Abstract
The study of the dominant factors influencing moisture content is essential for investigating vacuum filtration mechanisms. In view of the present situation where there is insufficient experimental data and the dominant factors influencing the moisture content of a filter cake have not been identified, in this study a vacuum filtration apparatus was designed and constructed. Quartz sand particles were used as the filtration material. 300 datasets of moisture contents of a filter cake were obtained under different experimental conditions. Multiple Linear Regression, artificial neural network, decision tree, random forest, and extreme gradient boosting were used to establish a prediction model for moisture content during vacuum screening. By comprehensively analyzing the feature importance rankings and the effects of positive and negative correlations, the dominant factors influencing the moisture content of the filter cake during vacuum screening were the particle ratio, screen mesh, and airflow rate. This finding not only provides a scientific basis for the optimization of vacuum screening technology but also points the way for improving screening efficiency in practical applications. It is of significant importance for deepening the understanding of the vacuum screening mechanism and promoting its extensive application.