Are your leaky rotary-vane valves or flimsy double-dump valves not cutting it anymore? Airlock/double-dump valve assemblies from Roto-Disc, Inc. offer a solution.
Our team specializes in custom-made industrial valves and diverters. We come through where all else fails. This complete guide covers the benefits and uses of airlock/double-dump valve assemblies.
Overview of Roto-Disc
Roto-Disc, Inc. has been manufacturing custom valves, airlocks, and diverters for dry and slurry material handling for over 40 years. Our products can improve your processes, minimize downtime, and reduce maintenance costs.
Heavy-duty spherical valves can easily cut through materials, making your processes more efficient. Our airlocks move products between environments with differential pressure without leaking.
All products are designed and manufactured in the United States. We’ve installed thousands of assemblies for these industries:
- Food production
- Pharmaceuticals
- Minerals
- Agricultural products
- Chemicals
- Alternative energy/gasification/pyrolysis
- Building materials
- And more!
Our products can help you save money by improving production and lowering maintenance costs.
What Are Roto-Disc, Inc. Airlock/Double-Dump Valve Assemblies?
These spherical valves are a top solution when you need to process dry or slurry materials through pressurized or vacuum environments.
In between the valves, we can design accumulator chambers for a ledge-free flow of material from one valve to the next. We can incorporate cycle timing, volumetric, and/or gravimetric measurement and pressure equalization for turnkey feeding solutions.
If your current valves are wearing out, or you want a replacement for rotary-vane valves, we can help.
Airlock/Double-Dump Capabilities
Our valves can process material into and out of differential pressure environments by:
- Timing
- Weight
- Volume
The goal is to replace other feeding devices while making your processes more efficient.
Our Roto-Disc® Cycle Controller (RDCC)™ uses purpose-driven programs you can save for specific recipes and batch sizes. All of our cycle controllers have a manual override.
Custom accumulator chambers can meet your specific volume or take-out space requirements.
Industries That Benefit From Roto-Disc, Inc. Airlock/Double-Dump Valve Assemblies
We help several industries with our airlock/double-dump valve assemblies, especially where airtight, contamination-free processes are needed.
Pharmaceuticals
You can easily transfer powders and granules in sanitized environments when precise measurements are needed. For example, you can have batch-feeding for powders to prevent possible moisture exposure that could reduce your products’ efficacy.
Plastics
We help your system feed plastic pellets and resins into extruders or processing chambers. For instance, the double-dump action valves can measure precise amounts of plastic pellets to prevent waste.
Chemical Processing
Our airlock/double-dump valve assemblies can handle hazardous or reactive powders while maintaining airtight seals. Do you need to move catalyst powders in precise amounts? Our airtight seals can do the job for your reactor chambers without exposing the powder to air or moisture.
Cement and Aggregates
Roto-Disc airlock/double-dump assemblies can manage the flow of dry cement, sand, or other aggregates in batching processes. For example, our product can meter precise amounts of material from a preheater to prevent overfeeding, clogging, or material surges that might disrupt operations.
Food and Beverage
Double-dump airlocks are ideal for discharging powders, grains, flour, sugar, and spices from vacuum dryers and spray dryers This works very well for any process where leaking from the downstream environment endangers the product or where leakage makes the process less efficient.
Mines and Minerals
For the mining industry, our valves ensure precise flow of mined materials in high-pressure extraction systems, including for rare-earth metals. For instance, you can meter crushed copper ore or concentrate into a furnace at a consistent rate. This helps protect the efficiency of your smelter.
Metallurgy and Foundries
Our valves can control the transfer of metal powders in vacuum sintering or additive manufacturing. Precise amounts of metal powders are needed for accurate alloy composition.
Biomass and Renewable Energy
Airlock/double-dump assemblies can handle organic material in gasification or pyrolysis processes. For instance, our assemblies can deliver precise amounts of wood chips into or out of a gasifier while preventing air infiltration, which could make the gasifier less efficient.
Waste Processing
Roto-Disc airlock/double-dump assemblies improve processing ash, glass, or other granular waste materials in controlled air systems. Let’s say you have waste ash you need to process. Our double-dump assemblies can help with incinerator bottom ash (IBA) and convey it to a cooling system for metal extraction. Our valves deliver precise amounts of material to keep your incinerator running at peak levels.
Aerospace Fuels
Does your company manage specialized powders for advanced composites or solid fuel systems? Our double-dump assemblies can transfer fine aluminum powder into a mixing chamber when producing solid fuel for boosters.
Battery Manufacturing
Roto-Disc valve assemblies make handling lithium and other conductive powders in an airtight system easier by preventing contamination. Our assemblies deliver lithium carbonate into a cathode material processing reactor with controlled feeding.
Benefits of Roto-Disc, Inc. Airlock/Double-Dump Valve Assemblies Versus Rotary Valves
Why invest in airlock/double-dump valve assemblies from Roto-Disc? There are three main benefits.
Easily Moves Dry or Slurry Materials Through Differential Pressure Environments
If you need to move precise amounts of materials into or out of a processor with different pressures, our valve assemblies come through. You can move materials by timing, weight, or volume, depending on your system.
No Material Gets Hung Up
Unlike traditional rotary valves, our airlock/double-dump assemblies have a ledge-free flow of material from valve to valve. Nothing gets hung up, and nothing is wasted.
100% Material Transfer
Dry and slurry materials have a 100% transfer rate going from one part of your line to the next. This allows for precise and accurate material delivery, which can make your finished product more reliable.
No Leakage and Less Wear
Rotary valves have a gap between the blade ends and the housing that allows leakage. The constant scraping of material between the blade and housing can cause even hardened surfaces to wear out.
Better Seal
The pressure or vacuum on either side of a rotary valve will leak because the rotary blades wear out. Our airlock/double dump assemblies solve this problem.
Sizes of Roto-Disc Airlock/Double-Dump Valve Assemblies
All of our products are designed and manufactured in the United States. Flange assemblies range from 2 inches to 24 inches inlet diameter. You can consult with our engineers to determine which size meets your needs.
Case Study for an Airlock/Double Dump Valve Assembly
Our case studies page highlights a pharmaceutical research project that utilized our airlock/double-dump valve assembly.
An American research team, sponsored by a multi-national pharmaceutical company, was searching for a way to accurately regulate the addition of powdered reactants to a continuous reaction process. These materials moved through reactors that maintained an inert atmosphere. The researchers also wanted to contain a potential 100 PSI explosion. The team contacted Roto-Disc®, Inc. for assistance in developing solutions.
We proposed a turnkey airlock double-dump assembly to feed the chemicals from a screw feeder into the reaction vessel. We installed a Roto-Disc® Airlock/Double-Dump valve and an inlet transition piece. The intermediate accumulator chamber with a reducer had a view window and was installed between the valves. The assembly had an electronic cycle-timer control.
To satisfy the requirement for corrosion resistance to a wide range of chemicals, all wetted parts were made of Hastelloy®-C or Teflon®. The accumulator chamber was designed by Roto-Disc®, Inc. to accommodate the volume of material specified for each cycle.
We included various ports needed for sensors and minor material additions. The microprocessor-based cycle timer control had a custom program that worked in conjunction with the position switches and solenoids on the valves. Interior surfaces of all Hastelloy® surfaces were polished, and the entire assembly was designed to ensure a ledge-free flow of products.
Since maintaining maximum pressure of 100PSI during an explosion and frequent cycling with low maintenance were core requirements, the heavy-duty construction and tight sealing of the Roto-Disc® valves were ideal for the customer’s application.
The research team is extremely satisfied with the finished assembly. The pharmaceutical company that sponsored the project is evaluating the design for inclusion in future projects.
Contact Roto-Disc for World-Class Valve Assemblies
Does your industrial operation need a state-of-the-art solution to replace older valve assemblies?
Contact us today to see if our team can help solve your production line problems and make your processes more efficient. We’re happy to help in any way we can.
