At Van Aarsen, we understand the critical role that grinding plays in the pellet and kibble production process. Grinding raw materials to the required structure is a fundamental operation that significantly influences both pellet quality and digestibility.
Particle Size and Surface Area
(Fine) Grinding is an important step that increases the number of particles and the surface area per unit of volume. This, in turn, promotes heightened mixing homogeneity, a key factor in achieving consistently high-quality pellets and kibbles. The finely ground raw materials facilitate optimal blending, ensuring uniform distribution of essential components.
Starch Gelatinization
Achieving a finer grind has a positive impact on starch gelatinization. The increased surface area allows for more effective interaction between water and starch molecules during the conditioning process. This not only enhances the pellet binding properties but also contributes to improved digestibility, ultimately maximizing the nutritional benefits for your livestock.
Extruder Performance
When an extruder is applied in the pellet production process, maintaining a fine grind is imperative. Fine grinding is a proactive measure to prevent the extruder from blocking. By ensuring a consistently small particle size, you not only enhance the extrusion process but also optimize the overall efficiency of your production line.
Split Grinding is a Van Aarsen solution that helps optimize the nutritional value of the feed by splitting up one batch of raw materials into two sub-batches which are separately dosed and ground.
Split Grinding combines the best of both worlds:
Interesting for feed mills with both a few and many recipes
Requires a Hammer mill fitted with an automatic screen exchange
Compared to a Post Grinding batch process this leads to:
Optimization of the nutritional value of the feed
Less energy consumption during the grinding process
Higher line-capacity by an increased number of batches per hour
Compared to a pre-grinding setup up this requires:
A lower investment, as no storage bins for pre-grinded raw materials are needed
Pre-grinding means that every raw material is ground separately and continuously. All nutrients are ground to the optimal size for the animal.
Pre-grinding is applied in the case of a few recipes or raw materials.
The grinding capacity of the hammer mill is equal to or less, compared to the feed mill capacity.
Pre-grinding requires more storage bins.
Post grinding is the grinding of a mixture of different raw materials in a batch process.
Post Grinding is applied in case of many recipes.
The hammer mill requires a higher capacity than the feed mill capacity.
The GD and 2D hammer mills are designed for the animal feed industry, to grind raw materials into small particles and meal. Both the GD and 2D hammer mill series cover capacities ranging from 5 – 100 tons per hour, dependent on type of raw material, formula and required grinding structure and can be incorporated in a pre-grinding as well as a post grinding system as a complete grinding solution including pre-bin, feeder, magnet cleaner, hammer mill, discharge hopper, aspiration filter, fan and control system.