Mills

Mill Types

Norstone, Inc. supplies the following Mill configurations:

• Horizontal Mill. Media chamber oriented horizontally, suited to continuous processing of dispersions and higher-viscosity products.
• Vertical Mill. Media chamber oriented vertically, commonly specified for finer particle size targets than a horizontal configuration typically achieves.
• Basket Mill. Immersion mill design, portable, used for smaller batch volumes and sample runs where a fixed chamber mill is not practical.
• Bead Mill / Media Mill. General category term for mills that use grinding media to achieve particle size reduction, spanning both horizontal and vertical configurations.

Characteristics

Mills, across all four configurations, share the following characteristics:

• Media-based particle size reduction. All Mill types rely on grinding media within the chamber, distinguishing them from Dispersers, which use a high speed blade without media.
• Configurable chamber orientation. Horizontal and vertical chamber orientations each suit different viscosity ranges and particle size targets, allowing Mill selection to match the specific process rather than a single default configuration.
• Range of scale options. Mills are available from single-unit laboratory configurations through full skid systems for production environments, supporting both process validation and full-scale manufacturing.
• Configuration flexibility. Full skid systems, jacketed chambers, and portable or stationary mounting are available depending on the production environment and space constraints.

When Each Mill Type Is Typically Selected

A Horizontal Mill is generally chosen for continuous processing of dispersions and higher-viscosity products, where the horizontal chamber orientation supports steady throughput. A Vertical Mill is generally chosen when the process requires a finer particle size target than a horizontal configuration typically achieves. A Basket Mill is generally chosen for smaller batch volumes and sample runs, where the immersion design and portability outweigh the throughput advantages of a fixed chamber mill. Bead Mill and Media Mill are general category terms used when a specific chamber orientation has not yet been determined and the primary requirement is grinding-media-based particle size reduction.

Applications

Mills support particle size reduction across the following applications:

• Coatings, inks, and pigment dispersions requiring fine to ultrafine particle size reduction
• Chemical processing applications where media-based grinding achieves target particle size distributions
• Continuous production processing using Horizontal Mill configurations for higher-viscosity products
• Laboratory-scale sample preparation and process validation using Basket Mill configurations before scale-up to production equipment

Configuration Options

Mills are available with options including full skid systems, jacketed chambers, and portable or stationary mounting. Materials of construction, chamber size, and media type vary by application and are confirmed on the General Processing Specification Form. Grinding media selection for milling equipment is covered separately on the Grinding Media Depot® pages, since media type and mill configuration are generally specified together for a given process.

Related Products

Mills are one of five categories under Equipment. For high shear dispersion without grinding media, see Dispersers. For blending and suspension work, see Mixers. For bench-scale testing before production scale-up, see Laboratory Equipment. For grinding media selection by material family, see Grinding Media Depot®.

Other Process Equipment Categories