HEUBACH DUSTMETER
Small particles that fly through the air, known as airborne dust, can pose a serious threat to human and animal life.
Many industrial processes create and release such particles in an uncontrolled manner, and research is gaining increasingly alarming information about the consequences of harmful particles being inhaled, due to their potential to cause occupational diseases such as lung cancer, baker’s asthma and other respiratory illnesses.
The Heubach Dustmeters offer solutions to measure the dustiness of powders, granules, seeds and pellets, allowing to quantify and control dust release properties and improve on material characteristics
Our Dustmeters have the ability to simulate different handling scenarios such as filling/emptying, transport, bagging, mixing & processing by using different measuring methods, like the rotating drum, continuous drop method, and the Type III active agitation method.
Dangerous dusts can include:
Mineral dusts, metallic dusts, chemical dusts, organic & vegetable dusts and biohazards
Regulatory systems (REACH, EN 15051, EN 17199, ESTA, DIN 55992, EEC 85/157) are trying to standardize dust exposure limits and measuring methods to solve these issues.
With over 30 years of dust measuring expertise, Heubach has developed Dustmeters to cater precisely to these regulatory systems and various application fields.
Our new product line includes methods originally developed by the German Institute for Hazardous Goods, which to this day has classified over 800 materials in respect to their dustiness.
We have close ties to this institution, as well as to other leading researchers and Universities in the field.
As a family business in the 20th generation, it is our tradition to meet the highest quality standards. Every Dustmeter is made with state of the art CNC technology, and assembled by hand in Austria.
The Heubach Dustmeter was developed by Heubach around 1985 to help create and formulate less dusting pigments, especially because in these times some pigments contained hazardous substances, such as lead. For us it was of importance to minimize the exposure to these materials to the absolute minimum possible, by finding a way to eliminate the dustiness of these powders, using the Dustmeter as a feedback device.
Originally developed for in-house use only, we began to discover that many companies were in search of a device to identify the dust properties of bulk materials.
Soon we started to produce and sell the machines commercially as Type I and Type II. The faculty of DIN (German Industry Norm) has recognized and accepted the Heubach Dustmeter at an early stage (DIN 55992), and it has become perhaps the most often mentioned dust measuring method in subject literature.
Prof. Eberhard Schmidt, one of the leading researchers in the dust measuring field with a number of publications had the idea to couple the Dustmeter with particle size selective filters, allowing the dust to be qualified by it's particle size: The respirative and the thoracle fractions. These are the fractions of interest when examing the potential of airborne particles to harm human lungs. Due to the physical nature of these filters however, these versions are tied to certain airflow speeds and cannot be varied: The Dustmeter Type I AE. This version is part of our customised Dustmeter program "CustoMeter".
As we were approached by a leading chemical group further down the line to join powers and develop a new version of the Dustmeter, we knew that we had a valuable technology and market niche at hand. The new model, Type III, was initially developed to measure enzymes from washing powders and similar chemicals. The special design of Type III applies more mechanical stress to the test material, in turn giving reproducible results especially for the stability of granulated materials. Since then most washing powders are no longer sold in powder form, but as granules. This is an example to display the impact the Dustmeter can have on a product. Our Type III model was also accepted by the DIN faculty and published as a DIN standard (DIN 55992).
Our newest development to the family is the Dustmeter Type IV. In the past we have been approached by several customers, asking if we also produce a larger drum according to the European standard EN 15051, which has often been referred to in subject literature. Since ...... as the DIN or EN standards are the best way for companies and researchers to communicate internationally, we . Besides the standadisations created through our own Dustmeter (DIN 55992-1 & DIN 33897-4) there is another important standardization that includes a large rotating drum (Dustmeter XL), and a continuous drop dust measuring device (see: DusTower). After extensive research, we came to the conclusion that noone is producing the large drum quoted in the EN 15051 anymore. Since our Dustmeter is based on a modular system, using 1 drive unit which is suited to various modules, we decided to revive the drum reffered to in the EN 15051 standardization and offer it as one of our modular options. The Dustmeter now allows you to use create an array of handling scenarios using 1 base unit. The kit can be expanded as needed without having to invest into many different devices. Simply buy the modules as needed.
The Dustmeters Type I, II, III, and IV can all be operated and driven by the same basic drive and control unit, making it a one of a kind device, operating 4 distinct measuring methods within 1 modular system. The accessories for the different Types can be purchased individually. Not only is Heubach the only company offering this array of devices, but there are also significant financial advantages through the modular system, offering 4 machines in 1.
While the rotating drum of Type I/II/XL and the more abrasive impellor of Type III cover most imaginable scenarios that can arise for dust testing, there is a method that one could call equally suited, but for other scenarios and durations of material handling. The Heubach DusTower, developed by Dr. Dirk Dahmann of the German IGF, part of the Ruhr University of Bochum, was designed to create an even flow of material, providing fresh material to constantly enter the dust chamber, instead of moving the same batch for a given period of time. The advantage over the rotating drum is that the Dustower can be combined with an array of analysis devices. Since we are now covering the EN 15051 standards as well, we are proud to be in a position to cater to any dust measuring standardisation.