Adhesion and Agglomeration of Solids During Storage, Flow and Handling—A Survey

Abstract

During storage, flow and handling of solids, particles in the micron range tend to adhere to walls or to each other. Such processes can cause severe disturbances and sometimes require the shut down of whole plants or costly reconditioning of caked products. Different binding mechanisms which can be classified into five groups and several undergroups can be responsible for adhesion and agglomeration. In Part 1 of the paper the occurrence and importance of the different possible binding mechanisms in respect to storage, flow and handling of solids is discussed and some equations for estimating binding forces are presented. Part 2 discusses the buildup of deposits in pneumatic conveying systems, the caking tendencies of fertilizers and methods for preventing severe adhesion or agglomeration in these special cases.