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Hammer mills are used to crush or to shred various types of aggregate into smaller particles. They are used in a variety of industries for a number of specific applications. They can be powered electrically or by diesel engines, and the environments in which they operate can be as small as a portion of one room to the size of an entire room. Common applications for the larger machines include, but are not limited, the following:
• Breaking up corn in ethanol plants
• Grinding grain into flour to feed to livestock
• Creating pulp for fruit juice production
• Recycling wood into mulch
• Grain milling operations
• Turning scrap wood into fuel for boilers
In addition to the large hammer mills described above, there are also many smaller devices that are often categorized as “desktop” models. Applications for these machines include:
• Paper shredding
• Automotive scrap shredding
• Mulching yard waste for compost
• Pulverizing large rocks
• Waste pulverizing for landfills or recycling operations
As varied as these applications are, all hammer mills feature the same basic design. A steel drum houses an assembly where a rotating shaft is mounted either vertically or horizontally. Along the shaft, a series of hammers is mounted in such a manner as to allow each one to swing freely around the shaft.
As the rotor begins to spin at high RPMs, the hammers pick up centrifugal force. This centrifugal energy magnifies the force of each individual blow. The collective impact that this brings to bear upon the raw material provides the necessary force to break it into smaller pieces, shred it into scrap, or grind it completely into powder.
One could describe the operation of any such machine in four simple steps that are common to all sizes, lines, and models within this category of devices.
1. The material is fed into the rotating drum
2. The pulverizing assembly breaks this raw material down into the desired form.
3. The material components are then screened.
4. Pieces that meet criteria are discharged from the machine. Pieces that require further pulverization are then fed back through the machine.
The simplicity of the process allows hammer mills to be customized to perform any type of crushing, shredding, or pulverizing operations. One of the most essential design categories includes devices that reduce medium particles to fine particles. This has both industrial and food processing applications.
For some specific food processing applications, even more specialized devices are used to produce ultra fine grinding of high capacity volume feeds of raw materials. This is vital to many food processing applications, particularly those outputting meal or flour.
Some models feature pneumatic conveyers and filtered ventilation that removes dust from the raw materials. In many facilities, this is essential to preventing explosions that can result from too many airborne particulates building up in the air. By minimizing the amount of these particulates, industrial and shipping facilities can maintain a cleaner and healthier working environment for their employees.
Many small hammer mills can be powered from a standard 120V wall socket. Some of the largest models operate at up to 2,000 horsepower. These require diesel engines for power.
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