Separation Mechanism and Design Principles of the Teetered Bed Separator for Cleaning Fine Coal

The teetered bed separator (TBS) is a gravity separator and operated based on the hindered-settling principle. However, there has been less great progress in the fundamental technique and separation mechanism since they were invented. The emphasis on this study lies in discussing the separation mechanism of the teetered bed separator and design principles of the distributor and the feeding well. The BBO equation is obtained through analyzing the forces exerted on the particles. The relationship between the pressure drop of the distributor and the flux of the teeter water is obtained using the continuity equation and the Bernoulli equation. The relationship between the pressure drop of the feeding well and the flux of the feed is addressed, too. These two relationships could be used for predicting the pressure drop of the distributor and the feeding well. It is concluded that the stable flow field in the separator could enhance the separation performance by reducing even or eliminating the wall effect and the misplacement phenomena. Also and a teetered bed separator with the cross-flow feed would certainly improve the separation results, in agreement with the previous experimental data. This has resulted in a more understanding of the separation mechanism of the particles in TBS and helped in choosing the appropriate operating parameters and structural parameters for designing the teetered bed separator and selecting the auxiliary pump matched with the separator.