Effect of the raw materials processing on their dustiness

During the handling and/or processing of powdered materials in the ceramic industry, one of the most important risks regarding the environmental and occupational health is the potential generation of dust. In this regard, a parameter of great interest is the dustiness of the processed materials; this parameter quantifies the tendency of the powdered materials to generate dust when handled. In this study, to determine the dustiness of a ceramic raw material composition (mixture of the body raw materials), the continuous drop method has been used. This test apparatus was selected because it is considered to better simulate how ceramic materials are handled in the ceramic industry. The obtained results show that the dustiness of the same ceramic composition exhibits significant changes during the manufacturing process, depending on the presentation form. In this regard, the dry milling sample presents the highest dustiness, which can be significantly reduced (> 75%) applying the the moisturization and agglomeration. The obtained results also shown that the best presentation form, regarding the minimization of the dust generation, is achieved in the spray-drying process, where the dustiness is reduced by 95%. (C) 2016 SECV. Published by Elsevier Espana, S.L.U.