The term “Ribbon Blender” refers to a blending device that can be used to combine a variety of materials, including dry mixing (solid to solid) and liquid mixing (solid to liquid). Primarily employed by a wide range of sectors, including the food industry, various chemical industries, the pharmaceutical industry, agricultural products, etc., and mostly utilized for the creation of powder, granular particle coating, and paste with a thin consistency.
A ribbon agitator that is manufactured and has an inner and an outer helical ribbon is part of a ribbon blender that has a horizontal U-shape trough. This helical ribbon effectively pushes the materials in two different directions.
Selection of Ribbon Blender- Things to Remember
The following variables affect which ribbon blender is best for a given application. They are listed below.
- Anyone can decide whether a normal or heavy-duty model for blending is required based on the quantity of materials to be blended.
- The components used to create a ribbon blender must work with the many types of raw materials utilized in any operation.
- Various discharge valve types, surface finish and texture, any protective covers, temperature-regulating jackets, chopper speed controls, supplementary safety grating, etc.
In addition to the aspects mentioned above, choosing the right drive design should not be disregarded and must be taken into account.
Typically, a belt drive is built into the power transmission system that includes the motor and gear reducer. A drive system that aids in achieving the appropriate speed and torque range uses a flexible belt and pulley combination. Some manufacturers offer chain drives in place of belt drives.
An electrical inverter and a certain type of motor reducer called a gear motor are intended to operate in perfect harmony. The low inertia rotor’s characteristics complement the gear unit exceptionally well. Thus, a ribbon blending process is able to achieve high dynamic capacity requirements for high starting or ending cycles. Direct drive ribbon blenders offer features including enhanced speed control, overload prevention, and variable starting torques.
Several benefits of Gear-motor of Ribbon Mixer Are-
- Performance gains are made.
- Produces more dependable operation.
- Ribbon blender space requirements are reduced as a result of the ability to mount small platforms with compact gear motors.
- Additionally, unnecessary belt and coupling alignment and adjustment maintenance is removed.
Combining the most recent electronic drive technology with a gear motor has opened up a number of new possibilities that weren’t present in the old blender design.
Variable frequency drives, or VFDs, have made it possible to effectively manage speed during any step of blending and discharging. When employed for any ribbon blender application, they are a more effective and cost-effective solution. For, adding a PLC to a ribbon mixer can increase its value.
The developer relied heavily on the belt-driven system with soft start coupling in “Dead load” starting situations. A heating issue resulted to damage to a shot-filled coupling. After overloading, the hydraulic coupling is also reusable. The coupling design makes blenders and ribbon mixers more expensive and requires more caution when in operation.