Press Release Back Number(2004)

Development of Rocking Mixer^*1, the Industry's First Powder Mixer to Achieve Heating Temperatures of 400°C

November 1, 2004
Chubu Electric Power Co., Inc.

-Higher-Temperature Heating System Broadens Range of Application-

In partnership with Aichi Electric Co., Ltd. (President: Bunkai Kino; 1, Aichi-cho, Kasugai City, Aichi Pref.), we have developed the Rocking Mixer, a high-temperature heating powder mixer. This is the industry's first mixer capable of mixing, drying, and granulating at temperatures of 400C, all tasks performed by the machine itself.

In many fields such as pharmaceuticals, food, chemicals, and electronic component materials, powder mixers are used to uniformly mix and distribute powders of different sizes or materials.

The Rocking Mixer heating powder mixer developed by Chubu Electric Power and Aichi Electric in 1990 has been used for applications in numerous fields (the total sales of which stood at approx. 2,300 as of the end of September 2004). However, its design limits the mixer's maximum heat treatment temperature to 150°C.

The latest method for preparing new materials melts materials to granulate or reformulate powder surface, a technique that has resulted in growing demand for a heating mixer capable of performing heat treatment at higher temperatures.

To meet this need, we revised the placement and control method of heaters, the design and thermal insulation structure of the capsule (containing powder), and added a cooling mechanism at the bearing section inside the capsule. The end result is a new mixer capable of performing heat treatment at temperatures as high as 400°C as well as highly accurate temperature control.

This mixer will find new applications where conventional mixers cannot be used (for example, semiconductor devices using selenium, battery materials using indium, and electron cooling devices using bismuth). This mixer will also expand applications in fields such as pharmaceuticals and chemicals due to multifunctional options such as within-capsule vacuuming and the capacity to add liquid to mixed powders

This newly developed mixer will be sold by Aiden Shoji Co., Ltd (President: Masuo Ihara; Address: 27-28, Daikan-cho, Higashi-ku, Nagoya City, Aichi Pref.) in March 2005. We will display this product at the International Exhibition of Powder Technology 2004,*2 scheduled to be held at Makuhari Messe from November 9 to 12.

Main features of high-temperature heating powder mixer Rocking Mixer