A method for fractionating a milled grain product into coarse and fine fractions includes providing a sieving apparatus with a bottom chamber divided from a top chamber by a sieve, an inlet port in the top chamber, a top chamber cover defined by a plurality of openings, and a first exit port in the bottom chamber, and applying vacuum suction to the sieving apparatus. The vacuum suction is configured to draw grain particles through the inlet port into the top chamber, generate substantially horizontal airflow in the top chamber via the inlet port; and generate substantially vertical airflow in the top chamber via the plurality of openings, wherein the substantially horizontal airflow and the substantially vertical airflow combine to generate turbulence which fluidizes the grain particles in the upper chamber and prevents blockage of the sieve; and drawing fine grain particles through the sieve and out of the bottom chamber via the first exit port under the vacuum suction and collecting a fine grain particle fraction.

A method for efficiently producing a toner for developing electrostatic images, which contains very few coarse particles and having excellent printing characteristics. The method can comprise a sieving step of removing coarse particles from colored resin particles by, using an air flow, supplying the colored resin particles to a sieve, wherein a metal mesh laminate comprising at least two metal meshes attached to each other by sintering, the metal meshes being different in opening size, is used as the sieve; wherein the metal meshes of the metal mesh laminate are laminated in order of opening size and, of the metal meshes constituting the metal mesh laminate, one having a smallest opening size is disposed on a side of supplying the colored resin particles; and wherein the opening size of the metal mesh having the smallest opening size is in a range of from 32 to 110 m.

A method for efficiently producing a toner for developing electrostatic images, which contains very few coarse particles and having excellent printing characteristics. The method can comprise a sieving step of removing coarse particles from colored resin particles by, using an air flow, supplying the colored resin particles to a sieve, wherein a metal mesh laminate comprising at least two metal meshes attached to each other by sintering, the metal meshes being different in opening size, is used as the sieve; wherein the metal meshes of the metal mesh laminate are laminated in order of opening size and, of the metal meshes constituting the metal mesh laminate, one having a smallest opening size is disposed on a side of supplying the colored resin particles; and wherein the opening size of the metal mesh having the smallest opening size is in a range of from 32 to 110 m.

The invention is used in various branches of industry, in particular in agriculture for preparing seeds for sowing and for selection purposes. The method of separating a granular mixture in a flowing medium is based on a gravitational supply of particles, with an aerodynamic, monotonously increasing action thereon with a cascade of flat jets, said cascade being stabilized in terms of pressure and discharge. Large impurities are removed from the granular mixture beforehand, and stable parameters are maintained in the separation chamber. The device comprises a vibrating screen, an adjustable hopper with an agitator and a vibrating chute, a generator of a cascade of flat jets, which is connected to a drive for supplying air under pressure, a fraction collector and a separation chamber. The output of the separation chamber is covered with a filtering element in the form of a rotating drum with a calibrating sifter on the surface, said sifter being connected to a cyclone.

The invention is used in various branches of industry, in particular in agriculture for preparing seeds for sowing and for selection purposes. The method of separating a granular mixture in a flowing medium is based on a gravitational supply of particles, with an aerodynamic, monotonously increasing action thereon with a cascade of flat jets, said cascade being stabilized in terms of pressure and discharge. Large impurities are removed from the granular mixture beforehand, and stable parameters are maintained in the separation chamber. The device comprises a vibrating screen, an adjustable hopper with an agitator and a vibrating chute, a generator of a cascade of flat jets, which is connected to a drive for supplying air under pressure, a fraction collector and a separation chamber. The output of the separation chamber is covered with a filtering element in the form of a rotating drum with a calibrating sifter on the surface, said sifter being connected to a cyclone.

A compactly configurable device that classifies material containing fiber can more reliably recover classified content. A classifier has a mesh disc with numerous holes, and separates screenings that pass through the holes from remnants that do not pass through; a defibrated material spray nozzle disposed to one side of the mesh disc sprays defibrated material containing fiber onto the mesh disc; a suction conduit disposed to the other side of the mesh disc suctions the waste screenings that pass through the holes; and a recovery conduit disposed on the one side of the mesh disc suctions the processing feedstock that do not pass through the holes and in the mesh disc and remain on the mesh disc. The mesh disc is disposed so the a position of the holes can move from a spraying position opposite the defibrated material spray nozzle to a suction position opposite the recovery conduit. The recovery conduit suctions, at the suction position, processing feedstock that was left at the spraying position.

A dry-granulation method for producing a tablet comprising (a) pharmaceutical active ingredient in an amount 50-90% w/w and (b) one or more excipients in an amount 10-50% w/w including at least a binder which comprises (i) preparing granules from a powder comprising a binder, a pharmaceutically active ingredient and optionally one or more other excipients or pharmaceutical active ingredients by a process characterized in that a compaction force is applied to the powder to produce a compacted mass comprising a mixture of fine particles and granules and separating and removing fine particles and/or small granules from the granules by entraining the fine particles and/or small granules in a gas stream in which the compacted mass flows, wherein the direction of the flow of the gas stream has a component which is contrary to that of the direction of flow of the compacted mass, and collecting the accepted granules (ii) blending the accepted granules with other components of the tablet in granular or fine powder form wherein in step (ii) at least one other component of the tablet formulation is in granular form and is prepared from a powder comprising said other component by a process characterized in that a compaction force is applied to the powder to produce a compacted mass comprising a mixture of fine particles and granules and separating and removing fine particles and/or small granules from the granules by entraining the fine particles and/or small granules in a gas stream in which the compacted mass flows, wherein the direction of the flow of the gas stream has a component which is contrary to that of the direction of flow of the compacted mass; and (iii) compressing the resultant blend to form a tablet; with the proviso that the tablet does not comprise (a) paracetamol, maize starch and microcrystalline cellulose in a ratio of 60:20:20 w/w, (b) acebutolol HCl and starch in a ratio of 90:10 w/w, (c) sodium valproate, hypromellose and maize starch in a ratio of 90:5:5 w/w, (d) ketoprofen and maize starch in a ratio of 50:50 w/w or (e) metformin HCl, microcrystalline cellulose and maize starch in a ratio of 80:14:6 w/w.

A dry-granulation method for producing a tablet comprising (a) pharmaceutical active ingredient in an amount 50-90% w/w and (b) one or more excipients in an amount 10-50% w/w including at least a binder which comprises (i) preparing granules from a powder comprising a binder, a pharmaceutically active ingredient and optionally one or more other excipients or pharmaceutical active ingredients by a process characterized in that a compaction force is applied to the powder to produce a compacted mass comprising a mixture of fine particles and granules and separating and removing fine particles and/or small granules from the granules by entraining the fine particles and/or small granules in a gas stream in which the compacted mass flows, wherein the direction of the flow of the gas stream has a component which is contrary to that of the direction of flow of the compacted mass, and collecting the accepted granules (ii) blending the accepted granules with other components of the tablet in granular or fine powder form wherein in step (ii) at least one other component of the tablet formulation is in granular form and is prepared from a powder comprising said other component by a process characterized in that a compaction force is applied to the powder to produce a compacted mass comprising a mixture of fine particles and granules and separating and removing fine particles and/or small granules from the granules by entraining the fine particles and/or small granules in a gas stream in which the compacted mass flows, wherein the direction of the flow of the gas stream has a component which is contrary to that of the direction of flow of the compacted mass; and (iii) compressing the resultant blend to form a tablet; with the proviso that the tablet does not comprise (a) paracetamol, maize starch and microcrystalline cellulose in a ratio of 60:20:20 w/w, (b) acebutolol HCl and starch in a ratio of 90:10 w/w, (c) sodium valproate, hypromellose and maize starch in a ratio of 90:5:5 w/w, (d) ketoprofen and maize starch in a ratio of 50:50 w/w or (e) metformin HCl, microcrystalline cellulose and maize starch in a ratio of 80:14:6 w/w.

A rotary separation apparatus is deployed in a process for separating resinous trichomes rich in flavoring, aromatic and/or medicinal components produced in plant trichome glands from unwanted plant matter. A liquid freezing agent is introduced into a container of the plant matter to fragment the undesirable matter while the desired portion rich in trichome remain intact.

A sifter for separating coarse particles from a particle-carrying stream during the manufacture of wood fiber panels has a housing forming a chamber. The housing also has a material inlet for admitting the particle-carrying stream to the chamber, a front wall formed with an upper air inlet below the material inlet for admitting a respective upper air stream to the chamber and a lower air inlet below the upper inlet for admitting a respective lower air stream to the chamber, an exhaust-air outlet for conveying air and fine particles from the chamber, and a coarse-particle outlet for conveying coarse particles out of the chamber. The front wall of the housing has between the upper air inlet and the lower air inlet a portion with an inwardly concavely curved shape that forms a support vortex that supports the upper air stream entering through the upper feed air inlet in the chamber of the housing between the upper air inlet and the lower air inlet.