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Experimental study and CFD-DEM simulation of pneumatic conveying of plastic pellets in a pilot-scale system
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Researchers tested how plastic pellets move through a pipe system using pressurized air, comparing real-world experiments with computer simulations. They found that certain factors, like how particles bounce and rub against pipe walls, strongly affected flow patterns, while other factors mattered little. The simulations matched experimental results within about 25%.
The present study investigates pneumatic conveying at pilot scale through a combination of experimental tests and numerical simulations. Horizontal pneumatic conveying was modelled using a coupled Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) and Discrete Element Method (DEM) approach. The influence of simulation parameters on flow behaviour and pressure drop was evaluated through a parametric study. The rolling friction and particle-particle friction coefficients were found to have a negligible effect on simulation results. In contrast, results showed that the restitution coefficient and particle-wall friction coefficient both had a significant impact on pressure drop and the overall shape of the pneumatic conveying phase diagram, affecting the transition between regimes. These findings suggest that calibration procedures may focus on these influential parameters to capture the saltation point and regime changes, thus reducing the computational effort associated with extensive calibration. Comparisons between experimental data and numerical results obtained using a preliminary set of simulation parameters showed reasonably good agreement, with deviations within ±25%.
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When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.