For grain, spices, bulk powders, and other granular products the need for metal separation comes down to two factors. First, increasing the purity levels of your product. Second, protecting valuable processing equipment from damage caused by hard ferrous impurities.
As for the type of magnetic separator that’s best for your application, that depends on the specifics of your process. What is your product? What purity levels do you need to achieve? What is your throughput? What type of ferrous contaminants are common? These questions and more can be decisive in selecting the magnetic separator best for your application.
Ceramic & Rare Earth Magnet Separators
Permanent magnets are made from materials that are magnetically charged to create their own persistent magnetic field. Once these materials are charged they will always have a magnetic field and display attractive behavior. They only lose their magnetic field if they are exposed to a demagnetizing field, extreme heat, or physical damage caused by breakage or corrosion.
Industrial permanent magnets are often constructed of:
- Ceramic or “Ferrite” materials: a mixture of iron oxide and strontium carbonate
- Alnico: a combination of aluminum, nickel and cobalt
- Rare earths: including samarium cobalt and neodymium.
While rare earth magnets are generally stronger than ceramic or Alnico varieties, they can also be more susceptible to corrosion. Neodymium is particularly susceptible and may not be suitable for some magnetic separation applications.
Any of Dings permanent magnetic separators can be made with either ceramic or rare earth magnets depending on the needs of the application.
Grate Magnet Separators
Grate magnets are powerful, non-electric separators designed to remove small magnetic particles from free-flowing powders and granular materials. Dings grate magnets are most often made with ceramic magnets; however, rare earth can be substituted if they’re a better fit for the specific application. While the grate’s magnetism is spread across its entire area, It’s most heavily concentrated on the smooth surfaces of magnetic tubes, and in the space near them. Dings grate magnets are built with magnetic material throughout the entire tube structure to produce a more uniform magnetic field, unlike other competing grate magnets that are partially loaded with springs and fillers
Grate magnets are often the best fit for vertical flow chute applications. They are more efficient, effective and economical than other separator types in these processes. As material is fed into a grate magnet it is passed through its magnetic separating force ensuring ferrous removal. Being permanent magnets with no moving parts, they provide cost free separation with little to no maintenance.
Dings manufactures grate magnets in a variety of designs and models: Rotary, Hopper, Easy Clean, Auto Clean, Heavy Duty Pit, Standard Housed, Drawer, Heavy Duty Frame and much more.
Heavy Duty Pit Magnet Separators
The Dings Pit Magnet, a heavy-duty type of grate magnet, was designed specifically for grain handling facilities. The pit magnet mounts securely over a receiving pit’s opening and removes any nails, screws, wire, tools, or other tramp iron from a grain stream that’s run through it. Manufactured with large 2” square magnetic tubes and wide tube spacing, the pit magnet is also ideal for any other high-volume processing operations with free-flowing powders or granular materials. Pit magnet sizes range from one to five feet square or rectangular.
Ferroplate Magnetic Separators
Ferroplates are low-cost, non-electric flat plate magnetic separators. While Dings standard versions are made with ceramic VIII magnetic material they can also be built with rare earth for applications that require it. They are designed to remove tramp iron and magnetic contaminants from processed powders and granular materials conveyed in chutes. The most popular installation is a sloping chute. An installed Ferroplate is hinged to the underside of the chute, where it can overlap an opening cut into the chute bottom. Any ferrous in the material that slides over the Ferroplate is attracted towards the magnetic face, then is held firmly on it. Dings Ferroplates provide more magnetic range and holding power than others on the market. Our Ferroplates have the capability of effectively attracting metal through a distance while securely holding that metal in a chute.
Dings Ferroplates come in several different models and design shapes that are available to meet your specific application requirements. Any Ferroplate can be custom designed.
Drum Magnetic Separators
Magnetic Drums are designed to continuously remove large quantities of ferrous metals for product purification in free-flowing powders and granular materials. Magnetic Drums also protect processing equipment from damaging iron impurities preventing costly repairs and downtime. Their self-cleaning design means there’s no interruptions in product flow for cleaning cycles. Dings drum magnets, depending on the application specifics, can be made with either high-strength ceramic or rare earth materials. Both versions always function at top efficiency, day in and day out. Dings drum magnets feature our DFC magnetic circuit to ensure a powerful, uniform magnetic field across the entire surface of the magnet.
Dings magnetic drums can be fed in any position. After mounting, the magnet arc is adjusted to match the feed location. If the application requires it, drums can be set in a multi-step sequence to improve performance and achieve even higher purity levels. Any ferrous material that makes it past the first drum will be caught and removed by subsequent drums.
Which Magnet Separator Type is Best for Your Bulk Powder or Granular Process? Dings Experts Can Help
Dings Company Magnetic Group engineering and sales staff work together from our Milwaukee, WI factory to provide outstanding customer service from experts in magnetic separation. We listen to our customers to gain an understanding of their needs and apply our experience in their trade to provide magnetic separation equipment that is sized and positioned for the best possible performance in their specific application. Contact Us at magsales@dingsco.com or call us at (414)672-7830.