Flow properties for silo design - a review

Abstract

Silos are essential structures to maintain the quality of products such as grains, seeds and other agricole products used by industries, agricultural, and mineral sectors. The correct dimensioning and design of a silo project depends on determining the physical and mechanical properties of the products to be stored, since the type of flow as well as the intensity and distribution of stresses in the structure depend on these. There-fore, product characterization should be one of the first steps taken when designing or modifying a loading and unloading system. The characterization of the product to be stored consists of determining its physical properties, such as: consolidated specific weight, internal friction angle, effective internal friction angle, friction angle of the product with the wall, flow function, granulometry, and moisture and product content, which must be carried out under the most severe conditions that can occur in the silo. The Jenike Shear Test device is suitable equipment to measure these properties, making it possible to determine the stresses that the product will be subjected to during storage and in the flow conditions predicted to happen in the silo. There-fore, this review aimed to approach the physical and flow properties of stored products, enabling the development of safe, robust and reliable projects, in such a way that operations such as unloading, transilage, dosing, and packaging of products can be maximized. The importance of each property is noted, as it intrinsically affects the behavior of the product during storage, handling and processing.