Screening wire specialist Major Wire Industries has released Flex-Thane, which combines the advantages of polyurethane media and woven wire screens - virtually eliminating blinding and plugging on flat modular screen decks.
Flex-Thane panels consist of independently vibrating wires, bonded in place with Major Wire's distinctive lime-green polyurethane strips, and are designed to be used in place of polyurethane and rubber screen media. Polyurethane and rubber screen media have long been popular for their excellent abrasion resistance, suitability in wet screening applications and simple screen panel changes.
However, producers who use polyurethane and rubber screen panels often sacrifice significant production for wear life. Especially in wet screening conditions - whether through the use of spray bars or through climate conditions - polyurethane and rubber screen openings will often plug or blind. The result for the producer is frequent shutdowns for screen cleaning, wasted material and/or out-of-spec material.
Because Flex-Thane virtually eliminates blinding and pegging on flat, modular screen decks, it enables better throughput, consistent production of spec material and better production numbers, according to Major Wire. "This is the next step in screen technology," said Brian Barlow, Major Wire's marketing director. "If a screen is 20% plugged or blinded, that's a 20% loss in production.
"Flex-Thane virtually never plugs or blinds, so users will find related production losses will be significantly less - if not gone altogether."
Barlow said the product had been tested in a number of sites around North America over six months, some running over 50,000 hours without any wear.
"Because Flex-Thane has no high points, unlike woven wire screens, wear is greatly reduced, to a point where it's comparable with polyurethane media," he said.
Following its worldwide debut at
The product is available in 300 mm by 300 mm panel sizes, with a variety of locking systems to fit virtually any flat-surface polyurethane screen deck.
Specification
Manufacturer: Major Wire Model: Flex-Thane
Panel size: 300 by 300mm
Special features: Resists plugging; Increased wear life
