Platform Grant for the University of Birmingham Positron Imaging Centre
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Birmingham
Department Name: School of Physics and Astronomy
Abstract
The Positron Imaging Centre uses radioactive tracers to study flows of interest to engineers, in a variant of the medical imaging technique of positron emission tomography (PET). Most of our studies use the alternative technique of positron emission particle tracking (PEPT), developed at Birmingham, in which a single radioactive particle is tracked at high speed inside a flow system. The short-lived radioisotopes used for this work are produced using the Birmingham cyclotron, and various novel techniques have been developed for labelling individual particles (as small as 100 micrometres diameter) with suitable radioactivity. Standard medical PET scanners have been adapted to perform these studies, and in addition to various in-house measurement systems a transportable detector system has recently been developed allowing PEPT measurements to be carried out on large scale industrial plant. The Positron Imaging Centre operates as a national resource where academic and industrial groups can study the systems of specific interest to them, and welcomes collaborators from many institutions around the world and from a diverse range of academic disciplines. Applications range from fundamental studies of simple flow situations involving granular materials or liquids to measurements on the actual equipment used in industry for processing foodstuffs, pharmaceuticals, etc. An important role for these studies is testing the accuracy of computer codes used for predicting complex flows. In future PET and PEPT will be increasingly used in conjunction with other complementary measurement techniques to reveal more complex properties of the behaviour of systems. While individual research projects are funded from appropriate sources, our Platform Grant is used to foster collaborations, to retain key staff and to develop the infrastructure (in particular the tracer labelling techniques) in order that we can apply our unique techniques to the widest possible range of problems.
Organisations
Publications
García-Triñanes P
(2018)
Particle motion and heat transfer in an upward-flowing dense particle suspension: Application in solar receivers
in Chemical Engineering Science
Windows-Yule C
(2017)
Inducing Axial Banding in Bidisperse-by-Density Granular Systems Using Noncylindrical Tumbler Geometries
in Physical Review Applied
Parker DJ
(2017)
Positron emission particle tracking and its application to granular media.
in The Review of scientific instruments
Chakravarty S
(2017)
Study of the particle motion induced by a vortex shaker
in Powder Technology
García-Triñanes P
(2016)
Hydrodynamics and particle motion in upward flowing dense particle suspensions: Application in solar receivers
in Chemical Engineering Science
Morrison A
(2016)
The shape and behaviour of a granular bed in a rotating drum using Eulerian flow fields obtained from PEPT
in Chemical Engineering Science
Tebianian S
(2016)
Solids flux measurements via alternate techniques in a gas-fluidized bed
in Chemical Engineering Journal
Tebianian S
(2016)
Comparison of particle velocity measurement techniques in a fluidized bed operating in the square-nosed slugging flow regime
in Powder Technology
Windows-Yule CR
(2016)
Modifying self-assembly and species separation in three-dimensional systems of shape-anisotropic particles.
in Physical review. E
Valdesueiro D
(2016)
Enhancing the activation of silicon carbide tracer particles for PEPT applications using gas-phase deposition of alumina at room temperature and atmospheric pressure
in Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment
Kinugasa T
(2015)
Three-dimensional dynamic imaging of sand particles under wheel via gamma-ray camera system
in Journal of Terramechanics
Windows-Yule Kit
(2015)
Density-Driven Segregation in Binary and Ternary Granular Systems
in KONA POWDER AND PARTICLE JOURNAL
González S
(2015)
Forced axial segregation in axially inhomogeneous rotating systems.
in Physical review. E, Statistical, nonlinear, and soft matter physics
Windows-Yule C
(2015)
Resonance effects on the dynamics of dense granular beds: achieving optimal energy transfer in vibrated granular systems
in New Journal of Physics
Yu S
(2015)
The use of positron emission particle tracking (PEPT) to study milling of roll-compacted microcystalline cellulose ribbons
in Powder Technology
Windows-Yule CR
(2015)
Competition between geometrically induced and density-driven segregation mechanisms in vibrofluidized granular systems.
in Physical review. E, Statistical, nonlinear, and soft matter physics
Pore M
(2015)
A comparison of magnetic resonance, X-ray and positron emission particle tracking measurements of a single jet of gas entering a bed of particles
in Chemical Engineering Science
Rosato A
(2015)
Tapped granular column dynamics: simulations, experiments and modeling
in Computational Particle Mechanics
Windows-Yule CR
(2015)
Maximizing energy transfer in vibrofluidized granular systems.
in Physical review. E, Statistical, nonlinear, and soft matter physics
Alberini F
(2015)
Validation of hydrodynamic and microbial inactivation models for UV-C treatment of milk in a swirl-tube 'SurePure Turbulator™'
in Journal of Food Engineering
Windows-Yule C
(2015)
Numerical modelling of granular flows: a reality check
in Computational Particle Mechanics
Tebianian S
(2015)
Investigation of particle velocity in FCC gas-fluidized beds based on different measurement techniques
in Chemical Engineering Science
Windows-Yule C
(2014)
The role of rotational inertia in the dynamics of vibrofluidised granular gases
in EPL (Europhysics Letters)
Windows-Yule C
(2014)
Self-diffusion, local clustering and global segregation in binary granular systems: The role of system geometry
in Powder Technology
Cole K
(2014)
A surface coating method to modify tracers for positron emission particle tracking (PEPT) measurements of froth flotation
in Powder Technology
Description | This grant enabled the Positron Imaging Centre to further develop capabilities for PEPT and diversify the portfolio of applications, including into new fields such as liquid metal casting. |
Exploitation Route | The value of PEPT has been appreciated by several groups worldwide, who are developing their own capabilities. |
Sectors | Agriculture, Food and Drink,Pharmaceuticals and Medical Biotechnology |