Abstract. The pneumatic transportation of cork stoppers is used in the primary steps of the corks production process, when particle damage through impaction amongst them or against the confining walls has a minor effect upon their cylindrical shape.
In the industry, short distance transportation systems are used and in such circumstances the particle acceleration regime plays a dominant role in the conveying process.
Some experimental studies have, in the past, been carried out in horizontal and vertical conveying. However, data for acceleration regime in the vertical conveying of cork stoppers are yet to be published.
In this paper experimental results for the acceleration lenght during vertical conveying of three cork stopper sizes are shown and a correlation is proposed as a function of the solids loading factor and other parameters characterizing this particular type of gas solid flow.