Matcon Manual IBC Cone Valve powder handling system

Matcon has added the Manual IBC Cone Valve (MCV) to its range of Intermediate Bulk Container (IBC) systems. Suitable for the food, beverage and chemical sectors, the MCV is designed to overcome the problems of mix segregation that can be associated with butterfly valve IBCs.

The manually operated Cone Valve is designed to promote mass-flow discharge of free-flowing powders, preventing segregation of powder mixes and ensuring product quality. It has been tested as an effective butterfly valve alternative, overcoming the issues of core flow and particle rolling that can be experienced with standard butterfly valves.

The valve can be easily retrofitted to existing flanged IBC outlet, providing a way of delivering powder handling capabilities to an entire IBC fleet.

It works positioned in the IBC outlet, where the cone is lifted by pushing on a lever handle. As the valve rises inside the IBC, an annular gap is created, enabling powders to exit under mass flow. As the powdered material moves simultaneously, there’s no particle rolling and hence no mix segregation. Bridging and rat-holing, which are common problems with butterfly valve IBCs, are also eliminated.

The operator can lock the lever in the open (100 mm height) or closed position with a locking handle, or at any intermediate position in between, depending on the desired product discharge flow rate.

Each unit has a nominal internal diameter of 250 mm and is designed to fit a vessel or process with the same outlet size for discharging free-flowing bulk material. A typical example of discharge time achieved when discharging 1000 kg of salt from a 1000-L IBC is only 90 s.

Key features include: simple hand operation; 100 mm stroking Cone Valve; variable stroke position locking; fast assembly/disassembly; promotes mass flow powder discharge; and prevents segregation of free-flowing powder mix.

In applications involving sticky, cohesive powders or where automation is required, the Classic Matcon IBC System is recommended.