Silo & Hopper Discharge Solutions

Bin Activators & Soliflo™ Bin Dischargers

Reliable discharge for powders, pellets, flakes, fibrous materials, and other dry bulk solids that bridge, rathole, compact, segregate, or discharge inconsistently from silos and hoppers.

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Carolina Conveying bin activator mounted below a silo

When Gravity Flow Is Not Enough

Storage vessels often look simple from the outside, but material behavior inside the cone can create serious production problems. The right discharge device helps convert a difficult silo into a controlled, dependable process point.

Bridging

Material arches over the outlet and stops flow, even while the silo remains full above.

Ratholing

Material flows only through a narrow center channel while stagnant material remains on the sides.

Inconsistent Feed

Erratic discharge can cause downstream feeders, airlocks, conveyors, and batching systems to perform poorly.

Carolina Conveying Bin Activators

A bin activator is a rugged vibratory discharge device mounted beneath a silo or hopper. It uses a suspended dish, internal baffle cone, flexible sleeve, and external vibrator motor to promote controlled discharge and induce mass flow.

Mass-flow discharge: Helps reduce bridging, ratholing, segregation, degradation, and flushing.
Isolated vibration: The activator vibrates the discharge section and material, not the entire silo structure.
Broad material range: Used for granular, powder, flake, fibrous, and difficult-flowing products.
Flexible installation: Can be fitted to new or existing silos and hoppers.
Bin activator with flex sleeve and silo support band
Carolina Conveying Soliflo bin discharger installed under silo

Soliflo™ Bin Discharger Alternative

The Soliflo™ is a cone-valve style bin discharger based on the proven principles of the bin activator, but with a pneumatically operated internal cone. When the cone lifts, it creates an annular gap for controlled discharge. When lowered, it provides positive shutoff.

Variable discharge: The cone can be raised, lowered, or pulsed to control flow rate.
Positive shutoff: The lowered cone acts as a shutoff valve.
Fully pneumatic operation: No operating air contacts the stored material.
No flex sleeve: A strong option when dust-tightness and shutoff are major priorities.

Bin Activator vs. Soliflo™

Both solutions are designed to solve poor flow from bins and silos. The best choice depends on your material, silo geometry, discharge rate, downstream equipment, and whether you need positive shutoff.

Bin activator installed below hopper

Bin Activator

Best for: Reliable mass-flow discharge from silos, day bins, and hoppers.

  • Classic vibratory discharge design
  • Excellent for preventing bridging and ratholing
  • Low maintenance and widely applied
  • Uses support ring, hanger rods, and flexible sleeve
  • Typically sized from a fraction of silo diameter up to full silo diameter depending on material
Soliflo bin discharger with rotary airlock

Soliflo™ Discharger

Best for: Controlled flow, positive shutoff, and applications where dust-tight operation is critical.

  • Pneumatic cone-valve operation
  • Variable flow control available
  • Positive seal in shutoff position
  • Can be paired with airlocks, feeders, load cells, or process equipment
  • Useful for outloading, packing lines, buffer bins, and controlled process discharge

Not sure which one fits?

Send us your material, bulk density, silo diameter, cone angle, desired rate, and downstream equipment. We can help determine whether a bin activator, Soliflo™, air pads, fluidizers, or another discharge method makes the most sense.

Mass Flow, Controlled Discharge & Better Downstream Performance

Poor flow at the silo outlet can create problems throughout the process. Properly selected discharge equipment can help stabilize feed rates, reduce material hang-ups, improve cleanout, and protect downstream equipment such as rotary airlocks, screw feeders, pneumatic conveying systems, and batching systems.

More consistent feeding: Better discharge improves the performance of feeders and weighing systems.
Less manual intervention: Reduce the need for hammering, poking, air lancing, or unsafe bin entry.
Better material movement: Promote first-in / first-out flow and reduce stagnant zones.
Graphic showing silo bridging and flow aid solutions

Installation Examples

Bin activators and Soliflo™ dischargers can be used under silos, hoppers, day bins, batch bins, and process vessels where dependable material discharge is required.

Bin activator below hopper

Hopper & Day Bin Discharge

Used to keep difficult powders, flakes, granules, and fibrous products moving into downstream feeders or conveying systems.

Soliflo discharger with rotary airlock below

Discharger + Rotary Airlock

Soliflo™ can be paired with a rotary airlock for controlled discharge into pneumatic conveying or downstream process equipment.

Case History: Soliflo™ on a Flour Silo

A large commercial bakery in North Carolina had a 12' diameter x 40' tall flour silo with inconsistent discharge. Existing equipment included a live-bottom screw, air cannons, and external vibrators, but the silo still had flow problems and dead zones.

  • Challenge: Achieve continuous, consistent discharge on demand.
  • Goal: Promote mass flow and reduce maintenance issues.
  • Solution: A Soliflo™ cone-valve bin discharger mounted below the silo.
  • Result: Installed in 2001 and provided reliable discharge with minimal maintenance. The only noted issue years later was related to venting.

Downloads & Resources

Review additional product information below, or contact CMT for help selecting the correct discharge solution.

Download Bin Activator Brochure Download Soliflo™ Brochure Download Comparison Sheet Ask CMT to Size Your Application

Need Help Solving a Silo Flow Problem?

Carolina Material Technologies can help evaluate your material, silo geometry, discharge rate, and downstream equipment to recommend the right bin activator, Soliflo™ discharger, or complete flow-aid solution.

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