A New Multi-Scale Paradigm for Particulate Flow
Lead Research Organisation:
Heriot-Watt University
Department Name: Sch of Engineering and Physical Science
Abstract
Existing theories for particulate flow lack the robustness, predictability and flexibility required to handle the totality of phenomena that such flow may exhibit. Some unwanted industrial issues (such as particle agglomeration) and their management still remain an "art". Current practice is based mainly on ad-hoc models for each specific flow. I propose a novel approach, based on the combination of physical evidence and mathematical methods (statistical mechanics) that will lead to the formulation of a reliable theory applicable to industrial and natural phenomena. A successful theory will create a paradigm shift in the way particulate flow is modelled and will produce a tool that can be employed to substitute ad hoc models, hence avoiding a priori judgements of the flow conditions before selecting the appropriate model. The work proposed aims at bridging the gap between particle technology and rheology. It will result in devising a robust theory able to describe the meso-scale phenomena and link them to particle interactions. The theory will strongly rely on implementing accurate rheological measurement to validate the theory at the meso-scale and to assure a meaningful scale-up to the reactor scale. It will produce fundamental as well as user orientated research by developing a novel predictor which has the potential to significantly reduce production costs and improve the product quality in three areas important to the UK economy, namely pharmaceuticals, paints and detergents, valued at £200B per year
Planned Impact
This fellowship will strengthen the link between the particle technology, the rheology and the mathematic academic communities to develop a new paradigm to describe particulate flow rigorously. Validation of the results will impact on the development of a methodology and of a protocol for reliable measurements at the meso-level. The research is user-inspired and knowledge exchange represents a very significant component of the arrays of impact activities which will be undertaken. The immediate benefit of the research will be to unify the sparse efforts to characterise the flow of particulate materials and devise a predictor that could equally be used for academic research and industrial practice.
The fellowship will impact on the development of CFD codes that will be specifically developed for application in the process industry. The collaboration with DOE will imply access to their coding facilities, expertise and know-how. The collaboration with PSRI will make it possible to access their numerical expertise and to their sheer amount of data that they are willing to share (see letter of support). The resulting outcomes will impact on the CFD community. The link with CPI will impact stronghly of the manufacturing industry in the UK.
Finally, although the main aim of the fellowship is to focus on industrial problems which are found in the process industry, the results will be of relevance to cognate fields such as energy, global warming and public health. As an example, the work proposed can impact on the production of efficient filters for Black Carbon (filtration is less energy intensive that CO2 separation from the atmosphere). Consequently the work from this fellowship, has the potential to impact on particle emissions, legal regulations and public health.
The fellowship will impact on the development of CFD codes that will be specifically developed for application in the process industry. The collaboration with DOE will imply access to their coding facilities, expertise and know-how. The collaboration with PSRI will make it possible to access their numerical expertise and to their sheer amount of data that they are willing to share (see letter of support). The resulting outcomes will impact on the CFD community. The link with CPI will impact stronghly of the manufacturing industry in the UK.
Finally, although the main aim of the fellowship is to focus on industrial problems which are found in the process industry, the results will be of relevance to cognate fields such as energy, global warming and public health. As an example, the work proposed can impact on the production of efficient filters for Black Carbon (filtration is less energy intensive that CO2 separation from the atmosphere). Consequently the work from this fellowship, has the potential to impact on particle emissions, legal regulations and public health.
Organisations
- Heriot-Watt University (Fellow, Lead Research Organisation)
- Petronas (Collaboration)
- Chinese Academy of Sciences (Collaboration, Project Partner)
- North Carolina State University (Collaboration)
- British Geological Survey (Collaboration)
- Heriot-Watt University (Collaboration)
- Ruhr University Bochum (Collaboration)
- University of Colorado Boulder (Project Partner)
- University of Lorraine (Project Partner)
- Particulate Solid Research (Project Partner)
- UK-CPI (dup'e) (Project Partner)
- Syngenta (United Kingdom) (Project Partner)
- United States Department of Energy (Project Partner)
People |
ORCID iD |
Raffaella Ocone (Principal Investigator / Fellow) |
Publications
Angus A
(2020)
Calibrating friction coefficients in discrete element method simulations with shear-cell experiments
in Powder Technology
Francia V
(2021)
From Quasi-static to Intermediate Regimes in Shear Cell Devices: Theory and Characterisation
in KONA Powder and Particle Journal
Goddard B
(2021)
Modelling inelastic Granular Media Using Dynamical Density Functional Theory
in Journal of Statistical Physics
Hua L
(2022)
CFD-DEM simulations of wet particles fluidization with a new evolution model for liquid bridge
in AIChE Journal
Hurst T.
(2018)
Modelling granular media using dynamical density functional theory
in Applications for Sustainable Energy and Environment 2018 - Topical at the 8th World Congress on Particle Technology
Hurst T.
(2018)
Modelling granular media using dynamical density functional theory
in Education 2018 - Topical at the 8th World Congress on Particle Technology
Hurst T.
(2018)
Modelling granular media using dynamical density functional theory
in Handling and Processing of Granular Systems 2018 - Topical at the 8th World Congress on Particle Technology
Jin D
(2020)
Energy and AI
in Energy and AI
Loukopoulos A
(2022)
Organizational growth strategies for Greek social enterprises' social impact during the COVID-19 pandemic
in Social Enterprise Journal
Makkawi Y
(2019)
Parametric analysis of biomass fast pyrolysis in a downer fluidized bed reactor
in Renewable Energy
Neglia F
(2022)
Computational fluid dynamic simulations of granular flows: Insights on the flow-wall interaction dynamics
in International Journal of Multiphase Flow
Ocone R
(2020)
Ethics in Engineering and the Role of Responsible Technology
in Energy and AI
Ocone R
(2017)
Reconciling "Micro" and "Macro" through Meso-Science
in Engineering
Reddy M
(2019)
Recasting Navier-Stokes equations
in Journal of Physics Communications
Reddy M
(2019)
Recasting Navier-Stokes Equations
Wang H
(2018)
Application of process tomography in gas-solid fluidised beds in different scales and structures
in Measurement Science and Technology
Xu Q
(2023)
Characterizing bubble behavior in a pseudo- 2D fluidized bed of wet particles
in AIChE Journal
Xuan J
(2022)
The equality, diversity and inclusion in energy and AI: Call for actions
in Energy and AI
Yahia L
(2020)
Development of a virtual Couette rheometer for aerated granular material
in AIChE Journal
Yahia L.A.A.
(2021)
Sticking together: Is unity strength?
in CFB 2021 - Proceedings of the 13th International Conference on Fluidized Bed Technology
Zhu X
(2021)
Effects of pressure on flow regimes transition velocities and bubble properties in a pilot-scale pressurised circulating fluidised bed
in Chemical Engineering Journal
Description | How particles behave when interacting with other particles undergoing shear flow. New experimental procedure to investigate particle flow. Construction of a new instrument to study the rheology of granular materials. Investigation of how humidity affects the results that we previously obtained for dry particles. |
Exploitation Route | Publications and conferences. |
Sectors | Energy Manufacturing including Industrial Biotechology Other |
Description | RAEng Report on Biofuels |
Geographic Reach | National |
Policy Influence Type | Membership of a guideline committee |
Description | Royal Society of Edinburgh Offshore Wind Policy Statement: A Response to Scottish Government |
Geographic Reach | National |
Policy Influence Type | Contribution to a national consultation/review |
Description | EPSRC Responsive |
Amount | £392 (GBP) |
Funding ID | EP/R008027/1 |
Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 01/2018 |
End | 12/2021 |
Description | Multiscale Modelling of Wet Particle Fluidisation |
Amount | £74,000 (GBP) |
Organisation | The Royal Society |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 03/2020 |
End | 03/2022 |
Description | BGS |
Organisation | British Geological Survey |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Collaboration with the British Geological Survey (BGS) started and some data have been produced which resulted in two conference contributions. |
Collaborator Contribution | The partner provided us with material that we could analyse in our lab. |
Impact | Ait Ali Yahia L., Dioguardi F., Engwell S., Burton M , Ocone R., Calder E.S., The physical properties and rheological characteristics of flowing volcanic ash: first insights from laboratory rheometric analyses., EGU General Assembly 2019, Vienna, Austria, April 7 - 12, 2019. L. Ait Ali Yahia, F. Dioguardi, S. Engwell, M. Burton, R. Ocone, E. S. Calder, "Physical Properties and Rheological Characteristics of Flowing Volcanic Ash: First Insights from Laboratory Rheometric Analyses", EGU General Assembly 2019, Vienna, Austria, April 2019 |
Start Year | 2018 |
Description | Dr Ali Ozel |
Organisation | Heriot-Watt University |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | We have started a new collaboration with Dr Ozel at HWU. The collaboration involves new modelling methodologies that can be applied to the description of granular media. |
Collaborator Contribution | The partner has contributed towards novel modelling methodologies. |
Impact | Ait Ali Yahia L., Maione R., Ozel A., Ocone R., Numerical and Experimental Studies of Granular Materials in the Quasi-Static Regime, American Institute of Chemical Engineers conference (AIChE 2018), Pittsburgh, USA, October 28 - November 2, 2018. Ait Ali Yahia L., Maione R., Ozel A., Ocone R., Modelling of dense granular flow between scales., Chemical Engineering day, Leeds, UK, March 2, 2018. L. Ait Ali Yahia, F. Dioguardi, S. Engwell, M. Burton, R. Ocone, E. S. Calder, "Physical Properties and Rheological Characteristics of Flowing Volcanic Ash: First Insights from Laboratory Rheometric Analyses", EGU General Assembly 2019, Vienna, Austria, April 2019 L. Ait Ali Yahia, C. Carmichael, R. Ocone R., Evaluating the effect of moisture content on the flow behaviour of a glass beads powder., Chemical Engineering day, Edinburgh, UK, April 2019 R. Maione, L. Ait Ali Yahia, A. Ozel, N. Gaudel, S. K. de Richter, R. Ocone, "Effect of Vibration on the Rheology of Granular Materials in the Quasi-Static Regime, 10th International Conference on Multiphase Flow, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, May 2019 L. Ait Ali Yahia, T. M. Piepke, P. Pollak, R. Maione, R. Barrett, A. Ozel, R. Ocone, "Development of a New Methodology for Measurements of Particle Stresses in Fluidised Beds", Fluidization XVI, Guilin, China, May 2019. L. Ait Ali Yahia, T. Piepke, R. Barrett, R. Ocone. "Development, Validation and Application of a New Methodology for the Measurements of Particle Stresses in an Aerated Bed", AIChE Annual Meeting, Orlando, US, November 2019 L. Ait Ali Yahia, C. Carmichael, R. Ocone, "Investigating the Moisture Content on the Flow Behaviour of a Wet Glass Beads Powder" AIChE Annual Meeting, Orlando, US, November 2019 L. Ait Ali Yahia, T. M. Piepke, R. Barrett, A. Ozel, R. Ocone, "A Novel Rheometer for Aerated Granular Material", AIChE Journal, accepted A. Angus, L. Ait Ali Yahia, R. Maione, M. Khala, C. Hare, A. Ozel, R. Ocone, "The Role of Friction Coefficients in DEM Simulations", Powder Technology, submitted |
Start Year | 2018 |
Description | Dr Victor Fancia |
Organisation | Heriot-Watt University |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Dr Francia is a new member of academic staff and we are working together on one of the problems that arose from the grant. |
Collaborator Contribution | Co-supervision of students and postdocs |
Impact | An application for funding to the Royal Society |
Start Year | 2019 |
Description | Dr Yi Herng Chang, Petronas |
Organisation | Petronas |
Country | Malaysia |
Sector | Private |
PI Contribution | Extending the model to the pyrolysis of biomass for hydrogen production |
Collaborator Contribution | The partner has provided the biomass to be modelled and the relevant data |
Impact | Internal Reports Supervision of a postdoc |
Start Year | 2022 |
Description | Prof Fanxing Li |
Organisation | North Carolina State University |
Country | United States |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | We are writing a joint EPSRC-NSF proposal |
Collaborator Contribution | The partner is providing information on the materials that are used in chemical looping technology. |
Impact | Writing a joint grant application. |
Start Year | 2018 |
Description | Prof Ning Yang |
Organisation | Chinese Academy of Sciences |
Country | China |
Sector | Public |
PI Contribution | Prof Yang has provided us with state-of-art experiments that will help elucidate the behaviour of wet fluidisation. |
Collaborator Contribution | New methodologies to study systems of wet particles are under study and development. |
Impact | We are working at a joint publication. |
Start Year | 2020 |
Description | S Pollack -RUB |
Organisation | Ruhr University Bochum |
Country | Germany |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Development of a fluidized bed rheometer. I have provided advice and supervision to develop an instrument that can help understand the behavior of fluidized beds. We are writing a grant together. |
Collaborator Contribution | Provide a student working on the project. Provide a lab where the experiments can be undertaken. The student, Tobias Piepke, spent 4 months working in Edinburgh and a conference paper was produced. |
Impact | Development of a rheometer. C-supervision of a student. Ait Ali Yahia L., Piepke T.M., Pollak P., Maione R., Barrett R., Ozel A., Ocone R.1, Development of a new methodology for measurements of particle stresses in fluidized beds., Fluidization XVI, Guilin, China, May 26 - 31, 2019. |
Start Year | 2017 |