Y-pipe free-fall mixer

A Y-pipe free-fall mixer is a special design of free-fall mixer whose mixing vessel looks like a 'Y-pipe' or a V-mixer. It usually consists of two tubular mixing legs arranged in a V and connected at the bottom. The completely enclosed vessel is rotated as a whole about an axis that runs approximately through the junction of the two 'pant legs'.

Under gravity, the bulk material alternately slides into the two legs and then flows back into the connecting area. This creates repeated division and recombination of the product streams. There are no internal agitators; the movement of the material is based solely on gravity and the rotation of the vessel. As a result, the Y-pipe free-fall mixer is very gentle on the product, mechanically simple in design, and nearly wear-free.

Typical applications are dry, free-flowing powders and granules, for example in the chemical, pharmaceutical, or food industries. This design is particularly suitable for breakage-sensitive products and formulations with low proportions of minor components, provided longer mixing times are acceptable. For very high homogeneity requirements or poorly flowing products, however, forced mixers with actively driven mixing tools are often preferred. In general, amixon® does not manufacture free-fall mixers, as these are not considered precision mixers.