Effect of delivery nip pressure chute on milling performance.

THIS PAPER DESCRIBES the development and testing of a modified delivery nip pressure chute to reduce moisture content in bagasse. The pressure chute replaces the conventional top and bottom roller scrapers with a modified arrangement. The design uses gravity to separate juice from bagasse by pushing bagasse upwards and maintaining the compaction in the chute. An experimental program was undertaken to determine the reduction in reabsorption factor that could be attributed to the delivery chute. Reductions in reabsorption factor of 10% and 5% were recorded for the first and final mill respectively post the installation of pressure chute. In addition, the final bagasse moisture reduced by ~2 units, primary extraction increased by 6.6 units and overall extraction increased by 1.1 units.