What is Vacuum Conveying?

Vacuum conveying is a method of transferring material in a fully contained and hygienic way.  Material, such as powder, pellets or granules is loaded into the conveyor and is transported to an end-destination via pipe work. Vacuum technology provides a cost effective flexible solution to the safe conveying of bulk materials across a broad spectrum of process industries.

Ideally suited to powders, granules and similar materials, vacuum conveying ensures a ‘dust-tight’ product transfer is achieved. The closed-system approach for material transfer ensures that no dust escapes to atmosphere and no contamination from outside can enter the system. This important feature of the vacuum conveying process ensures system operators are well protected from hazardous products.

For example, powder can be sucked directly from an IBC, into the conveyor, and then transferred from the conveyor to the required destination, such as a tablet press, cone mill or filling machine.  In this regard the conveyor acts as a temporary storage container, holding the process material until it is ready to be dumped or loaded into the process machine.  This allows the process to be carefully controlled, as the throughput can be moderated in accordance with each customer’s individual requirements.

The diagram below shows a basic example of how vacuum conveying from an IBC into a tablet press works: