McLanahan Corporation's Sand Separation System Troubleshooting Guide provides solutions for sand that may be exiting the system too wet or too dirty, decreased capacity and the loss of excessive fines.
Operational Best Practices
How can I ensure high recovery of clean sand?
First, the correct amount of manure needs to be added. Second, adequate process/dilution water must be added for the amount of manure being processed. Lastly, ensure enough overflow water is exiting the side weir to aid in removal of large organic material. Roughly 80% of the water should exit the side weir. Adding a Hydrocyclone to the system will be a huge step in recovering the fine sand that overflows from the Sand-Manure Separator.
What can I do to dewater the sand?
The best way to get the maximum dewatering of sand is to install a Dewatering Screen. A Dewatering Screen will remove the free water resulting in a drip-free product that is usually around 12% moisture for washed concrete sand. If there is no Dewatering Screen in the system, there is one primary means to aid in dewatering. Keeping the non-carrying side of the dry deck clear will provide maximum dewatering. This can be accomplished by either occasionally washing it down with a water hose or by adding a flush line at the top. A pipe fitting is welded into the washbox to make this easier.
What can I do to maximize sand removal prior to going into a digester?
A properly installed and managed system is capable of removing over 95% of the bedding sand. The first step is to install a Hydrocyclone system after the primary Sand-Manure Separation system. This will ensure at least 90% of the sand is captured and can be reused for bedding. The final step would be to install a sand lane to capture the residual sand. This remaining fine sand that’s captured on the lane is discarded and not reused for bedding.
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