US-India Cooperative Research: Modeling Flocculation-Dispersion of Colloidal Suspensions in a Particle Population Balance Framework

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0117622Somasundaran Description: This award supports US-India cooperative research entitled "Modeling Flocculation-Dispersion of Colloidal Suspensions in a Particle Population Balance Framework." Flocculation and dispersion of colloidal suspensions are important unit operations in many industrial activities such as pulp and papermaking, mineral and ceramics processing, and water treatment. The investigators will undertake a detailed study of the nine enumerated steps in the flocculation/dispersion process. They will develop a comprehensive mathematical model that includes a variety of phenomena such as aggregation, interparticle forces, hydrodynamics and polymer adsorption. Although flocculation processes have been extensively modeled, the proposed work will be the first attempt to integrate the various subprocesses. The new model will be validated by comparison with existing experimental data. Predictions from the model will then be tested by performing new experiments. Scope: The collaborators for this research are P. Somasundaran, Columbia University and P. Pradip and P.C. Kapur, Tata Research Design and Development Centre, Pune, India. The PIs are a team of world class scientists that have an excellent chance of achieving their research objectives. Development of a comprehensive model to predict the kinetics of flocculation will be very useful for water purification, waste treatment, product formulation, mineral beneficiation schemes, and environmental remediation. This project is jointly funded by the Division of International Programs and the Government of India's Department of Science & Technology.