CycloPipe™

The CycloPipe™ is a simple device for purging excess air so that process flows are more stable. The operation of pumps is smoother, and consistency variations associated with large-scale eddies in silos and tanks are eliminated.

The CycloPipe™ is a large diameter pipe into which a process flow is fed tangentially. It operates at atmospheric pressure, but can be adapted for suction if necessary. The inlet is in the form of an axial slot, to minimize disturbance within the pipe itself. The feeding is typically by gravity, and the inlet slot sized so that the specified flow speed is attained.

While the fluid is spiraled in the CycloPipe™, centrifugal force concentrates the air bubbles around a flow stabilizer in the center of the pipe, from where they escape. The spiraling shell of water is thin and the time needed for the bubbles to migrate free of it is correspondingly short.

In contrast to the flow behavior in a silo or a tank, the circulating fluid retains its inlet velocity throughout its passage through the pipe. The turbulence induced consistency variations that typically occur in a tank or silo with multiple inlets are avoided.

CycloPipe™’s are typically used as a component in POMlock™ drop leg sealings or as compact substitutes for backwater silos. A special application is drop leg sealing for disc filters, whereby filtrate tanks are eliminated.