Modeling Belt Press Filter Performance in Fine Suspension Dewatering

Abstract

The principles of suspension dewatering using drainage on belt press filters are considered. A relationship describing the dependence of hydrostatic pressure, which is the driving force of the process, on time and the initial conditions, is proposed and experimentally confirmed. The equations for the calculation of the belt speed depending on the load on solids and for the solution of the reciprocal problem, which is represented by the determination of the capacity of the filter in solids at various belt speeds, are derived based on this. The calculated data, which were obtained from the results of laboratory studies on dewatering using the drainage of model suspensions, indicate that the capacity in solids at the belt speed of 0.35 m/s is 6.8–15.7 t/h. These data do not contradict the results of the pilot-scale tests.