Hydrocyclone
Hydrocyclones are used on drilling rigs as solid control equipment for separation of solid particles from drilling fluid. They are commonly known as desander and desilter. Both use the same principle for separating solid particles from drilling fluid, but have size and ability to remove different size of particles.
Hydrocyclones do not have any moving part. They depend on the feed pressure, or velocity, into the cyclone to generate a centripetal force. This centripetal force allows the cyclone to separate coarse or dense particles from fine particles and liquid phase.
The equipment is formed by a cone in the lower part and in the upper part by a cylinder. Liquid slurry enters at the top of the conical wall of the hydrocyclone through a vortex finder which creates tangential flow creating a strong vortex in the hydrocyclone.
They depend on the feed pressure, or velocity to generate a centripetal force. This centripetal force allows the cyclone to separate coarse or dense particles from fine particles and liquid phase. Coarse particles move closer to the wall due to higher centrifugal force and exit from the lower end whereas fines suspended in the liquid move up through the middle part of the vortex to exit from the top.