Basic concepts of vibrating screens: What they are, what they are for and how they work

What are vibrating screens and which are its main applications for use.

Also called simply screens, a vibrating screen is formed by a vibrant chassis that supports in its interior one or several surfaces or elements of screening.

The screens serve to classify the different particles by size, starting from a bulk product in a continuous process. The inlet material (the raw product) advances from the part where the screen is fed to the opposite end in which the particles come out separately according to their size, shape or density. There are also vibrating screens that are loaded by the center and the product moves radially to the outputs that are on the periphery.

For the correct advancement of the product it is necessary that the process is continuous, and it is due to the vibration if the screening surface is horizontal. Most of the screens have a certain inclination in such a way that the advance movement of the product is due to a combination between gravity and vibration.

Screening elements

The screening elements are flat or slightly curved surfaces having perforations of a certain size such that when a product is poured in bulk on the element it only passes those particles whose size is smaller than the size of the perforations.

The screening elements can be a metallic or nylon wire mesh, bars that pass material between them, metal sheet with circular, square or hexagonal perforations, more or less rigid sheets of rubber or polyurethane with perforations.

The type of element is chosen according to the application, nature of the product, size and shape of the particles, abrasivity, adhesion, humidity and temperature.