Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila

College of Engineering and Technology

Chemical Engineering Department

Screening
Submitted by:
Ilagan, Elaine Jane P.
Nuval, Jayson B.
BSChE V

Submitted to:
Engr. Elaine G. Mission

Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila

College of Engineering and Technology
Chemical Engineering Department
Table of Contents
Properties of Solid......................................................................................................................................... 3
Density ...................................................................................................................................................... 3
Specific Gravity.......................................................................................................................................... 3
Bulk Density .............................................................................................................................................. 3
Hardness ................................................................................................................................................... 4
Brittleness ................................................................................................................................................. 4
Screening....................................................................................................................................................... 5
Two Types of Screening ............................................................................................................................ 5
Industrial Screening Equipment ................................................................................................................ 5
Oscillating Screens ......................................................................................................................... 5
Reciprocating Screens ................................................................................................................... 7
Trommel ............................................................................................................................................. 8
Grizzlies .............................................................................................................................................. 9
Stationary screens ........................................................................................................................ 10
Vibrating screens .......................................................................................................................... 10
Screen Analysis........................................................................................................................................ 13

Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila

College of Engineering and Technology
Chemical Engineering Department

Properties of Solid
Density
Density is defined as the mass (amount of matter contained in an object) per
unit volume (amount of space occupied by an object) usually defined as .
Density of a solid can be determined by separately measuring the mass and
volume of the object. Mass can be determine by directly measuring it in a
weighing scale. Volume can be determined by measuring the dimensions and
solving the volume (regular shape objects) or by displacement method. If the
specified mass of solid can readily dissolved in a liquid with definite density
and volume, density can be determined. The units are usually pounds per
cubic foot or grams per cubic centimeter.

Specific Gravity
Specific Gravity is the ratio between the density of the substance to the density
of water at 4C. It is also known as Relative Density. It is a dimensionless
number which tells how many times a substance is heavier than water. Most of
the substances expand on heating and contract on cooling with the mass
remaining constant. The density of most of the substances decreases with the
increase in temperature and increases with decrease in temperature. But water
contracts when cooled up to 4C but expands when further cooled below 4C.
Thus the density of water is maximum at 4C.

Bulk Density
Bulk (or apparent) Density denoted as b which is defined as the total mass per
unit of total volume is common to powders and particulate matter. Bulk
density is an extrinsic property of a substance since it varies with the size
distribution of the particle and their environment, and the porosity of of the
solid itself. For a single nonporous particle the true density is equal to the bulk
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College of Engineering and Technology
Chemical Engineering Department
density. It can be measured using bulk density testers, scott volumeters, bulk
density funnels, tap density testers and solid densimeters. Bulk density can be
reported as loose bulk density (free settled) and tapped bulk density (measured
after specified compaction process, usually involving vibration of the
container).

Hardness
Hardness is the resistance of a material to permanent localized deformation
from indentation, scratching, cutting or bending when a load is applied. The
greater the hardness of a material, the greater resistance it has to deformation.
It is not a basic property of a material, but rather a composite one with
contributions from the yield strength, work hardening, true tensile strength,
modulus and other factors. It can be measured using different methods
namely: Mohs Hardness Test, Brinell Hardness Test, Rockwell Hardness Test,
Rockwell Superficial Hardness Test and Vickers and Knoop Microhardness
Test. The common method used is the Mohs Hardness Test which is based on a
series of minerals on increasing hardness numbers. Each mineral in the list
will scratch all those of a lower number. A mineral of unknown hardness is
rubbed against these test minerals, and its hardness is indicated by the softest
material which just scratches it. The series of minerals are as follows:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Talc
Gypsum
Calcite
Fluorite
Apatite

6. Feldspar
7. Quartz
8. Topaz
9. Corundum, Sapphire
10. Diamond

Brittleness
Brittleness or Friability refers to the ease with which a substance may be
broken by impact meaning it will break without significant deformation when
subjected to stress. The term brittle is generally applied to material that fails
when there is little or no evidence of plastic deformation. It can be measured by
a brittleness temperature point tester.

Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila

College of Engineering and Technology
Chemical Engineering Department

Screening
Screening is a method of separating materials on the basis of size by passing
the material over a surface provided with openings of the desired size. It
consists in separating a mixture of various sizes of particles into two or more
portions, each of which is more uniform in size of particle than in the original
mixture. The material that fails to pass through the screen is referred to as
oversize or plus material, and that which passes through the screen openings is
referred to as undersize or minus material. When more than one screen is used
and more than two sizes are produced, the various fractions may be designated
according to the openings employed in making the separations.

Two Types of Screening

Dry Screening refers to the treatment of a material containing a natural
amount of moisture or a material that has been dried before screening.
Wet Screening refers to an operation in which water is added to the material
being treated for the purpose of washing the fine material through the screen.

Industrial Screening Equipment

Oscillating Screens are solids separator that is characterized by a relatively
low speed (300 to 400 oscillations per minute) in a plane parallel to the screen
producing two sub-streams which have smaller or bigger particles than the
diameter of the holes of the grid.
Mechanisms of Oscillating Screen

The material that has to be screened is introduced into the upper part of
the machine, which is disposed with a slight inclination forward.
The screening grid has a rotary-oscillating motion, mainly due to the
effect of an eccentric having an eccentricity ratio that can range from
25mm to 40mm.
The movement, coupled to the inclination allows to make the materials
advance at the same time to shake them, causing them to repeatedly get
in contact with the grid. As particles move, acceleration in horizontal and
vertical directions increased. Particles with the size close to the screen
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Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila

College of Engineering and Technology
Chemical Engineering Department

can be successfully separated. Larger particles are conveyed to the exit of

the oscillating screen.
The screen size can be up to 12x20 and production capacities can
accommodate from 8 to 80 units per hour.
Many of these devices carry a course screen directly below the screening
cloths on which rubber balls are confined to limited areas and are
caused to bounce against the lower surface of the screen as the device
moves. This prevents blinding.
Advantage

Disadvantage

It is the cheapest form of screen on It is suitable for dry-type batch

screening.
the market.
High and Accurate separation

It has longer retention time

compare with other equipment due
The screen size can be up to
to low speed.
12x20 and production capacities
can accommodate from 8 to 80
units per hour.
Vibrations and noise produce by
the machine when it works is
lower.
Rotary-oscillating motion, which
does not cause kinking of the
materials, breakdown of certain
components, or the clogging of the
grids.

Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila

College of Engineering and Technology
Chemical Engineering Department

Figure 1: Oscillating Screens

Reciprocating Screens are driven by an eccentric under the screen at the feed
end. The motion varies from gyratory (about 2 in. in diameter) at the feed end
to a reciprocating motion at the discharge end.
Mechanisms of Reciprocating Screens

The material that has to be screened is introduced into the upper part of
the machine, which is disposed with a slight inclination forward.
The screening grid moves varies from the feed end to the exit end. The
motion at the feed end is gyratory, moving back and forth with a circular
motion, which quickly starts stratifying the fine particles. The motion at
the middle becomes elliptical which helps in conveying the material from
end to end and help utilize the inclined angle of the screen. The motion
at the exit end changes to linear motion that promotes effective near size
removal.
The screen is slightly inclined to increase the separation. If the
inclination is high enough it will reduce the separation since the
diameter of the horizontal hole becomes smaller.
Further vibration may be cause by including rubber balls to prevent
blinding. Blinding is the clogging of the small particle between the holes
that reduce the productivity of separation
Advantage

Disadvantage

It is suitable for screening down to It is suitable for dry-type batch

screening.
about 300 mesh.
Have

higher

efficiency

than It is more expensive that vibrating

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Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila

College of Engineering and Technology
Chemical Engineering Department
vibrating screens.

screens.

Factors
like
slope,
motion,
retention time, blinding and screen
selection are all being address
effectively.

Figure 2: Reciprocating Screens

Trommel or revolving screens, consists of a screen cylindrical or conical in
form rotated about its axis. The oversized are collected inside the drum and are
discharged at the end of the drum while the undersize are collected at the
bottom.
Simple trommels may be arranged in series with the undersize of the first
passing to the second trammel and the undersize of the second trammel
passing to the third, etc. Sometimes trommels are built with screens of
different sizes throughout their length, the feed entering at the end of the finest
screen. In this way it is possible to collect materials of different size ranges
from a single trammel. But the operation is not that efficient compare with
compound trommels. Conical trommels have the shape of a truncated cone and
are generally mounted with their axes horizontal.
Mechanism of Trommel Screens

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College of Engineering and Technology
Chemical Engineering Department

The material is forwarded to the screening drum by the hopper conveyor.

The screening drum is equipped with a spiral which transport the
material through the drum.
The capacity of the trammel increases with increased speed of rotation
up to a point where blinding occurs due to crowding of material through
the screen. The best operating speed is usually about 0.33 to 0.45 times
the critical speed because the material no longer cascades over the
screen surface but is carried about by centrifugal force.
The inclination of the trammel varies from in (for wet screening) to 3
in. per feet length, depending on the nature of the material to be
processed.
The drum is cleaned by a hydraulically controlled rotating brush.
Advantage

Disadvantage

It can be used for both wet and dry It is quite effective for coarse sizes.
screening.
Depending on the required grain
size, different drums to be used can
easily be changed.
It can easily be transported and
used when screening is done on
site.

Figure 3: Trommel Screens

Grizzlies are widely used for screening large sizes, particularly of 1 inch and
over. They consist simply of a set of parallel bars separated by spacers at the

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College of Engineering and Technology
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ends. The bars may be laid horizontally or inclined longitudinally 20 to 50
degrees from the horizontal, depending upon the nature of the material treated.
The usual cross section of the bars is trapezoidal with the wide base upward to
prevent clogging or wedging of the particles between the bars. Owing to the
wear on the bars, they are frequently used before material is sent to a crusher
to remove the smaller particles from the feed to the crusher.
In a bar grizzly, the material enters at the top and works its way downward.
The large or oversize particles are discharged over the lower right end, and the
smaller particles pass through the slots between the bars into a hopper directly
below.
A rough figure for the capacity of grizzlies is approximately 100 to 150 tons of
material per square foot of area per 24 hours when the bars are spaced to give
about 1 inch of clear opening.

Figure 4: Grizzly Screen

Stationary screens are made of punched metal plate or woven wire mesh,
usually set at an angle with the horizontal up to about 60 degrees. They are
suitable for intermittent small-scale operations, such as screening sand, gravel,
or coal by throwing the material against the screen. When large tonnage is to
be handled, stationary screens are usually abandoned in favor of the vibrating
screens.
Vibrating screens are used where large tonnages are to be treated. The
vibrating motion is imparted to the screen surface by means of cams, eccentric
shafts, unbalanced flywheels, or electromagnetic means. A complete screen
may have a single screening surface, or it may be double or triple - decked.

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College of Engineering and Technology
Chemical Engineering Department

Figure 5: Features of Vibrating Screen

The vibrating screen consists of screen box, supporting device, vibration
exciter, transmission part, etc. The barrel-type vibration exciter is installed in
the middle part of the machine. During normal operation, the vibration of
exciter will drive the screen mesh fixed on the screen box vibrate, and then
materials will be screened. The big and small materials fall from the upper side
and lower side of the screen to get them separated.
Types of Vibrating Screens:
a. Circle-Throw Vibrating Equipment

Figure 6: Circular Vibrating Screen

Circle-Throw Vibrating Equipment is a shaker or a series of shakers as to
where the drive causes the whole structure to move. The structure extends to a
maximum throw or length and then contracts to a base state. A pattern of

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College of Engineering and Technology
Chemical Engineering Department
springs are situated below the structure to where there is vibration and shock
absorption as the structure returns to the base state.
This type of equipment is used for very large particles, sizes that range from
pebble size on up to boulder size material. It is also designed for high volume
output. As a scalper, this shaker will allow oversize material to pass over and
fall into a crusher such a cone crusher, jaw crusher, or hammer mill. The
material that passes the screen by passes the crusher and is conveyed and
combined with the crush material.
Also this equipment is used in washing processes, as material passes under
spray bars, finer material and foreign material is washed through the screen.
This is one example of wet screening.
b. High Frequency Electromagnetic Vibrating Screen

Figure 7: High Frequency Electromagnetic Vibrating Screen

High frequency electromagnetic vibrating screen uses the latest digital
electronic control and electromagnetic vibration principle. The screen box has
no vibration, and only the screen surface has vibration. The amplitude of the
screen surface can reach 1-3mm, and the vibration intensity is 3-4 times as
strong as that of general screening equipment, so the screen mesh can never
be blocked. The screen surface has an excellent self-cleaning ability, high
efficiency and a large capacity. The screen mesh is made of composite stainless
steel, and the opening rate is as high as 38%. Besides, the screening angle can
be adjusted (20 - 26 ). High frequency electromagnetic vibrating screen is
applicable to the screening, grading and dehydration of dry and wet materials.

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College of Engineering and Technology
Chemical Engineering Department
c. Tumbler Vibrating Screen

Figure 8: Tumbler Vibrating Screen

An improvement on vibration, vibratory, and linear screeners, a tumbler
screener uses elliptical action which aids in screening of even very fine
material. As like panning for gold, the fine particles tend to stay towards the
center and the larger go to the outside. It allows for segregation and unloads
the screen surface so that it can effectively do its job. With the addition of
multiple decks and ball cleaning decks, even difficult products can be screened
at high capacity to very fine separations.

Screen Analysis
1. Definition of Terms
a. Mesh
Mesh is a term stating the number of openings per linear inch of screen
surface. The size of the opening depends on the size of the wire.
b. Screen Aperture
The clear space between the individual wires of the screen is termed the
screen aperture. Frequently, the term mesh is applied to the number of
apertures per linear inch. For example, a 10-mesh screen will have 10
openings per inch, and the aperture will be 0.1 inch minus the diameter of
the wire. Mesh is therefore a nominal figure which does not permit accurate
computation of the screen openings or aperture without knowledge of the
wire sizes used by the manufacturer.

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College of Engineering and Technology
Chemical Engineering Department
c. Screen Interval
The screen interval is the relationship between the successive sizes of
screen openings in a series. A simple arithmetic series might be used such
that the screen openings are 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, and 1 inch, for
example. However, the weakness of such system is that there is a large
relative difference between the 1-inch and 2-inch sizes, but the 9-inch and
10-inch sizes are almost alike for practical purposes. This is because the
size of the particle becomes more significant and critical as it gets smaller.
A more satisfactory series of screens is one in which the opening of each
successive member varies from the next by a multiplier such as to give a
series having openings of 8, 4, 2, 1, and so forth. These sizes vary in a
geometric progression, and the factor or screen interval is 2. If closer sizing
is desired, an additional screen is inserted between each two screens of the
previous series and the screen interval becomes . The standard screens
used in the United States employ a screen interval in which the factor is
although is sometimes used for careful work and research.
d. Tyler Standard Screens
Tyler Standard Screens is the first commercial laboratory screens that
employ geometry progression in determining screen interval. This series of
screens is based upon a 200-mesh screen with 0.0021 inch thick and with
an opening of 0.0029 inch. The other sizes vary by a fixed ratio of . A
supplementary set can be purchased for intermediate sizes so that the
complete set varies by .
2. Method of Making a Screen Analysis

Figure 9: Large Tray Shaker and Small Sieve Shaker (L-R)

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College of Engineering and Technology
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In making a screen analysis, the individual screens comprising the entire
series are cleaned with a brush and tapped free from any adhering particles.
They are nested together with the coarsest at the top and the finest at the
bottom. A bottom pan and top cover are put in place to complete the set. A
weighed amount of material is placed upon the top screen, and the cover is
replaced. The screens are fastened into a vertical framework which is given
an elliptical motion in a horizontal plane, a sharp tap or blow being given at
the top of the screens for each revolution. Shaking is continued for 15 to 20
minutes or until no new material appears in the bottom pan. This is to
ensure that the screening operations have been completed. Afterwards, the
sieves are disassembled and the individual fractions are weighed.
3. Possible Sources of Errors
a. Overloading Overloading may result in blinding which is the wedging of
particles in the openings.
b. Electrostatic Forces Electrostatic forces may cause small particles to
adhere to one another or to large particles.
c. Small Amount of Moisture A small amount of moisture may also cause
adhesion or cohesion of particles.
To avoid the dangers of adhesion and cohesion, wet-and-dry screening is
suitable for very precise screen analysis. The weighed sample is placed in a
beaker and pulped with a non-solvent, frequently water, and then decanted
over the finest screen in the series. More water is added; stirring and
decantation are repeated until no fines are in suspension after stirring. Water
from a wash bottle is played on the screen until the drip is clear. The water is
decanted from the undersize fraction, and the material is dried. The oversize is
also dried. The new -200 fraction is weighed with the fraction obtained by wet
screening. This procedure gives more accurate results since the chance of fine
particles clinging to large ones is minimized.
4. Method of Reporting Screen Analysis
The customary manner of reporting screen analysis is shown in Table 1, in
which the mass fractions retained on each of the screens are given.

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Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila

College of Engineering and Technology
Chemical Engineering Department
Table 1: Typical Screen Analysis
Tyler Screen
Mesh

Average Particle
Diameter (in)

Mass Fraction

Mass Fraction
through Screens

- 80 + 10
- 10 + 14
- 14 + 20
- 20 + 28
- 28 + 35
- 35 + 48
- 48 + 65
- 65 + 100
- 100 + 150
- 150 + 200

0.0791
0.0555
0.0394
0.0280
0.0198
0.0140
0.0099
0.0070
0.00496
0.0035

0.03
0.14
0.25
0.20
0.14
0.09
0.06
0.04
0.03
0.02

1.00
0.97
0.83
0.58
0.38
0.24
0.15
0.09
0.05
0.02

These data may be graphically presented either by fractional plot or cumulative

plot method. The curves from these graphs are valuable primarily as pictures of
the size distribution of the mixture. Fractional plots of the mass fraction
retained on each screen versus average particle diameter or cumulative plots of
the mass fraction passing each screen versus particular screen aperture may
be the basis for comparisons of different mixtures of the same materials. The
fractional data give different curves for different screen intervals and are
therefore specific to the particular screen series used in Table 1. This limitation
does not apply to plots of the cumulative data which give the same values
regardless of screen intervals. The cumulative plot does not require the
computation of average diameter but rather the addition of the fractions
passing through the screens.

Figure 10: Fractional and Cumulative Plot for Particle Size Analysis

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College of Engineering and Technology
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5. Evaluation of the Screen Analysis
To evaluate the data from the screen analysis, average diameter, average
surface, and average volume are being calculated.
a. Average Diameter
Average Diameter is the diameter which, when multiplied by the number of
particles will give the sum of all the diameters in that group.
b. Average Surface
Average surface is that surface by which the total surface area may be
obtained.
c. Average Volume or Mass
Average volume or mass is the volume or mass from which the total volume or
mass of the group may be obtained by multiplying by the number of particles.

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