The usefulness of static – or motionless – inline mixers goes beyond mixing. They are also effective for dispersing unwanted substances, promoting chemical reactions, and for heat control – heating, heat exchange, heat dispersion or cooling – in all kinds of viscous fluids.
Turbulence is provided by the continuous flow of materials driven by pumps or blowers. Different mixer profiles can control the degrees of admixture, turbulence, temperature and other qualities achieved in the fluid at different points in the production pipeline.
Without effective mixing and heat dispersion, many industrial processes simply cannot be scaled up to meet demand.
Mixers of this type are relied on by water treatment facilities, desalination plants, oil and gas industries, food and pharmaceutical production, paint and polymer production, paper manufacturing, and countless other manufacturing enterprises.
Key benefits
With no moving parts, static/motionless mixers are durable and reliable, while straightforward installation and almost zero maintenance bring significant savings in labour costs and downtime.
Full enclosure eliminates almost all risks of contamination from inside or outside the system; conversely, it eliminates risks of corrosive substances escaping to contaminate the environment.
They achieve the highest degrees of mixing with the lowest energy consumption – via pressure drop in the line – and in the shortest time and distance.
Their efficiency minimises the need to compensate for imperfect mixing by overdosing with key reagents or other additives. In food production, for example, this will mean fewer preservatives and conditioners are needed; in chemical production lines, it can mean savings in expensive catalysts or reagents and improved product purity.
The energy absorbed is proportional to fluid viscosities and flow rates, but is typically small. Static mixers can be up to 90 per cent more energy efficient than using dynamic mixers, which stir materials in tanks. The lack of any need for tanks, motors and other supporting equipment represents a significant saving in plant infrastructure and space.
Types
Mixers range from small laboratory-size units that will fit inside tubing just 3/16” in diameter up to units 120” in diameter, and even larger ducting units in power plant flues for emissions treatment. A wide range is available from manufacturers such as statiflo.com.
Inline mixers are easy to combine with ancillary equipment, such as injectors, samplers, heat transfer jackets and flow conditioners, to facilitate monitoring, quality control, energy efficiency and other benefits.