Ultrasonic assisted deliquoring of fine particle slurries

Vacuum systems based on ceramic capillary filters are currently used for deliquoring fine particle slurries. The result of the separation process is the liquid phase on one side and a paste ("cake") formed by the solid particles with a residual amount of liquid, on the other side. Application of high power ultrasound to this cake can improve deliquoring by reducing the residual moisture content. This new technique is described and some experimental results with suspensions of TiO2 and SZn in water, are presented.