Solutions · Carbon Storage
Carbon products are light, dusty, and leave black traces wherever dust escapes. PW Silo Systems designs aluminum and stainless steel silos for activated carbon, carbon black, char, coke, and graphite with you – with tight dust collection, discharge aids, and the right safety concept for your product.
Carbon Storage at a Glance
An activated carbon silo stores activated carbon, biochar, carbon black, char, coke, or graphite close to the process – for water treatment, flue gas cleaning, rubber and plastics, batteries, or metallurgy. It keeps the product dry and contained and feeds it in a controlled way to dosing or conveying.
Carbon products range from coarse granules to extremely fine, light powders. Fine grades dust easily and can flow poorly. Silo geometry, discharge, dust collection, and the safety concept are therefore designed together with you for your product and your site.
Why Carbon Products Are Demanding
Dust, low bulk density, and safety requirements decide whether a carbon silo runs reliably.
Fine carbon dust escapes through every leak and leaves black traces on equipment, buildings, and products.
Carbon black and powdered activated carbon have a low bulk density and can flow poorly.
Granular activated carbon and coke should reach the process with as little breakage and fines as possible.
Many fine carbon dusts are combustible. Venting, filtration, and explosion protection depend on the product.
In funnel flow, product can stay in the silo for a long time while fresh product passes through the center.
Activated carbon, carbon black, coke, and graphite must not be mixed by accident.
Silo Materials
We build silos exclusively in aluminum and stainless steel. Carbon steel is not an option for us: its coating is the only protection against corrosion – and flaking coating or rust can end up in your product.
Which of our two materials fits your carbon silo depends on the product, its grain size, your process, and your site. We select the material and the design with you.
Your Carbon Silo System
Silo, discharge, blending, filtration, and monitoring are engineered as one system. That means fewer interfaces for your team and components that are designed to work together.
Storage
Concentric mass-flow discharge without asymmetric flow zones – as standard, site-assembled, indoor, or multi-compartment silos.
Learn moreBlending
Gravity blending and homogenizing with four technologies, including PW ConeBlend with a hopper that is quick to clean.
Learn moreDischarge
Air fluidization for uniform discharge of poorly flowing products – prevents bridging and can be retrofitted to existing silos.
Learn moreDischarge
Vibration from unbalanced motors breaks up cohesive forces, resolves caking, and keeps the outlet clear.
Learn moreFiltration
Dust separation during pneumatic filling and conveying – sized for fine powders.
Learn moreMonitoring
Level measurement for reliable monitoring of the silo content – so you know when to reorder.
Learn moreCarbon Products
Products marked “Tested in our lab” are on our list of bulk materials. The others we review with you based on your material data before designing the silo.
Tested in our lab
Activated carbon, activated charcoal, biochar, powdered and granular grades
Activated carbon and biochar are on our list of bulk materials tested in our lab – for water treatment, flue gas cleaning, and filtration.
Tested in our lab
Carbon black, furnace black, lamp black
Carbon black is on our tested list. Its very fine, light particles are considered in hopper design, venting, and filtration.
Tested in our lab
Char, pyrolysis char, carbon char
Char is on our tested list. Grain size and moisture depend on the source and are considered in the silo design.
Tested in our lab
Coke, petroleum coke, petcoke, coke breeze
Coke is on our tested list. Silo and discharge are designed for its grain size and bulk density.
Tested in our lab
Graphite, graphite powder
Graphite is on our tested list – for batteries, refractories, and lubricants. Discharge and dust collection are planned for fine grades.
Review with us
Recovered carbon black, rCB
Recovered carbon black varies with its source. We review your material data with you before designing the silo.
Also tested in our lab:
Send us your material data and we will review the right solution with you:
Product Check
Type in your carbon product or any other bulk material to see whether it has already been tested in our lab. The list covers 287 bulk materials.
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Service in the U.S.
With more than 40 years of experience in silo engineering, we support your carbon silo project from the first design discussion to commissioning. We deliver to every U.S. state and install with our own qualified personnel.
FAQ
Answers to the questions plant managers, engineers, and buyers ask most often about storing activated carbon, carbon black, and coke in silos.
Dry carbon products can be stored in a properly designed silo. These products are on our list of bulk materials tested in our lab:
Recovered carbon black, coal dust, and other carbon products we review with you based on your material data.
A closed system for filling and discharge, integrated filters, and PW FilterLine dust collectors keep carbon dust inside the system. Filter size and venting are matched to your filling rate and your product.
Many fine carbon dusts are combustible. Whether explosion protection is required, and in which form, depends on your product and your site. We review venting and explosion protection with you where your product requires it.
We build silos exclusively in aluminum and stainless steel – never in coated carbon steel. Which of our two materials fits depends on the product, its grain size, your process, and your site. We select it with you.
In mass flow, the entire silo content moves downward when material is discharged – not just a channel in the center. Your carbon products leaves the silo in the order it came in (first in, first out), and no product is left behind in dead zones. Our PW StoreLine silos are designed for concentric mass-flow discharge without asymmetric flow zones.
Powdered and granular grades flow very differently. Hopper geometry, outlet, and discharge aids are designed for the grade you use – tell us which one it is, or whether you need both.
The right size depends on your daily consumption, delivery intervals, the number of products, and the space available at your site. PW StoreLine silos are available in a wide range of sizes and diameters, and silos too large for road transport are assembled on site. We size the system with you – without oversized investment.
Yes. We deliver to every U.S. state and support your project with silo transport, field assembly, silo installation and supervision, and site relocation of existing systems.
Very likely. Our silo systems are designed for nearly all free-flowing, granular, and powdered bulk solids. Send us your material details – particle size, bulk density, moisture, and how the product is filled and discharged – and we will review the right storage solution with you.
Tell us about your products, required storage capacity, how the silo is filled and discharged, and your site conditions. Based on this, we work out the material, silo type, and configuration with you and send you a detailed quote.
