A method of transporting a solids component of a slurry

摘要

A method of transporting a solids component of a slurry. In a first stage, the slurry is fed through a first conduit 2 into the upper part of a settling vessel in which the solids component settles downwards in the vessel while a liquid component of the slurry overflows through a second conduit 3 from the upper part of the vessel. In a second stage, the first and second conduits are closed and a third conduit 5 is opened to provide a feed of liquid under pressure into the upper part of the vessel while the solids component is removed from the lower part of the vessel by means of a fluidising unit 9. The fluidising unit has both a supply duct 10, which is fed with liquid under pressure from outside the vessel through a fourth conduit 8 and has an outlet opening into the vessel, and a discharge duct 11 within the supply duct and leading through a fifth conduit 12 outside the vessel to the desired export location. <IMAGE>