Correlation of powder flow properties to interparticle interactions at ambient and high temperatures

A combination of a continuum approach and a particle–particle approach to describe the multi-scale nature of the mechanical properties of bulk solids may be beneficial to scientific and engineering applications. In this paper, a procedure is proposed to estimate the interparticle forces beginning with the bulk flow properties as measured with standardized techniques. In particular, the relationship between interparticle forces and bulk solid tensile strength is adopted based on the microscale approaches of Rumpf(1970) and Molerus(1975). The flow properties of fluid cracking catalyst(FCC), corundum and glass bead powders were all characterized with a modified Schulze ring shear cell capable of operating at temperatures up to 500℃. The powder test conditions were selected such that the van der Waals forces were the most significant particle–particle interactions. The model equations describe two cases, in which either elastic or plastic deformation of the contact points is assumed. The results indicate that the model provides the correct order of magnitude for the values of the tensile strength when proper values for the mean curvature radius at the contact points are taken into account. A sensitivity analysis for the main parameters in the model was performed. This analysis indicated that the assumption of plastic deformation at contact surfaces coupled with a decrease in porosity justified an increase of the tensile strength with consolidation stress. Furthermore, the effect of temperature on the measured flow behavior can be explained as a change in the strength of the material.     

Effect of particle shape and size on flow properties of lactose powders

The shape and size of particles are understood to affect the bulk behaviour of powders, though there are but few studies that present quantitative information on the relationship between particle shape and the flow properties of powder. This is due in part to the lack of techniques for rapidly determining both particle shape and the range of flow characteristics that describe the response of powders to the stress and shear experienced during their processing. This study presents data that quantifies the influence of particle shape/size of three different lactose powders on their respective flow and bulk characteristics. Two of the samples differ in size but have similar shapes; the third sample is more spherical but similar in size to one of the other two samples. The results demonstrate that in addition to particle size, particle shape significantly affect the flow characteristics of a powder over a wide range of stress conditions.     

Relationship between single and bulk mechanical properties for zeolite ZSM5 spray-dried particles

In this work typical mechanical properties for a catalyst support material, ZSM5 （a spray-dried granular zeolite）, have been measured in order to relate the bulk behaviour of the powder material to the single particle mechanical properties. Particle shape and size distribution of the powders, determined by laser diffraction and scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, confirmed the spherical shape of the spray-dried particles. The excellent flowability of the material was assessed by typical methods such as the Hausner ratio and the Cart index, This was confirmed by bulk measurements of the particle-particle internal friction parameter and flow function using a Schulze shear cell, which also illustrated the low compressibility of the material. Single particle compression was used to characterize single particle mechanical properties such as reduced elastic modulus and strength from Hertz contact mechanics theory. Comparison with surface properties obtained from nanoindentation suggests heterogeneity, the surface being harder than the core. In order to evaluate the relationship between single particle mechanical properties and bulk compression behaviour, uniaxial confined compression was carried out. It was determined that the Adams model was suitable for describing the bulk compression and furthermore that the Adams model parameter, apparent strength of single particles, was in good agreement with the single particle strength determined from single particle compression test.     

Particle behavior in homogeneous isotropic turbulence

Direct numerical simulations were conducted to investigate the behavior of heavy particles in homogeneous isotropic turbulence. The present study focused on the effect of particle inertia and drift on the autocorrelations of the particle velocity and the fluid seen by particles and the dispersion characteristics of particles. The Lagrangian integral time scale of particles monotonically increased as the magnitude of the particle response time increased, while that of the fluid seen by particles remained relatively constant; it reached a maximum when the particle response time was close to the Kolmolgorov time scale of the flow. Particle dispersion increased as the particle inertia increased for small particles, while for larger particles, it decreased as particle inertia increased; particle eddy diffusion coefficient was maximal, and greater than that of the fluid by about 30%, at the preferential concentration. The concentration field of the particles with τp/τk≈1.0 showed that particles tend to collect in regions of low vorticity (high strain) due to preferential concentration. As the drift velocity of a particle is increased it crosses the paths of fluid elements more rapidly and will tend to lose correlation with its previous velocity faster than a fluid element will. And the correlation of particle velocities along the drift direction is more persistent than that perpendicular to the direction of drift. Simulations also showed that the continuity effect and the crossing-trajectory effect are weakened for particles with infinite inertia.     

Discussions on the correspondence of dissipative particle dynamics and Langevin dynamics at small scales

We investigate the behavior of dissipative particle dynamics(DPD) within different scaling regimes by numerical simulations. The paper extends earlier analytical findings of Ripoll, M., Ernst, M. H., and Espa?nol, P.(Large scale and mesoscopic hydrodynamics for dissipative particle dynamics. Journal of Chemical Physics, 115(15),7271–7281(2001)) by evaluation of numerical data for the particle and collective scaling regimes and the four different subregimes. DPD simulations are performed for a range of dynamic overlapping parameters. Based on analyses of the current auto-correlation functions(CACFs), we demonstrate that within the particle regime at scales smaller than its force cut-off radius, DPD follows Langevin dynamics. For the collective regime,we show that the small-scale behavior of DPD differs from Langevin dynamics. For the wavenumber-dependent effective shear viscosity, universal scaling regimes are observed in the microscopic and mesoscopic wavenumber ranges over the considered range of dynamic overlapping parameters.     

Vibration reduction evaluation of a linear system with a nonlinear energy sink under a harmonic and random excitation

The nonlinear behaviors and vibration reduction of a linear system with a nonlinear energy sink(NES)are investigated.The linear system is excited by a harmonic and random base excitation,consisting of a mass block,a linear spring,and a linear viscous damper.The NES is composed of a mass block,a linear viscous damper,and a spring with ideal cubic nonlinear stiffness.Based on the generalized harmonic function method,the steady-state Fokker-Planck-Kolmogorov equation is presented to reveal the response of the system.The path integral method based on the Gauss-Legendre polynomial is used to achieve the numerical solutions.The performance of vibration reduction is evaluated by the displacement and velocity transition probability densities,the transmissibility transition probability density,and the percentage of the energy absorption transition probability density of the linear oscillator.The sensitivity of the parameters is analyzed for varying the nonlinear stiffness coefficient and the damper ratio.The investigation illustrates that a linear system with NES can also realize great vibration reduction under harmonic and random base excitations and random bifurcation may appear under different parameters,which will affect the stability of the system.     

Variable stiffness tuned particle dampers for vibration control of cantilever boring bars

This research proposes a novel type of variable stiffness tuned particle damper(TPD) for reducing vibrations in boring bars. The TPD integrates the developments of particle damping and dynamical vibration absorber, whose frequency tuning principle is established through an equivalent theoretical model. Based on the multiphase flow theory of gas-solid, it is effective to obtain the equivalent damping and stiffness of the particle damping. The dynamic equations of the coupled system, consisting of...     

An analysis of the chaotic motion of particles of different sizes in a gas fluidized bed

The dynamic behavior of individual particles during the mixing/segregation process of particle mixtures in a gas fluidized bed is analyzed. The analysis is based on the results generated from discrete particle simulation, with the focus on the trajectory of and forces acting on individual particles. Typical particles are selected representing three kinds of particle motion： a flotsam particle which is initially at the bottom part of the bed and finally fluidized at the top part of the bed; a jetsam particle which is initially at the top part of the bed and finally stays in the bottom de-fluidized layer of the bed; and a jetsam particle which is intermittently joining the top fluidized and bottom de-fluidized layers. The results show that the motion of a particle is chaotic at macroscopic or global scale, but can be well explained at a microscopic scale in terms of its interaction forces and contact conditions with other particles, particle-fluid interaction force, and local flow structure. They also highlight the need for establishing a suitable method to link the information generated and modeled at different time and length scales.     

CFD-DEM simulation of the pneumatic conveying of fine particles through a horizontal slit

Fine particles play a significant role in many industrial processes.To study the dynamic behavior of fine particle and their deposition in rock fractures,the pneumatic conveying of fine particles(approximately100 μm in diameter) through a small-scale horizontal slit(0.41 m × 0.025 m) was studied,which is useful for the sealing technology of underground gas drainage in coal mining production.The CFD-DEM method was adopted to model the gas-particle two-phase flow;the gas phase was treated as a continuum and modeled using computational fluid dynamics(CFD),particle motion and collisions were simulated using the DEM code.Then,the bulk movement of fine particles through a small-scale horizontal slit was explored numerically,and the flow patterns were further investigated by visual inspection.The simulation results indicated that stratified flow or dune flow can be observed at low gas velocities.For intermediate gas velocities,the flow patterns showed pulsation phenomena,and dune flow reappeared in the tail section.Moreover,periodic flow regimes with alternating thick and sparse stream structures were observed at a high gas velocity.The simulation results of the bulk movement of fine particles were in good agreement with the experimental findings,which were obtained by video-imaging experiments.Furthermore,the calculated pressure drop versus gas velocity profile was investigated and compared with relative experimental findings,and the results showed good agreement.Furthermore,the particle velocity vectors and voidage distribution were numerically simulated.Selected stimulation results are presented and provide a reference for the further study of fine particles.     

Effective viscoelastic behavior of particulate polymer composites at finite concentration

Polymeric materials usually present some viscoelastic behavior. To improve the mechanical behavior of these materials, ceramics materials are often filled into the polymeric materials in form of fiber or particle. A micromechanical model was proposed to estimate the overall viscoelastic behavior for particulate polymer composites, especially for high volume concentration of filled particles. The method is based on Laplace transform technique and an elastic model including two-particle interaction. The effective creep compliance and the stress and strain relation at a constant loading rate are analyzed. The results show that the proposed method predicts a significant stiffer response than those based on Mori-Tanaka's method at high volume concentration of particles.     

NON-UNIQUE SOLUTIONS FROM SURFACE ELASTICITY FOR FUNCTIONALLY GRADED MATERIALS

This paper considers the unusual behavior of functionally graded materials/structures when the surface effect is involved. It is found that on the assumption that the surface energy is not positive semi-definite, the solution can be non-unique. Several examples are given for simple spherically-symmetric and axisymmetric FGM bodies with surface effects characterized by Gurtin-Murdoch surface elasticity. The results show that the conditions for non-uniqueness of solution emerge when the magnitude of negative effective surface modulus is of the order of a characteristic dimension of the problem multiplied by the bulk modulus near the surface, which is quite different from that for homogeneous materials.     

Multiscale modeling of heterogeneous propellants from particle packing to grain failure using a surface-based cohesive approach

In the present work,a computational framework is established for multiscale modeling and analysis ofsolid propellants.A packing algorithm,considering the ammonium perchlorate(AP) and aluminum(Al) particles asspheres or discs is developed to match the size distributionand volume fraction of solid propellants.A homogenizationtheory is employed to compute the mean stress and strainof a representative volume element(RVE).Using the meanresults,a suitable size of RVE is decided.Without considering the interfaces between particles and matrix,several numerical simulations of the relaxation of propellants are performed.The relaxation effect and the nonlinear mechanicalbehavior of propellants which are dependent on the appliedloads are discussed.A new technology named surface-basedcohesive behavior is proposed to describe the phenomenonof particle dewetting consisting of two ingredients:a damageinitiation criterion and a damage evolution law.Several examples considering contact damage behavior are computedand also nonlinear behavior caused by damaged interfaces isdiscussed in this paper.Furthermore the effects of the critical contact stress,initial contact stiffness and contact failuredistance on the damaged interface model have been studied.     

An investigation into flow mode transition and pressure fluctuations for fluidized dense-phase pneumatic conveying of fine powders

This paper presents the results of an ongoing investigation into the fluctuations of pressure signals due to solids-gas flows for dense-phase pneumatic conveying of fine powders.Pressure signals were obtained from pressure transducers installed along different locations of a pipeline for the fluidized dense-phase pneumatic conveying of fly ash(median particle diameter 30μm;particle density 2300kg/m~3;loosepoured bulk density 700kg/m~3) and white powder(median particle diameter 55 u.m;particle density1600kg/m~3;loose-poured bulk density 620kg/m~3) from dilute to fluidized dense-phase.Standard deviation and Shannon entropy were employed to investigate the pressure signal fluctuations.It was found that there is an increase in the values of Shannon entropy and standard deviation for both of the products along the flow direction through the straight pipe sections.However,both the Shannon entropy and standard deviation values tend to decrease after the flow through bend(s).This result could be attributed to the deceleration of particles while flowing through the bends,resulting in dampened particle fluctuation and turbulence.Lower values of Shannon entropy in the early parts of the pipeline could be due to the non-suspension nature of flow(dense-phase),i.e.,there is a higher probability that the particles are concentrated toward the bottom of pipe,compared with dilute-phase or suspension flow(high velocity),where the particles could be expected to be distributed homogenously throughout the pipe bore(as the flow is in suspension).Changes in straight-pipe pneumatic conveying characteristics along the flow direction also indicate a change in the flow regime along the flow.     

Euler-Euler CFD modeling of fluidized bed＂ Influence of specularity coefficient on hydrodynamic behavior

Euler-Euler two-fluid model is used to simulate the hydrodynamics of gas-solid flow in a bubbling flu- idized bed with Geldert B particles where the solid property is calculated by applying the kinetic theory of granular flow （KTGF）. Johnson and Jackson wall boundary condition is used for the particle phase, and different amount of slip between particle and wall is given by varying the specularity coefficient （φ） from 0 to 1. The simulated particle velocity, granular temperature and particle volume fraction are compared to investigate the effect of different wall boundary conditions on the hydrodynamic behavior, Some of the results are also compared with the available experimental data from the literature. It was found that the model predictions are sensitive to the specularity coefficient. The hydrodynamic behavior deviated sig- nificantly for φ = 0 and φ = 0.01 with maximum deviation found at φ = 0 i.e. free-slip condition. However, the overall bed height predicted by all the conditions is similar.     

Effect of particle size distribution on particle based composite anode models

Particle based models of composite anodes are useful tools for exploring the behavior of SOFC systems. As part of our efforts to develop models for understanding fuel cells, we have been building models of Ni-YSZ composite anodes using experimentally measured particle size distributions. The objectives of this study were to characterize the percolation threshold and conductivity of these models in comparison to simpler mono dispersed and biphasic particle size distributions from the literature. We found that the average values for the onset of percolation and the measured conductivity of the models with experimentally measured particle size distributions are similar to those for the simple distributions and the experimentally measured distributions. For all of the configurations evaluated, the onset of percolation in the Nickel phase occurred at a solid fraction of Nickel between 20% and 25%. This corresponded almost exactly to the point at which the coordination number between Nickel phase particles reached 2.2. The significant finding was that the variation in the value for the conductivity, as measured by the standard deviation of the results, was several orders of magnitude higher than for the simpler systems. We explored the validity of our assumptions, specifically the assumption of random particle placement, by building a particle model directly from FIB-SEM data. In this reconstruction, it was clear that the location of particles was not random. Particles of the same type and size had much likelihood of contact higher than would indicated by random location.     

Influence of suspension stability on wet grinding for production of mineral nanoparticles

Grinding behavior of nanoparticles in an attritor mill and the minimum achievable particle size are strongly influenced by the suspension stability. In the present work, suspension stability （i.e. ξ-potential） of nanoparticles was studied by measuring pH as a function of grinding time in the wet milling process. It was found that after a certain time in an attritor mill, there is no further size reduction and the average product particle size increases monotonically. One of the reasons is that the production of submicron particles leads to more particle-particle interactions and consequently pH of the suspension decreases with grinding time. Usually pH value is related to suspension stability and it can be enhanced by addition of NaOH solution. The maximum negative ξ-potential of -51.2 mV was obtained at pH of 12 for silica. The higher the ξ-potential with the same polarity, higher will be the electrostatic repulsion between the particles. Hence, the maximum electrostatic repulsion force was maintained by the adjustment ofpH value in wet milling. The experiments were conducted at different pH conditions which were maintained constant throughout the experiments and nanosized particles were obtained consequently.     

Numerical investigation of gas-particle flow in the primary air pipe of a low NO_x swirl burner-The DEM-CFD method

The gas-particle flow in the primary air pipe(PAP) of a low NO_x swirl burner was investigated using the computational fluid dynamics(CFD) coupled with the discrete element method(DEM).The mathematical models were validated using the measured values obtained at the outlet of the primary pipe through a phase Doppler anemometer(PDA) system.Particles of different Stokes numbers in the primary air pipe(PAP) were investigated,and the effects of the structure of the primary air pipe and the particle-particle interaction on particle dispersion were analyzed.The results indicate that particles under the combined effects of the Venturi pipe and the spindle body are concentrated into a narrow band area and that the PAP structure can more efficiently concentrate particles with large Stokes numbers.The formed fuel rich/lean jet persists for a long distance out of the burner,thereby favoring of air-staged combustion and NO_x reduction.The particle collision frequency and its fluctuation range increase as the particle Stokes number increases.The collisions among particles result in an increase of the spanwise dispersion of particles.Experimental results indicate that the models that take particle-particle collision into consideration are more able to predict particle concentration.     

Aerodynamic interaction between forewing and hindwing of a hovering dragonfly

The phase change between the forewing and hindwing is a distinct feature that sets dragonfly apart from other insects.In this paper,we investigated the aerodynamic effects of varying forewing-hindwing phase di ff erence with a60 inclined stroke plane during hovering flight.Force measurements on a pair of mechanical wing models showed that in-phase flight enhanced the forewing lift by 17%and the hindwing lift was reduced at most phase differences.The total lift of both wings was also reduced at most phase di ff erences and only increased at a phase range around in-phase.The results may explain the commonly observed behavior of the dragonfly where 0 is employed in acceleration.We further investigated the wing-wing interaction mechanism using the digital particle image velocimetry（PIV）system,and found that the forewing generated a downwash flow which is responsible for the lift reduction on the hindwing.On the other hand,an upwash flow resulted from the leading edge vortex of the hindwing helps to enhance lift on the forewing.The results suggest that the dragonflies alter the phase di ff erences to control timing of the occurrence of flow interactions to achieve certain aerodynamic effects.     

Investigation into improving the efficiency and accuracy of CFD/DEM simulations

The Euler-Lagrange approach combined with a discrete element method has frequently been applied to elucidate the hydrodynamic behavior of dense fluid-solid flows in fluidized beds. In this work, the efficiency and accuracy of this model are investigated. Parameter studies are performed; in these studies, the stiffness coefficient, the fluid time step and the processor number are varied under conditions with different numbers of particles and different particle diameters. The obtained results are compared with measurements to derive the optimum parameters for CFD/DEM simulations. The results suggest that the application of higher stiffness coefficients slightly improves the simulation accuracy. However, the average computing time increases exponentially. At larger fluid time steps, the results show that the average computation time is independent of the applied fluid time step whereas the simulation accuracy decreases greatly with increasing the fluid time step. The use of smaller time steps leads to negligible improvements in the simulation accuracy but results in an exponential rise in the average computing time. The parallelization accelerates the DEM simulations if the critical number for the domain decomposition is not reached. Above this number, the performance is no longer proportional to the number of processors. The critical number for the domain decomposition depends on the number of particles. An increase in solid contents results in a shift of the critical decomposition number to higher numbers of CPUs.