Influence of the Draft Tube on the Reduction of Vibrations and Preferred Channels in Tanks with Mechanical Impellers Jair Francisco de Souza, Marlene Silva de Moraes, Vitor da Silva Rosa, Deovaldo de Moraes Junior

Abstract

Tanks with mechanical impellers are essential equipment in the industrial universe to be used as mixers to homogenize materials of varying compositions and increase the quality of mixtures. The operational performance in several applications, such as biochemical reactions, heat exchange and suspension of solids, can be compromised with the creation of preferential channels, vibrations and the need for greater engine power. A technique that lacks results in the literature and that can reduce preferential channels in tanks, is the use of a vertical tube in the center of the equipment, called a draft tube. The present work aims to experimentally quantify the influence of the dimensions of the draft tube, the rotation of the impeller and the concentration of the solid in the formation of preferential channels, reduction of vibration by decreasing the axis and power consumption. The equipment will basically consist of a 10-liter crystal clear acrylic tank, a radial impeller with two 45 ° inclined blades, a variable speed motor and the gauges: tachometer, dynamometer and a vibration sensor. The qualitative results indicated a significant influence of the dimensions of the draft tube on the particle suspension.