1. Transformative Research
In order to advance and improve the operations of any solids processing plant or a particular piece of solid handling equipment knowing the basic factors and physics that contribute to the unit’s operation is required. The more involved the process and the equipment the less one seems to know how the unit will operate when material types and sizes vary. As always, knowing the operating characteristics and performance of the materials before the operation is implemented and constructed is most desirable and essential. What is needed to make a significant impact on process and product improvement is to employ research that yields transformative results. Knowing the basics is one step towards this objective. Transformative results are results that give breakthroughs in the field that affect the entire system not just providing small incremental changes. This may sound like a very high risk endeavor and the results may lead to difficulty in obtaining adoption in normal plant operations. The research community is being encouraged to take this risk with transformative research and make the leap. It is understood that not all such transformative research explorations will be successful and there will be failures along the way.