Mixing/blending is the process of combining various materials to produce a new, uniform product. In industries such as minerals processing, aggregates and waste management, products can be mixed for a variety of reasons, including dust reduction and material recovery, among others.
Mixing/blending is an important process because it affects product quality. Materials that are improperly combined can generate a final product that lacks consistency, which can create performance issues, as well as lost profits, for the end user. Because the mixing/blending process is so critical, it depends on robust, flexible and reliable equipment to combine various material.
Material can be mixed and blended for many reasons. It can be combined because there is not enough quarried material to meet a project’s specifications, or simply because it is economical to mix process materials with the natural materials. In the coal industry, mixing and blending coal with various liquids can increase its bulk density and BTU value.
Another reason for mixing/blending material is to meet a desired gradation, or particle size distribution – either open-graded, well-graded or gap-graded. For example, when it comes to the requirements needed to make Portland cement or asphalt, a single aggregate source is not likely to make the cut. However, combining aggregates from two or more sources can help producers meet those specifications. Specifically for asphalt, aggregates of different sizes are ideal to fill in voids left by the larger particles to provide maximum packing capabilities.
McLanahan Pug Mill Mixers are capable of blending waste products such as sewage, sludge, industrial dusts and bio-solids with numerous bulking agents, including lime, wood chips and saw dust, to increase energy output or to create a less hazardous, easy-to-handle waste material for landfills. Rotating paddle shafts blend and advance material to be fed onto a conveyor or other means of transport to a stockpile.
McLanahan Pug Mill Mixers come in both medium-duty and heavy-duty options, and can be used to combine various products in a variety of industries and applications, such as for road base, fly ash conditioning, concrete blending, coal handling, tailings management and more. These mixers can process dry or semi-dry materials, provide a continuous and uniform mixing of two or more materials, suppress dust on dry materials, wet out a dry material and convey material.
