Our Photo of the Week this week shows a test that frequently occurs in the FEECO Innovation Center: a dissolving test.
During agglomeration testing, it is common to place pellets into beakers of water to see how fast they dissolve. The pellets on the left have been coated with a coating agent, while the pellets on the right have not been coated at all.
Pellets should dissolve at an ideal rate: not too quickly, and not too slowly. In the case of fertilizers and soil amendments, pellets that dissolve too quickly will absorb moisture from the air and turn to “mush” before they reach farm fields. Pellets that dissolve too slowly may not breakdown fast enough, meaning the plant/soil won’t be able to absorb the nutrients.
Coating agents are used frequently in order to protect a pellet from moisture absorption, dust generation, or caking.
FEECO is highly experienced in engineering pellets of ideal quality. Our Innovation Center can run feasibility tests to tell you if your material will agglomerate, and if so, what equipment it will take to get the job done. For more information on our feasibility testing, contact us today!