Dear Mr. Renato

Minimum operating flow velocity in slurry pipeline is taken as 0.5 to 1 m/s more than depostion velocity. Deposition velocity is the flow velocity at which particles start settling at pipe bottom. Deposition velocity can be calculated using corelations available in literature using pipe diameter, solids size & specific gravity and solids concentration. However, solids concentration should not be kept above 10% less than static settled concentration by weight of solids to avoid choking problems. Further, as pipe erosion increases with increase in concentration and flow velocity, slurry pipeline for a particular throughput requirement should be designed corresponding to the best combination of flow velocity, pipe diameter and solids concentration.

Regards

D.R. Kaushal ■