be modified as desired.

The removal of the products from the said heap may be automatically obtained by a sliding movement on the support by imparing an appropriate inclination or slope to said support, or by having preferably at least one erosion liquid current cooperating to said removal.

The appropriate adjustment of such a current permits predetermined quantities of the products to be carried away from the heap.

Moreover, means may be provided for modifying auto matically the value of the erosion current in accordance with the bulk of the heap of the products, in relation with the length given to thetelescopic conduit in accordance with the desired evacuation.

Still other features of the invention will appear from the following complementary description, with reference to the annexed drawings, of certain preferred arrangements given by way of examples only in the application of the invention to concentrating pans.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is an elevational view of a concentrating pan of which the outlet opening for the concentrates is arranged in accordance with the invention;

r Fig. 2 'is an enlarged sectional view of the evacuating device of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view of a modified evacuating device comprising an automatically adjusted erosion current.

With reference to Figs. 1 and 2, 1 designates the vessel' of a concentrating pan, which as diagrammatically indicated in Fig. l is provided with a stirring device, comprising rakes rotating about the vessel axis, and with a peripheral outlet 2 for the concentrates and a central outlet 3 for the tailings, it being assumed that the treatment effected is that of an ore.

With the outlet 2 isassociated a substantially vertical discharge conduit 4 of a certain length, which in the exampleis of cylindrical cross section. This conduit 4 has amovable part 5', telescoping with the part 4 and equipped with a device enabling its position and thus the overall length of the assembly to be adjusted, the adjusting device being for example of. the screw and sleeve in one'direction, at diiferent'angles to the horizontal, and to this end for example pivoted on' a shaftsuch as 10 the angular. position of which may be adjusted as desired and secured by means of a locking device, not illustrated -The edge 7 of the bottom end of the part 5 is preferably made parallel to an"average adjustment position of the support 8.

' With a device as far as now described, the concentrates led to the outlet 2 due to the operation of the pan,

accumulate in the conduit 4-5 and form on the support 8 a heap 11 bounded by the edge 7, the support and the natural slope of the products forming the said concentrates, the bulk of said heap being adjustable as desired by a suitable. adjustment of the position of 'the part of the conduit 4-5. From this heap one may at will remove or carry away predetermined quantities of products in accordance with the desired evacuation from the pan.

To this end, various meansmay be provided. One convenient means consists in imparting to the support 8 such an inclination that the heap forming products are allowed to slide to the desired extent towards a trough or other guide 12 adapted to lead them to a settling or utilisation location. To this end this trough may be provided with an adjustable water supply 13.

Preferably however, hydraulic means are used, adapted to ensure the proper erosion of the heap and for example comprising, as shown, a current of water directed by means of a pipe 14 and adjusted by means of a valve 15. This means, which may be combined as desired with an appropriate inclination of the support 8,-may also, where desirable, be completed or replaced by a water current flowing in the trough 9 and provided by a water inlet 16 adjusted by means of a valve 17. In addition, an adjustable water inlet 18 may be associated with the conduit 4 -5 in order, amongst other things, to enable the consistency of the products in the conduit and subsequently forming the heap 11 to be adjusted.

Advantage is also taken from the current 18, to return back to the pan the light tailing and argillaceous particles appearing at the entrance of the conduit 4, and addi' tionally this current has the effect of creating a soft zone within the pan, near the entrance of the conduit 4, and in assisting the concentrates to enter said conduit.

It will be understood that as the erosion due to the current coming from the pipe 14, or the inlet.16, or both, proceed and carry away the products of the heap 11 towards thetrough or guide 12, the heap is reformed by the products descending the conduit 45 and simul-.

taneously entering same through the outlet 2 of the pan 1, so that ultimately a continuous and adjusted evacuation of the concentrates from the pan is ensured.

It is known that in ordinary pans and in order to limit the catching of the concentrates therein, the size of the discharge opening formed in the bottom wall of the pan requires to be reduced with the result of frequent opportunities for the discharge opening of being obstructed for example by some large piece having accidentally fallen into the pan.

The arrangement according to the invention enables the size of the discharge opening of the pan to be increased without repercussion or detrimental action on the discharge and/ or on the grade of the concentrates.

In the preceding example, the adjustments of the valve (or 17) for the erosion water current, of the length of the telescopic conduit 4--5, and of the inclination of the support 8 are effected separately. In Fig. 3 is shown how these various adjustments may be combined in order that theymay beensured by a single operation.

According, to the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 3, the linkage 19a formed of all the pivoted levers shown, is arranged to connect the operating handle 21 of the valve 15 mounted in the pipe 14 to the movable part 5 of the conduit 45, in such a mannerthat when acting on the handle 21 the position of the movable part 5 and the inclination of the support 8 are simultaneously modified. In this embodiment, the said support is made integral for rotation with its pivoting shaft, and the latter is made integral with the lever 22 which is connected through the lever 23 with the pivotal connection 24 of the operating handle 21 for the valve 15.

When acting on either this handle or the lever 22 one may modify at the same time the erosion current, the inclination of the support and the position of the movable part 5 of the conduit 45, in such a manner that to an increase of the erosion current corresponds an increase in the inclination of the support 8 and a rising move ment of the part 5 with a resulting increase in the bulk of the heap 11, and vice versa.

Naturally also, the evacuating devices described in relation with concentrating pans may be used in other applications, Where the products from a wet treatment taking place in whatever space have to be discharged or evacuated therefrom with no or a minimum quantity only of treatment liquid.

I claim: I

l. Evacuating device for the solid products of a Wet treatment of ores, coals and similar granular materials in an. independent unit comprising a treatment vessel for containing a body of wetted fiowable solid products, outlet means for the products of the treatment in the vessel, means in the vessel for conveying the products of the treatment to the outlet means, a substantially vertical conduit associated with the outlet means, adjustable liquid supplying means intermediate the ends of said substantially vertical conduit, and means for adjusting said liquid supplying means, a bottom discharge opening for the substantially vertical conduit, a support for a free heap of products located at such a distance underneath the said discharge opening that said heap forms a plug therefor to allow the accumulation of solid products inthe lower portion of said vertical conduit, and means for carrying away from the said free heap quantities of products in predetermined relation with the desired evacuation in the vessel of treatment.

2. Evacuating device for the products of a wet treatment of ores, coals and similar granular materials in an independent unit comprising a treatment vessel, outlet means for the products of the treatment in the vessel, means in the vessel for conveying the products of the treatment to the outlet means, a substantially vertical conduit associated with the outlet means, said substantially vertical conduit comprising several parts relatively movable lengthwise of the conduit and means for adjusting the positions of the relatively movable parts, whereby to adjust the overall length of the conduit, a bottom discharge opening for the substantially vertical conduit, a slope adjustable inclined support for free heap of products at a distance underneath the said discharge opening, means for carrying away from the said free heap quantities of products in predetermined relation with the desired evacuation in the vessel of treatment, said last named means including driving means for simultaneously adjusting the overall length of the conduit and the slope of the support. g

3. Evacuating device as in claim 2 wherein the means for carrying away from said free heap quantities of products in predetermined relation with the desired evacuation in the vessel of treatment include hydraulic erosion means comprising liquid supply means and means to adjust said liquid supply, and the driving means include connection means with the said liquid supply means, whereby to regulate at the same time the hydraulic erosion of the heap. V

References Cited in the file of this patent v UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,007,190 Fraser July 9, .1935. 2,513,960 Ore July 4, 1950 2,590,756 Colin Mar. 25, 1952 2,624,461 Falconer Jan. 6, 1953