Measuring Flow Parameters Of Particulate And Powdery Solids In Industrial Transportation Processes

This paper provides an overview of existing technologies to measure flow parameters, such as material velocity and material concentration, in industrial transportation processes of particulate and powdery solids with a focus on pneumatic conveying. Restrictions, advantages and drawbacks of state of the art measurement principles are discussed. We show that capacitance-based sensing with suitable electrode topology allows for non-invasive, low-cost determination of flow parameters. Two industrial applications for material transportation - by means of pneumatic conveying and of screw conveyors - are presented