Silo clogging reduction by placing an obstacle above the outlet

Abstract

We present an experimental study of the effect that an obstacle above the outlet of a silo has on the clogging probability. Both, the size of the orifice and the obstacle position are varied for a chosen obstacle size and shape. If the position of the obstacle is properly selected the clogging probability can be importantly reduced. Indeed, as the outlet size is increased - and we approach the critical size above which there is not clogging - the obstacle effect is enhanced. For the largest outlet size studied, the clogging probability is reduced by a factor of more than one hundred. We will show, using numerical simulations, that the physical parameter behind the reduction of the silo clogging seems to be the decrease of the vertical pressure at the outlet proximities.