Salt Processing

Salt - the spice of our life

Salt Processing
Salt is one of the most essential basic materials of nutrition as well
as of industrial processes.

Proven performance and reliable technology Evaporation and crystallization

GEA is known worldwide for the designing and supplying of
salt factories which match the individual requirements of table
salt as well as for producing high grade vacuum salt, suitable for
chloralkali electrolysis plants. GEA has supplied more than 150
plants of various refining concepts:
• Vacuum salt plants using raw brine for Gypsum slurry
operation
• Vacuum salt plants using purified brine for high grade salt
99.99% NaCl
• Combined sodium chloride / sodium sulphate plants devel-
oped by GEA with recovery of sodium sulphate by utilizing
high / low temperature circuit for high purity requirements
• Recrystallization plants for rock salt and solar or other raw
salt suitable for human consumption and industrial use
• Complete vacuum salt plants with brine purification, storage
and bagging facilities, logistical equipment
The most common crystallizer type used for salt is the Forced
Circulation Crystallizer (FC-type). The average particle size can
be adjusted between 0.3 to 0.5 mm. For granular qualities Oslo
crystallizers are in use with particle sizes up to 2.5 mm. Plant
capacities vary from 2 to 15 tons/hr based on solar salt and up
to 200 tons/hr based on rock salt. In many cases plant technique
has to be optimized with regard to the most favorable energy
available at the place of installation, or in consideration of the
crude salt composition. Whether a multistage evaporation plant
or a thermal or mechanical vapor compression system is em-
ployed is essentially to be decided from economical angles.

Our plants are designed in such a way that specific demands on

the product are met: moist or dry, fine-grained or coarse-grained,
cubical or spherical or dendritic, pure, white, free-flowing with
additives (e.g. magnesium carbonate, potassium iodide), ready-
packed in bags, bottles and sacks.
Forced circulation crystallizer

Salt processing plant with mechanical vapor recompression

Drying
GEA is a leading supplier of drying plants, having engineered
and supplied numerous fluidized bed plants, contact column
processors and rotary drum processing lines for drying, de-
dusting, cooling and conditioning to the minerals industry.
The choice of the optimum drying technology depends on the
raw material flow, properties and the utilities available. For
large-scale drying, such as in the minerals industries, GEA has
developed a high-temperature fluidized bed design for optimum
energy efficiency. The special mechanical design allows free
thermal expansion for each dryer module, enabling GEA to offer
fluidizing-bed assemblies with bed areas exceeding 100 m2 for
large throughputs. High temperature fluidized bed dryer

Hydromechanical salt wash Brine purification

The wash of solar salt is a very easy, energy efficient and eco-
nomical alternative to the thermal salt refinery.
The GEA Salt Wash System consists of unit operations selected
according to the necessities to separate the solid and soluble
impurities from the sodium chloride crystals by simple and
separate physical means. Depending on the composition of the
crude salt, purities up to 99,5% can be achieved. By-products,
too, contained in the discharge solution from the refining plant
can, in many cases, be recovered economically.
Most of the chloralkali plants worldwide are operated with brine
prepared from local salt. GEA’s experts optimize the concept for
any particular brine preparation and purification plant, indepen-
dent of whether the feed stock is vacuum salt, solar salt or rock
salt. Our specialists will evaluate the most economical alternates
for some or all of the following process steps:
• Primary and secondary brine de-chlorination
• Saturation and chemical treatment
• Clarification and filtration
• Ion exchange purification

Hydromechanical salt wash and drying plant

We live our values.
Excellence • Passion • Integrity • Responsibility • GEA-versity

GEA Group is a global engineering company with ­multi-billion euro sales and o­ perations in more than
50 countries. Founded in 1881, the company is one of the largest providers of ­innovative equipment and ­
process technology. GEA Group is listed in the STOXX® Europe 600 Index.

Subject to modifications. Printed in Country.

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GEA Messo GmbH

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