Panacea fibre is a lightweight additive used in paint and plaster, bridges and rat-holes in hoppers, making it difficult to convey with screw or pneumatic systems. Floveyor solved this for a global paint manufacturer using an aero-mechanical conveyor (AMC) with FloDisc® technology, then added a tubular drag conveyor (TDC) to distribute material to four mixing vessels.
One of India’s leading paint companies was struggling to meet the challenges of conveying panacea fibre. Floveyor introduced the company to a new way of handling their bulk materials using a tubular drag conveyor and an aero-mechanical conveyor together in the process line.
The company operates in 15 countries and has 26 paint manufacturing facilities globally, servicing consumers in over 60 countries. Their innovative panacea product had presented multiple conveying challenges they needed to overcome to grow their manufacturing business.
Why panacea fibre bridges and rat-holes in hoppers
Panacea is a generic term for a lightweight synthetic fibre additive used in chemical processing and manufacturing industries. It’s often found in products in the building industry including stucco, render, plaster, mortar, paint, sealant, concrete, self-levelling floors, and sprayed concrete. Due to its extremely light composition, conveying panacea can be difficult because it bridges and creates rat holes in hoppers. Product builds up on filters. Dust and operator safety were also concerns.
Why an aero-mechanical conveyor (AMC) solved the bridging problem where screw and pneumatic conveying failed
The Indian company needed a conveying solution in one of their existing plants to convey their product panacea, a white fibre product with a bulk density of 280 kg/m3.
Previous unsuccessful attempts with other technologies included screw conveyors and pneumatic conveying. Those conveying systems either could not convey the product or issues occurred such as build up on the filters. The company turned to Floveyor, the powder handling specialists, and requested materials testing be performed prior to making a purchasing decision.
The customer needed reassurance that Floveyor technology could operate effectively in the existing processing system before committing to a full installation. Floveyor was confident the fully enclosed aero-mechanical conveyor (AMC) with FloDisc® Technology could handle panacea successfully.
Floveyor engineered the AMC’s speed, tube diameter, and FloDisc® configuration around panacea’s ambient operating temperature and low bulk density.
Panacea’s combination of extremely low bulk density and fibrous structure defeated two conventional conveying methods before Floveyor’s two-stage solution succeeded.
| Conveying method | Result with panacea fibre | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Screw conveyor | Not suitable |
Due to the long (and vertical) conveying routes of over
40 m, a screw conveyor was not viable in this application. Screw conveyors also caused the panacea to clump and bind around the auger, requiring specialist shaftless augers that were not suitable in this application. |
| Pneumatic conveying | Experienced ongoing issues | Pneumatic conveyors had persistent issues separating the fine light bulk density fibres from the air stream (dust extraction and filters), with ongoing failures in both dense and lean phase trials. |
| Floveyor AMC (stage one) | Successful - 12 months of reliable production | Fully enclosed aero-mechanical conveyor with FloDisc® technology handled the low density and fibrous nature without bridging; material trials with Floveyor's Indian partner Kiron confirmed feasibility before full installation. |
| Floveyor AMC + TDC (stage two) | Successful - one system feeding four mixing vessels | Adding a tubular drag conveyor let the plant distribute panacea across complex routes and multiple discharge points; UHMWP liners resolved a minor recirculation/bridging issue found during commissioning. |
Aero-mechanical conveying of panacea in action
Following successful material trials carried out by Floveyor’s Indian partner Kiron, the customer commissioned an installation of an 11.5-metre-long Endura F3 aero-mechanical conveyor elevating the product to the mixing vessel.
After 12 months of successful production the customer had the confidence that Floveyor’s aero-mechanical method of conveying was a reliable solution for conveying panacea and were ready to expand their investment in Floveyor conveying systems.
Watch the panacea powder handling material trial footage, showing controlled feed, conveyor throughput, air clean feature, and final transfer weight.
Adding a tubular drag conveyor (TDC) for multi-point distribution
Stage two tackled the problem of complex routes and multiple discharge points in the customer’s plant. Fixed plant bulk material handling equipment from Floveyor helped the company optimise their operation. An additional Endura F3 bi-directional conveyor (BDC) and an F4 tubular drag conveyor (TDC) slow speed unit were paired to transfer materials horizontally to four different outlets. The existing Endura F3 conveyor was also modified. The three conveyors were integrated together to feed four mixing vessels.
During commissioning, the low-density, fibrous material recirculated and bridged inside the Endura F3 bi-directional conveyor housing. Floveyor engineers easily solved this issue by adding ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWP) internal liners to eliminate the point of build-up in the housings.
Testing tubular drag conveying of panacea (this example is from another project).
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
Yes. Floveyor pairs an AMC with a tubular drag conveyor (TDC) on a single process line when a plant needs both gentle vertical elevation and distribution across multiple discharge points. In one paint-additive case study, an AMC proved reliable over 12 months before Floveyor added a TDC to feed four mixing vessels.
A bridging, low-density fibre needs a fully enclosed conveyor that moves material without relying on airflow or an open screw, since both let the material stall or build up. Floveyor solved this for a lightweight paint additive using an aero-mechanical conveyor with FloDisc® technology, which conveyed the fibre reliably where screw and pneumatic conveying had failed.
Screw conveying struggled because the fibre’s low density and fibrous structure caused it to bridge and rat-hole in the hopper before reaching the screw. Pneumatic conveying moved the material but caused build-up on filters, creating repeated cleaning and downtime — both common failure modes with very light, cohesive powders.
For more information about Floveyor powder handling systems
If you would like to know more about aero-mechanical conveying with FloDisc Technology or tubular drag conveying, get in touch with Floveyor. As powder handling specialists, we have complete conveying and distribution systems for powders, granules, fibres, flakes, seeds, beads, and pellets.
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