What is a Hammer Mill and How Does It Work?
A hammer mill is a machine designed to crush material into smaller pieces by way of repeated blows from small hammers. Hammer mills work on the principle that most materials will crush, grind, shatter or pulverize upon impact.
Material is fed into the mill grinding chamber through the feed chute. The material is repeatedly struck by hammers which are attached to a rotating shaft inside the mill chamber. The material is crushed and particle size is reduced as the particles are struck by the hammers, and also as they collide with the chamber walls and with each other. The clearance space between the mill chamber and the hammers also contributes to particle size reduction. The discharge opening of the mill is covered by a screen which allows only particles that have reached the desired size to pass through.
For a quick visual, watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSUbcndrCnI
What Are the Downsides of Using a Hammer Mill?
The first major disadvantage is that almost every component of a hammer mill is subject to rigorous wear-and-tear. Along with cost, this leads to more frequent maintenance, more down-time and even the possibility of product contamination. Hammer mills can also be energy inefficient, especially if they are old or not properly maintained. Hammer mills also generate heat, especially at when run at high speeds, which may be undesirable for certain applications.
With regards to particle size, there is great variability when using a hammer mill. This is because particle size is determined only by screen-hole size; meaning that any sized particle under a certain size can pass through. Lastly, hammer mills often produce a lot of fine dust, and can also be very noisy.
BEE Brand High Pressure Homogenizers from Pion: Leaders in Efficient and Uniform Particle Size Reduction
Homogenizers are the most efficient fluid processing equipment for particle size reduction. Unlike a hammer mill that uses only one mechanical force (impact), Pion's patented technology utilizes ALL available mechanical forces. Our proprietary homogenizing cell technology essentially drives the fluid at ultra-high pressure through a small nozzle, causing cavitation. The product becomes a high velocity jet stream and flows through an absorption cell. This absorption cell contains alternating small and large orifices that create turbulence and cause fluid-on-fluid impact and shear. Process intensity is adjustable from 2,000 - 45,000 psi / 150 - 3100 bar.
All of this is done with no grinding or mixing action. The energy is applied fluid-on-fluid, offering minimal wear on all homogenizer components.
