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636-278-8700
FAX 636-278-3155
Riverside Ind. Centre
7000 W. Geneva Dr.
St. Peters, MO 63376
U.S.A.
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Testimonials
Reprinted with permission from FOUNDRY
MANAGEMENT & TECHNOLOGY
Betz Saves Big with
Rotary Sand Reclaim System
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Betz Industries in Grand Rapids, MI, is a modern gray and
ductile iron no-bake foundry specializing in large dies,
patterns, and machine beds for the automotive and heavy
machine industries. The plant and offices presently occupy
eight acres under roof. When the owners, brothers Karl
and Ken Betz both degreed metallurgists, decided to reclaim
their disposal sand in 1984, they tested their chemically-bonded
lumps at various manufacturers. After careful analysis,
they purchased a Rotary Lump Crusher/Sand Reclaimer from
DIDION International Inc., St. Peters, MO. |
Betz's two DIDION Model LC-40 Series 4 Rotary Lump Crusher Sand Reclaimers.
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Economics of Nobake to Nobake Reclamation Systems
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| GENERAL DESCRIPTION |
| Foundy Type |
Nobake Gray and Ductile Iron |
| Product Type |
Precision automotive dies, patterns, and machine beds |
| Production Rate |
12 tons of castings/hr |
| Typical Sand-to-Metal Ratio |
2:1 |
| Sand System Size |
1700 tons |
| Sand Type/Binder |
10% Ottuwa, 90% Lake / furfuryl
alcohol |
| Sand Usage |
130 tons/hr |
| Year Started Reclaiming |
1985 |
| Capacity |
130 tph |
| Actual Production |
120 tph |
| Yield |
97% |
| Reclaimed Sand : New Sand |
97:3 |
| Disposal |
3% Dust-No Sand |
| Description of Reclamation System |
Two (2) vibratory feed conveyors, (2) Rotary Lump Crusher/Sand |
| Purchased During Project |
Reclaimers, dust collection, distribution panel and installation |
| ECONOMIC EVALUATION |
| Before Reclamation: |
| Cost of New Sand (per ton) |
| Ottuwa Sand 10% |
$45.00 x 10% = $4.50 |
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| Lake Sand 90% |
$20.00 x 90% = $18.00 |
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| Cost of Sand Disposal (per ton) |
$13.50 |
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| Total Cost of Sand (per ton) |
$36.00 |
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| Total Cost of Sand (per hour) |
$4,320.00 |
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| After Reclamation: |
| Savings of Sand (per ton) 97% yield |
$34.92 |
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| Savings of Sand (per hour) |
$4,190.40 |
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Machined foam pattern.
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Castings made with reclaimed sands.
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Originally, the reclaimed sand was further processed in
pneumatic scrubbers until it was later determined that the quality of
the reclaimed sand from the Rotary Reclaimer was actually acceptable
before the secondary scrubbers.
"This discovery
resulted in substantial savings in energy, operational, and maintenance
costs. The new system uses 300 less horsepower with double the production
of the previous system," said John Keener, foundry engineer of Betz.
In 1999 Betz Industries underwent a major expansion that doubled
the size of their foundry. The new 200,000 sq. ft. addition included the
installation of two new DIDION Model LC-40
Series 4 Rotary Lump Crusher/Sand Reclaimers, which process 90 tph of Furan
bonded sand. This, coupled with the existing production totals 130 tons
per hour of reclaimed sand, which makes Betz the largest reclamation plant
per hour of chemically bonded sand in the United States.
"Building on the experience from the original plant, the new expansion did not
include any secondary scrubbers behind the DIDIONS. The dust collection and
maintenance requirements were reduced by 90%. The equipment crushes our large
lumps, scrubs, screens and classifies the sand, and automatically separates
the tramp metal. Today, we are reclaiming all of our sand through the units
at a 97% yield. We no longer dispose of any sand, only 3% dust," said
Keener.
Large sand lumps are charged into the Rotary Lump Crusher/Sand
Reclaimers by vibratory feed conveyors. Upon entering the machine, high profile
flights screw the lumps forward in an expansion chamber designed to relieve
the feed conveyor. The lumps then enter the dual chamber attrition section
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where the lumps are reduced to minus 3/8 in. and the tramp metal is separated.
The sand then passes through tapered holes in the wear resistant cast
lining and is conveyed back toward the intake end in an outer chamber where
screening and primary classification occurs. The oversized agglomerations
from the final screen are automatically recirculated back into the feed conveyor for
another pass through the machine. The binder and fines are removed through an
opening at the top of the screen housing to a baghouse. Dust collection requirements
are low (8,000 cfm) per machine due to the closed environment of the drum. The machine
rotates on laser aligned bearings for precision tracking and longevity.
"The proven performance and excellent savings ($4,190.40/hour) is why
we continue to use DIDION rotary reclamation equipment. Their patented design is very
efficient (1 HP/Ton) and requires very little maintenance," said Keener.
The continuous development at the equipment manufacturer has provided Betz
Industries with their fourth generation rotary machines which have new serrated liners
as well as an internal recirculation system yielding increased capacity and higher
efficiencies.
"We currently reclaim up to 130 tons per hour, so higher efficiency is
very important to us," concludes Keener.
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| Copyright
© Penton Media, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio 44114 |
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