Test methods for dry granular materials must be built around the flowability of the material. No sampling, sizing, or handling method can be performed accurately or efficiently if it does not work in harmony with the material's flow properties.
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Test methods for dry granular materials must be built around the flowability of the material. No sampling, sizing, or handling method can be performed accurately or efficiently if it does not work in harmony with the material's flow properties.
Most materials have a lower size limit where sieving with a sieve shaker is no longer sufficient, and the agitation necessary for particle separation starts to break down and destroy some fragile materials. Particles in some substances resist separation and clump together due to electrostatic or moisture issues. For many years, these problems limited the effectiveness of measuring particle size by sieving. This article tells the story of how one man pushed back those boundaries.
Test sieves are an efficient, productive, and economical means of characterizing the gradation of dry granular materials. However, the sieving method is not without limitations. If obstacles seem to be making it difficult to produce accurate, repeatable results for finer sizes, Sonic Sieving may be the answer.
Proper sieve shaker selection saves a considerable amount of time in the lab while improving accuracy and efficiency. Read our post about selecting the machine most suitable for your purposes.