Cake Uniformity in pressure filtration of coal slurry

Abstract In filtration and dewatering processes the cake structure and the degree of homogeneity of solids in the filter cake are important parameters. The paper describes a novel modified laboratory approach for producing a uniform structure filter cake in pressure filtration. The uniformity of the filter cake, described in terms of the mixing index, was derived using the Kramers model for various types of cake formation conditions. The study identified that a low moisture level in the filter cake results from uniform distribution of particles with a mixing index greater than 0.750. It is also shown that the filter cake moisture and the mixing index are inversely proportional, i.e. a higher mixing index provided a lower-moisture filter cake.