Color Separation
A small amount of the wrong pigment changes the color of an entire batch.
- Our solution
- Dedicated silos per color or PW StoreLine multi-compartment silos that keep products separate.
- Your benefit
- No color carry-over between products.
Solutions · Pigment Storage
Pigments are fine, cohesive, and unforgiving: a trace of the wrong color shows in the end product. PW Silo Systems designs aluminum and stainless steel silos for pigments and powder coatings with you – with clear product separation, discharge aids, and dust collection.
Pigment Storage at a Glance
A pigment silo stores color pigments, white and black pigments, or powder coatings close to production – for plastics and masterbatch, paints and coatings, building materials, or printing inks. It keeps the pigment clean and dry and feeds it in a controlled way to dosing and mixing.
Pigments are fine powders that bridge, dust, and must never be mixed by accident. Silo geometry, discharge aids, dust collection, and product separation are therefore designed together with you for your pigments and your site.
Why Pigments Are Demanding
Color separation, fine particles, and dust decide whether a pigment silo runs reliably.
A small amount of the wrong pigment changes the color of an entire batch.
During pneumatic filling, fine pigment dust spreads quickly and colors equipment and surroundings.
Many pigments are cohesive. They compact under their own weight and build bridges over the outlet.
When a silo changes from one pigment to another, residues in the hopper are a risk.
Powder coatings are combustible. Venting, filtration, and explosion protection depend on the product.
Lot-to-lot differences in shade or strength show up directly in the end product.
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 pigment.
Which of our two materials fits your pigment silo depends on the pigment, your process, your quality requirements, and your site. We select the material and the design with you.
Your Pigment 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 silo from the PW BlendLine with a hopper that is quick to clean – helpful when products change.
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 morePigments & Powder Coatings
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
Titanium dioxide, TiO₂, white pigment
Titanium dioxide is on our list of bulk materials tested in our lab. Outlet, discharge aids, and filtration are designed for its very fine particles.
Tested in our lab
Carbon black, black pigment, furnace black
Carbon black is on our tested list. A closed system and tight dust collection keep black dust contained.
Tested in our lab
Powder coating, powder paint, coating powder
Powder coating is on our tested list. Explosion protection and venting are reviewed with you for your product.
Review with us
Iron oxide pigments, red, yellow, and black iron oxide
Iron oxide pigments are used in building materials, coatings, and plastics. We review your product data with you.
Review with us
Organic pigments, azo and phthalocyanine pigments
Organic pigments are often very fine and light. We review flow behavior and requirements with you.
Review with us
Pigment blends, pigment preparations, color premixes
Blends behave differently depending on their recipe. We review the right storage with you.
Also tested in our lab:
Send us your material data and we will review the right solution with you:
Pigment Check
Type in your pigment 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 pigment 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 pigments and powder coatings in silos.
Dry pigments and powder coatings can be stored in a properly designed silo. These products are on our list of bulk materials tested in our lab:
Iron oxide pigments, organic pigments, and pigment blends we review with you based on your material data.
We recommend a dedicated silo per color – or PW StoreLine multi-compartment silos that keep several products separate. Where products change, PW ConeBlend with a hopper that is quick to clean and mass-flow discharge without dead zones reduce residues.
Powder coatings are combustible. Whether and how explosion protection, venting, and filtration are designed depends on your product and your site. We review the safety concept with you.
Many pigments are fine, cohesive powders. They compact under the weight of the silo content and build bridges or rat-holes above the outlet. A mass-flow hopper geometry, PW SpeedBlow air fluidization, and bin activators keep them moving. The right combination depends on your pigment.
In mass flow, the entire silo content moves downward when material is discharged – not just a channel in the center. Your pigments 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.
We build silos exclusively in aluminum and stainless steel – never in coated carbon steel, so no flaking coating or rust can contaminate your pigment. Which of our two materials fits depends on the pigment, your process, and your site. We select it with you.
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.