Development of a novel high performance filtration system — Application for various hardly filterable materials

A new filtration method that a slurry is prepared in a well-dispersed state and filtered by a ceramic tube with a spiral guide rod has been developed in our previous paper. In this study, we attempted to concentrate various hardly filterable materials by using this new system. The sample slurries used were sericite, iron oxide, algal suspension and activated sludge of the excrement of farm animals. Their respective concentrations were 57, 74, 1.1, and 7.55 mass%. The concentrated slurry of all samples exhibited good flowability. In addition, to apply this system to real industrial processes, we attempted to calculate the required number of ceramic filters from the relationship between the filtration flux and the slurry concentration. Thus, the size of this system is expected to be significantly compact. Furthermore, in this system, there is a case that the batch operation is more effective than the continuous operation.