Hydrocyclones
A hydrocyclone can be used to separate solids from water, as long as sufficient differences exist between the density or size fractions and a suitable pumping pressure and flow rate can be provided.
A hydrocyclone is a static separation device that uses centripetal force to separate solid particles of different sizes or densities from liquids.
Separating particulate solids is the most common application for hydrocyclones where large or dense particles in water are fed tangentially to a hydrocyclone to produce two streams:
- a relatively small volume of concentrated solids that spiral down the hydrocyclone wall to exit as the underflow stream, and
- a relatively large volume of water containing smaller or lighter particles or liquid or gas spirals up the centre of the hydrocyclone to exit in the overflow.
Hydrocyclones have no moving parts and thus provide inexpensive separation of large volumes of water containing low concentrations of particulate solids. The only operating cost is for increased pumping power needed to overcome the 30 to 35 psi pressure drop across the hydrocyclone.
Solid/liquid hydrocyclones have many industrial applications. For wastewater treatment, they are used to separate sand, silt, and clay from water. Shear that is inherently caused by hydrocyclones may limit their use for fragile solids.
Multiple hydrocyclones can be plumbed in parallel to process any flow rate and remove particles down to 7 µm.
Sizing: Multiple hydrocyclones can be plumbed in parallel to process any flow rate and remove particles down to 7 µm.
