Mixing & Blending

SPX FLOW is the World’s Largest Mixing Manufacturer

Mixing and blending processes are a critical function of manufacturing lines across modern industry. At SPX FLOW we engineer, manufacture and provide aftermarket services for a range of mixing applications across industries for customers around the world. As the largest mixing manufacturer on the planet, our solutions are designed to make your processes more efficient, sustainable and profitable.

With brands like Philadelphia Mixing Solutions, Plenty and Lighnin, our mixing solutions portfolio represents centuries of experience in mixing innovation, engineering and service. We develop customized mixing solutions to the specific needs of each customer that help reduce operating costs, speed up processes, increase output, lower energy consumption and decrease cost of operation.

MIXING APPLICATIONS

When it comes to mixing solutions, no two scenarios are the same. The type, speed and design of an industrial mixer is contingent on the input phases of the solutes and solvents. Whether it's liquid–liquid, liquid-solid, solid suspension, or any number of other applications, each has intricate needs that require flexible solutions.

That's why the first thing SPX FLOW process engineers do is audit each customer's mixing needs for a high-level view. Understanding the intricacies of each scenario is vital to defining the most effective mixing solution possible.

Liquid – Solid Mixing

Liquid-Solid mixing often requires the deconstruction of agglomerated solids by suspending particles in the mixture before destabilizing bulks of solid material. An example of this process occurs in the mixing of concrete, where solutes, cement and sand, are mixed with solvent and water to create a malleable and self-hardening product.

Solid Suspension

The suspension of solids within an industrial mixing process improves the rate of mass transfer within the solution. SPX FLOW industrial mixers can be designed to meet any processing need. For example, while axial-flow impellers are typically suggested for solid suspension, radial-flow impellers used together with baffled mixing tanks can function just as effectively. A tank with baffles can rotate to convert the radial-flow impellers rotational motion into vertical motion to displace collected solids. Our ability to assess and offer high-quality solutions for solid suspension scenarios is what sets SPX FLOW apart.

Liquid – Gas Mixing

The mixing of liquids and gases, or liquids-to-gasses, typically seeks a transfer of mass. The blending of gases and liquids, such as the integration of oxygen into a liquid, often benefits from extending the amount of contact time the gas has with the liquid. And because gases are often costly, an efficiently designed process could reduce input costs and minimize waste.

Multiphase mixing

Multiphase mixing is a term used to describe a single process that combines solids, liquids and gases. Often occurring as a catalytic chemical process, such as fermentation, solid microbes and gases must be dispersed through a liquid. SPX FLOW application engineers design custom industrial mixing processes based on the solution and properties of its multiphased reaction.

Batch versus Continuous

Batch and continuous mixing refers to the way the industrial mixer functions within the overarching process. Batch refers to the processing of “batches,” or quantities of a solution at a time, then introducing a new “batch” after mixing the last. Continuous is a mixing process that is constantly blending a solution. SPX FLOW designs both continuous and batch mixing solutions customized for the needs of each customer.

Solid – Solid Mixing

The complexity of dry mixing is largely based in the segregation, capacity and validation within the process itself. For example, a continuous dry mixing process such as mulling foundry molding sand requires sand, water, clay and coal dust to be mixed into a moldable plastic product. Each input within the process must be added separately and only into mixtures that have been validated to contain the correct properties before mixing ensues. With more than a century of dry-mixing experience as a company, SPX FLOW engineers are experts in developing, predicting, and scaling specific mixing behavior.

Solid – Gas Mixing

The mixing of gaseous reactants with particulate solids is reliant on several process factors particularly the density, size and shape of the solid particulate used in the solid-gas mixing process. These factors are directly related to the level of gas integration and often the duration of the mixing process. Another factor we consider is the force in which the gas is introduced. For example, gases are often introduced using turbulent eddies which means gases must have enough force to suspend the solid particles in order to facilitate an optimal mixing process.

SERVICE / AFTERMARKET

It’s one thing to engineer and manufacture world-class mixing solutions, but another primary benefit of working with SPX FLOW is the reach of our service. Thanks to the strength of our combined brands, we can service you quickly wherever you are located.

In addition to our physical service locations, our robust and easy-to-use eCommerce platform contains more than 5,000 commonly replaced mixer parts for worldwide delivery. From repair kits and props, to motors, drive shafts, bearings and more our platform features real-time parts availability, product lead time and price, and secure credit card processing.

Learn more about aftermarket services for mixers.

MIXING SOLUTIONS

The need for an optimized mixing and blending process is leading the industry to a heightened level of detailed digital controls. Installed into the mixer at critical points, controls are used to monitor the performance of the mixer during operation.

Impeller Agitators

Impeller agitators, similar to ribbon mixers, blend through a configuration of protruding blades on an axis. Can be used in wet mixing, slurry mixing, and high-velocity applications, due to the variability of the mixing blades themselves. SPX FLOW application engineers can optimize a paddle mixer to a client’s mixing needs to fit their processes.

R&D

SPX FLOW agitators are designed custom to the specified needs of the customer's process. The SPX FLOW global mixing lab in Rochester, New York, features a 50-foot square basin for the testing agitators, surface aerators and other large scale mixing solutions. SPX FLOW application engineers design high-performance equipment through the testing and acute measurement of custom-designed applications