The power of an air cannon

When we use the term cannon, it makes us think of loud explosions and the expelling of large metal balls, usually on the high seas with pirates. However, these use gunpowder and would be next to useless in the use of moving foodstuffs and powder items around a warehouse. Using Pneumatic conveying, like that from https://www.aptech.uk.com/pneumatic-conveying-systems, is much better suited. This is because it uses an air cannon system which is much better.

How an air cannon demonstrates the principle

You can see the effects of an air cannon by buying one or a toy version. You simply pull back an elastic-plastic back and let go. The force of the air created is funnelled through a tube. It blows people’s hair back.

Scaling the same idea up to industry

The principle is the same with a pneumatic system. It is a much greater power than the one you can generate. It needs to be. Pneumatic systems have to shift large bulky items in containers or powders and foodstuffs. The positive and negative opposites of a vacuum are usually employed to create attracting and repelling forces that move objects around. The propelling of the object has to be controlled, unlike the cannon ball, as it needs to reach the other end of the tube safely. If it flies at an uncontrollable rate, it could burst through the other end of the storage vat. This is not an outcome that anyone wants.

Summary

An air cannon works on a very different principle to a gunpowder cannon, using compressed air rather than an explosive charge, making it far better suited to moving foodstuffs and powders around a warehouse. A small toy version demonstrates the effect by releasing a burst of air through a tube. Industrial pneumatic conveying systems use the same principle at much greater power, controlling the force so bulky items reach the end of the tube safely.

Questions this article raises

• How is airflow controlled in an industrial pneumatic system?
• What materials are typically moved using pneumatic conveying?
• What happens if a pneumatic system loses control of the airflow?