Abstract: A feed diverting guide plate at the material entrance to the grinding chamber of a hammermill, the plate being magnetized on both sides thereof and being tiltably reversible in position, the magnetized sides of the guide plate attracting with one side thereof tramp iron from the material entering the grinding chamber and attracting with the other side thereof tramp iron from the material being circulated through the grinding chamber.

Abstract: A reducing mill for handling a wide variety of trash and waste material needing reduction to a state for easy subsequent handling and for separating certain components of the material by a specific gravity characteristic. The reducing mill embodies means for mixing and segregating components of the trash and waste material by the combined jet and negative pressure gradient induced by the action of an air stream, and by the cooperation of a hammer mill housed in a casing formed to effect recycling of material which needs or may require recirculation for further reduction and segregation.

Abstract: A device for the homogenization of material to be crushed particularly for crushing coal to uniform grain size comprises a first conveyor for feeding the material to be crushed which has an upper section and a lower section which extends downwardly away from and below the upper section. A coarse material conveyor overlies the lower section and is disposed at the level of the upper section and between it and the upper section there is a grading device which permits deflection of the fine material so that it is fed downwardly with the lower section and the transfer of the coarse material over the lower section onto a perforated crusher plate. A crushing roll is disposed above the crusher plate in a position to crush the coarse material which is fed thereon to a side operable to the material carried by the lower section and to deposit this material onto the lower section by passage through the openings of the crusher plate.

Abstract: A process for reducing sugarcane bagasse to a peat moss-like material that is useful as a planting or potting soil consists of the steps of: (1) screening the bagasse to remove the short fibers which are about 1/4 to 3/8 inch (6.35-9.53 mm) in length; (2) feeding the so-screened bagasse through a hammermill to reduce the remaining long fibers to fibers of a shorter length; and, (3) removing the short fibers which are about 1/4 to 3/8 inch (6.35-9.53 mm) in length as they are generated in the hammermill. The product consisting essentially of short fibers of bagasse which are about 1/4 to 3/8 inch (6.35-9.53 mm) in length produced by the foregoing process.

Abstract: Apparatus for processing waste material which includes domestic and industrial waste, and in which the recovery of aluminum containers is an important aspect. The apparatus comprises a shredding mill and a housing structure to which the waste material is delivered in such manner that the difficult to shred heavy objects are allowed to separate by gravity action, and the remainder of the waste material is dispersed by an air stream such that the air responsive fractions are collected in a separator chamber and the remainder of the fractions are fed into the shredding mill under the control of gate means which responds to ability of the shredder to receive and process the same without overloading the motor drive.

Abstract: Liquid fertilizer is produced by mixing dry fertilizer components with water. The combination is introduced into a first cyclone separator which removes the larger chunks of material from the mixture and discharges them into a crusher containing a revolving paddle wheel. The smaller chunks and the solution are passed to a second cyclone separator where the smaller chunks are removed and passed to the same paddle wheel. The solution containing the dissolved material is passed on to a holding tank. The chucks which were passed to the paddle wheel are broken up by impact with the paddle wheel and the paddle wheel housing and thereafter fall through a discharge chute and become remixed with fluid from the holding tank or storage vat. The fluid and crushed particles are recirculated through the cyclones and crusher or impactor until all particles have become dissolved into the solution.

Abstract: Apparatus for separating a comixture of light and heavy materials includes a drum divided into two sections. In the first section, the material is introduced with a fluid, and separated from the fluid such that the fluid flows substantially the length of the first section along a "counter flow" path to wash against the material to be separated before overflowing the first section. The material to be separated separates into floating and sinking fractions, the floating fraction overflowing the first section together with the fluid. The sinking fraction is carried by a scroll along the wall of the first section to be lifted into the second section.In the second section, the sinking fraction is reduced in size by a charge of grinding balls and lifted and removed from the second section.

Abstract: An improved wood chipping installation of reduced overall height has conveyor means for feeding wood pieces to a chipping machine. The conveyor means includes a conveyor type screening device for separating proper size chips from oversize chips. Means are provided for transferring material chipped by the chipping machine back to the infeed end of the screening device so that oversize chips are fed by the conveyor, along with other wood pieces, back into the chipping machine while proper size chips and fines are separated out.

Abstract: A self cleaning rotary screen apparatus is disclosed which comprises an outer shell formed from a plurality of spaced cylindrical hoops that are welded to a plurality of longitudinal bars which extend the full length of the shell. The hoops are variably spaced along the length of the shell to provide different sized screen openings. In addition, for aiding in the screening operation and for keeping the material moving through the screen, an internal helical blade construction comprising a multiple helix at the entrance to the screen and a single helix thereafter is welded to the longitudinal bars over the full length of the shell.

Abstract: A mill for crushing tree trunks is disclosed which includes a rotor having a series of crushing blades disposed helically around the rotor. The rotor blades pass between axially spaced stator blades in the mill housing to crush the trunks and liberated associated foreign matter. The crushed material and liberated foreign matter is moved toward one end of the mill housing by the action of the helically disposed rotor blades where it is discharged from the mill.

Abstract: A sheet handling apparatus for documents requiring secure handling, such as banknotes. The documents are fed one at a time along a main flow-line in which they are sensed to determine whether they are in a fit condition or in an unfit condition. If unfit, they are routed into a secondary flow-line leading to a shredder, the secondary flow-line including further checking structure to ensure that documents classed as unfit in the main flow-line are present in the secondary flow-line at the appropriate time and are guided to the shredder.

Abstract: Apparatus for removing samples from a stream of materials and for producing analytical samples therefrom comprising conveying a stream of granular material on a conveyor and discharging the material from the end of the conveyor through a hopper located in the path of the stream. The hopper occupies only a small portion of the width of the stream and the hopper is fixed to a plate which undergoes horizontal reciprocating motion transversely across the stream to vary the location at which the material enters the hopper. The height of the inlet of the hopper is at least as great as the thickness of the stream. The material separated by the hopper is conveyed through a chute to a crushing stage wherefrom an analytical sample of the desired size is obtained.

Abstract: Disclosed is apparatus for separating and comminuting solid particles suspended in a fluid stream. Pumpable slurries containing solid bodies suspended in a liquid are separated into two streams with the larger bodies concentrated in one stream. The stream containing the larger bodies is passed through a mill which accelerates the stream and directs the accelerated stream against a stationery wall. The high speed bodies are fractured by impact with the wall and returned to a mixing vat to be mixed with the remainder of the slurry.

Abstract: Freshly mined phosphate rock is subjected to screen classification in at least two stages. Only coarse grained phosphate rock with a grain size over 2 mm from the last screen classification step is fed to a plain-roller grinding mill. The rollers of the grinding mill run at different peripheral speeds, so that the grains are ground by radial and tangential forces. This produces a fine grained phosphate rock whose natural moisture content is advantageous when further processed to phosphoric acid by means of sulphuric acid.

Abstract: A novel ball mill providing a maximum efficiency for the balls dropping onto the material to be crushed, this being obtained by associating a vertical tube into which said material is poured together with the ball with means for raising the balls and crushed material passing out of the lower end of the tube, so as to reintroduce same into the upper end of the latter, the sufficiently crushed material being sucked out of the tube at a selected point of its height.

Abstract: An hydraulic mining apparatus and method wherein the mined aggregate is separated into dry, relatively large aggregate pieces for dry conveyance and wet, relatively small aggregate pieces for wet conveyance. In the preferred embodiment, the method and apparatus provides for reducing any oversized large aggregate pieces in size so that the large pieces do not exceed a predetermined maximum size. Size reduction is provided by a mechanical breaker and wet, relatively small aggregate is separated out of the mined product prior to the breaking step. The apparatus is embodied in a feeder-breaker mechanism wherein a conveyor running lengthwise of the mechanism first subjects the total mined product to size separation or classification, then directs the larger aggregate pieces through the breaker and, finally, discharges the breaker treated pieces to a dry conveyor. The separated wet, relatively small aggregate pieces are collected within the mechanism and pumped away.

Abstract: Apparatus for processing material to reduce it to a state that renders the material more easily disposed of, the apparatus being adapted to process all types of refuse and garbage of the character usually collected by packer trucks from residential and commercial areas in particular.

Abstract: Apparatus and method for dry, mechanical separation of heavy and light materials dispersed in substances. The apparatus comprises a screened funnel through which the substance is introduced, a cylindrical tube mounted on support means and inclined to the vertical, means to spread the substances, within the cylinder a second screened opening through which heavy material passes and exit means for the light weight, waste material.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for hydraulic mining wherein the mined product is reduced to a pumpable form. The apparatus includes a jet monitor for dislodging the mined product from its in situ state, a feeder-breaker for receiving the mined product, preliminarily separating the pumpable constituent of the product and then subjecting the remaining product to successive breaking and separating steps until the entire product is in a pumpable state. The feeder-breaker is also provided with a sump to collect the pumpable product and pump means to convey the product from the sump under pressure, whereby transport of the product is not dependent on gravity. In the preferred embodiment, the feeder-breaker is provided with a secondary jet monitor to reduce oversized constituents of the mined product to a size suited for the successive separating and breaking steps.

Abstract: In a low profile crusher which has first and second cylindrical rolls journaled so that the rotational axis of the rolls are parallel and an input conveyor and an output conveyor is improved by journaling the first roll so that the distance from the axis of the first roll to the product side of the output conveyor is slightly greater than the radius of the first roll. The input conveyor is mounted over the first roll so that the distance between the axis of the first roll and the return side of the input conveyor is slightly greater than the radius of the first roll. The second roll is journaled above the first roll so that the maximum height of the second roll is at least equal to the height of the product side of the input conveyor and close enough to the first roll to produce a predetermined maximum size of product. A scalping method for the above is formed by mounting the input end of the input conveyor in substantially the same plane as the output conveyor.

Abstract: The breaker plate of a coal crusher has holes therein so that coal small enough to pass through those holes does so without being acted upon by the rotor. This increases the capacity of the crusher, reduces fines, and conserves power. The plate is oriented such that windage generated by the rotor urges the smaller pieces of coal through the holes.