Achieve More Productivity with OPTIMASS - Krohne

Application Story
Varnish Production at BASF Coatings AG
BASF Coatings division develops, produces and markets a range of top quality innovative
vehicle, car repair and industrial varnishes and coating materials for buildings and offers
the corresponding coating processes. The Münster site is one of the biggest varnish plants
in the world with a total area of 400,000 square meters.
In order to operate the mobile paddle
mixers used in the colour grinding process
without supervision over 36-48 hours BASF
used a flowmeter to trigger a leakage
alarm. This meter needed to fulfill high
specifications in terms of accuracy. The
properties of the media made things even
more difficult. The raw materials for
varnishes are high-viscosity media which
are processed at a low flow rate. They
have viscosities of 7000mPas and over,
and are also shear thinning - their behavior
changes with the flow rate. The DN 40
flowmeters also have to cope with high
pigment contents. BASF Coatings did not
want to risk any further pressure loss
otherwise they would have to increase the
performance of the pump. BASF Coatings
thus opted for the OPTIMASS, a mass
flowmeter which is virtually made for this
application thanks to its straight-tube
design.
The grinding system is designed for a flow rate of
approx. 5000kg/h. Communication with the PLC takes
place via the OPTIMASS's 4…20mA signal output.
Every 90 seconds the PLC saves a flow
measurement and compares it with the subsequent
values. If there is a difference of 360kg/h, the system
is automatically shut down. At present, further tests
are underway to halve the leakage value.
Why
KROHNE?
• Less pressure loss
• Less abrasion
• Suitable even for large flow volumes
• Wide measuring range
• No risk of blockage
Copyright KROHNE, inc. , 2009 OPTIMASS Applications Page No.22