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May 7, 2013
Thank you for your interest if PHLAUER™ mixers.
To Shear or not to Shear..... There are two definitions or shear: one is differential particle movement and you always need that in a mixer. The second is imparting energy to the particle that degrades it. It is the second that we are writing about.
When we developed our mixer, we believed the more mixes required shear than do not, and our sales history would indicate that is true.
Removing the lumps improves the quality, especially when product is used in small quantities, and savings in minor ingredients is common.
Our rotor has no shear so we have to add it.
A major cement producer challenged us to invent a Shearmaker that would perform in a predictable time and require less maintenance. They supplied us with the materials for the development. We had demonstrated that we could make their product, and we still had the two challenges: fixed time and maintenance.
The "standard" we heard then, and still hear, is six weeks for seals and 2 years for motors.
Solving the performance was easy with our rotor once we found the real secret. The blades fit nicely between the shafts, we cut out the paddles to ¼" clearance all around, and then add the portion cutout elsewhere on the paddle so the mixing action is not compromised regardless of the number of Shearmakers installed. This is an exclusive feature. The fast mixing action and organized transport delivers all the particles past the blades every 6 to 10 seconds so everything gets sheared equally.
Seals were another challenge. We started off with a two-bearing pedestal that controlled the run-out of the shaft, and that gave us options. We tried twin lip seals, mechanical seals, and eventually Bernard Teichroeb and I invented and patented our own Controlled Orifice Seal Air Purged (COSAP). With some help from Darron Anglin, we developed a second generation that is easier to maintain and now our standard.
For more info on COSAP see this link.
http://www.ajmixing.com/store.asp?pid=32168#anchor2
We do have a rebuilding program for people who have no maintenance or prefer us to do it. I visited a customer last month who said "Our maintenance problems have disappeared and our costs are down since we are having you rebuild for us."
Another customer said "Your Shearmakers and 'fantabulistic'. We have had no maintenance in 4 years, and your Bulldog blades are not wearing at all", and allowed us to inspect This is a sanded product with high pigment content. We saved them a truckload a week of pigment.
The four years on the Bulldogs now says it is a viable investment. The life of tool steel blades is perhaps a year. Bulldogs are nearly 4 times the investment. Four years life if better than break even: you don’t have the maintenance cost, and your product is consistent.
In food products, we have recovered "waste" guar gum, mixed solid shortening, take lumps out of spice mixes, premixes for bakeries and ice cream, salad dressings. We have a customer who just couldn’t make his product with conventional technology, and need the combination of accurate mixing and our aggressive shear.
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PHLAUERMAN™ TIP:
Getting the same performance in existing mixers with the existing rotor and adding our SM is unlikely because of transportation to the SM. The GOOD NEWS is that we can rebuild your rotor, upgrade the mixing and install Shearmakers. http://www.ajmixing.com/store.asp?pid=32159
It may be easier then you think. We have rebuilt Littlefords, Marions, and ribbons. Most of them will now start under load and deliver product to a quality level of Cv 5% in small samples, and increase production. We can ultrasonically measure the wear on your machine and give you an assessment.
One customer cut their mixing time from 32 to 6 minutes in a sanded paint, gets a better product, reduced the carryover with adjustable paddles from 10% down to 1% or less. It was suprising on this mixer made of stainless, a poor wearing metal, that we could find no wear on the housing, but the ribbon had been replaced and was worn again. The housing was manufactured to a wide tolerance and was another reason to use adjustable paddles. |
Happenings:
- Great test on wet joint compound. Reduced time for mixing from 30 minutes to 3 minutes.
- Mixer for dry pavement marking paint (thermoplastic). Customer needs repeat quality.
- Lab/small production stainless vacuum infusion mixer for development of fish feed.
Please contact us for mixers (batch and continuous), mixing systems, conduction dryers, convection dryers, vacuum infusion.
info@ajmixing.com; 800-668-3470; 1-905-827-7288
At the show we will be doing demos and will have a food grade production machine on display.
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