Get yourself a Warman Slurry Pumping Handbook for starters.

Calculating the head loss without establishing the pipe size is as crafty as it is risky. You will need about 3m/s to be sure. Is 5" pipe readily available, now and in the future? Vertical pipe runs are quite acceptable. ■

To determine minimum operating velocity without deposition of particles, following additional parameters will be required:

1. Specific gravity of particles

2. Largest particle size to be transported ■

Originally Posted by betti

dear all

we have an under ground slurry pipe line:

water + iron ore

sg = 1.3

particle size: 78% <45 micro meter

pipe size = 5"

Over many years, the pipes had got clogged up with ore and we must replace it in new path (over ground). Because the path has changed I calculated the head loss and ...now I have 2 question

1- I want to know the minimum velocity of slurry to prevent deposition and then decide between 5" and 6"

2- Is it permitted to put the slurry pipe vertically?

I wonder if a friend help me.

thanks

Greetings and salutations from the soon to be frozen eastern wilderness@1140 feet above mean sea level.

First: Betti there is no need to replace the pipe in question to maintain service:

Your plugging problem is simply solved by using a either a tethered pipeline pig or a pressurised pipeline pig to clean it with little or no trouble.

Halliburton and other pipeline service companies offer this service all over the world and do it economically versus the cost of replacing a pipeline.

As you have internet access you can simply locate a company that does this near your area.

If you are on the chinese mainland they will most likely have offices in Hong Kong

or Shainghai and Manilla, Aukland, Perth, Melborne, Tokyo, Nagasaki, Kyoto, Hokkiedo, Osaka, Seoul, etc.

In your search engine simply type (pipeline pigging companies) and you will recieve a huge number of responses.

You will also find it is very easy for your employees to use a pipeline pigging system with ease. as all that is required is a pig launch pipe inlet valve and a recieving tube at the end of the pipeline or in your case probably having severla launching and recieving points in both directions may be best simply due to siltation and gravity as gravity is the enemy in any slurry pipeline no matter the size.

With your small diameter pipeline of five inches it is to your advantage to simply push the pipeline pig through every day with a cold or hot water water charge to clean it with ease and reduce your siltation and sedimentation problems to almost zero.

also depending on the length, and number of bends etc. one should always run a clena water charge prior to a shutdown of the system for any reason to help flush it out by simply running a water only solution for several hours if that amount of water is avaialble t use. If not pipeline pigging is the best way to clean the pipeline and that is what these companies do.

In your case they will most likely want to send in a robot camera to examine the pipeline to determine where the deposits are located and develop a plan for cleaning them in situ(in place).

Easily done if time and planning are accomplished first.

lzaharis ■

dear betti

Critical deposition velocity is the flow velocity which is capable of keeping the largest particle in suspension by acting against its weight. Thats why, specific gravity is a must parameter for calculating the minimum operating velocity. However, if you tell me the concentration of slurry in pipeline, I can calculate the specific gravity of particles.

d.r. kaushal ■

dear betti

40 mg/l can not be concentration of solids in slurry pipeline. Recenttly, I was involved with a project for transporting iron ore tailings for a distance of around 50 Km. Pipeline has strated operating successfully at a concentration of 50% by weight (750 gm/l) calculated on the basis of optimization analysis.

d.r. kaushal ■