d-FrontNews-9-14_Front-Back_News 6/25/12 10:54 AM Page 14
As appeared in June 2012 PBE
Copyright CSC Publishing
Editor’s choice
How much
material is in
that bin,
anyway?
Terry O’Neill, Editor
K
nowing how much material is
in a vessel is vital. With a storage vessel, this information
can tell you when you need to order
more raw materials or how much finished product is ready to ship. With a
process vessel, it can tell you when
the vessel is becoming dangerously
full or empty. Many instruments are
available to help you determine material levels. But how do they work, and
how do you choose one that’s right for
your purpose?
A new book, Solids Level Measurement and Detection Handbook, can
help you understand these instruments and determine which ones
could work for you. Written by longtime industry measurement specialist
www.powderbulk.com
Joe Lewis, this 208-page volume is
well-organized and easy to understand. After providing basic information about level measurement, the
author devotes several chapters each
to point level and contents measurement. The former relates to determining specific material level points
(typically high and low) in a vessel,
while the latter relates to measuring
the material quantity in a vessel.
Along the way, Lewis discusses various level measurement devices, including tilt, rotating paddle,
capacitance, guided-wave radar, and
many others. He also points out the
differences between measuring bulk
solids and measuring liquids. For example, liquids always have a flat surface and aren’t compressible, but
these characteristics don’t apply to
bulk solids, which have hills and valleys and various degrees of density.
Each chapter concludes with questions and answers, and the book is
filled with useful charts and illustrations that help make concepts clear.
We don’t frequently see new books on
bulk solids handling and processing
topics, so this one is a welcome addition to our industry reference shelf.
PBE
Solids Level Measurement and Detection Handbook by Joe Lewis
is published by Momentum Press and is available at www.momen
tumpress.net and from other booksellers.