Assessing the performance of innovative blending technology.
Flow aids can substantially enhance powder flowability and are used throughout powder processing industries to improve process and product performance. Optimised blending maximises gains with efficacy reliant on the dispersion of a fine layer of flow aid across the surface of the host particle. A study of novel blending technology, Magnetically Assisted Impaction Coating (MAIC) (Aveka, Woodbury, MN), demonstrates the value of applying multi-faceted powder testing to assess the impact of flow aids and compare the performance of different blending techniques.
Dynamic and shear powder properties were measured for blends of silica/citric acid blends (FT4 Powder Rheometer®, Freeman Technology, Tewkesbury, UK), produced by V-blending and by MAIC. Silica is a widely used flow aid and was incorporated at a concentration of either 0.5 or 2.0% w/w. MAIC actively promotes particle attachment via a pounding action applied by magnetic particles induced to accelerate and spin by an oscillating magnetic field. The results indicate that this technology is significantly more effective than V-blending in achieving enhanced flow properties via the incorporation of silica.
Click here to read ‘Applying Advanced Powder Testing – Flow Aid Blending’.