Benchmark Data and Analysis of Dilute and Dense-Phase, Fluid-Particle Flow in the Collisional, Viscous, and Transition Regimes

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Proposal Number: 0651667Principal Investigators: Curtis, JenniferAffiliation: University of FloridaProposal Title: Benchmark Data and Analysis of Dilute and Dense-Phase, Fluid-Particle Flow in the Collisional, Viscous, and Transition RegimesFluid-particle flows are prevalent across a diverse range of industrial and geophysical processes. In many applications, particles engage in collisions with each other, and there are also complex interactions between the fluid and the solid phases that significantly influence these multiple particle collisions. Fundamental models that currently exist do not adequately describe fluid-particle flow in this "transitional" regime (as originally labeled by Bagnold (1954)). Instead, the vast majority of research (and the scientific community's best current understanding of fluid-particle flows) are for processes operating exclusively in either the inertia-dominated regime (where the influence of the fluid phase on the direct interactions between particles is neglected) or the macroviscous regime (where the fluid phase plays the significant role in the mechanics of particle momentum transport). The key limitation impeding improved understanding and the development of fundamental models is the lack of detailed, non-intrusive flow measurements in this "transitional" regime, as well as measurements which bridge the transitional regime with both the inertia-dominated and viscous-dominated regimes. The current body of experimental information for fluid-particle flows is highly piecemeal. Previous experimentation has focused on one specific regime of particulate flow over a limited range of operating conditions. The intellectual merit of the proposed work lies in the experimental measurements that are unifying in the sense that these novel measurements will bridge the gap between particle flow regimes over a range of solids concentrations and fluid flowrates. These experimental measurements will be made in a unique, pilot-scale, flow loop facility. This facility allows for operating conditions that span the regimes for particle flow behavior. Hence, these measurements will broadly impact our understanding of fluid-particle flows. The resulting flow measurements will provide a benchmark in the scientific literature for fluid-particle flow model development and validation. Improved flow models will yield significant advances in CFD simulations targeted towards scale-up operations, optimization and design of a wide variety of fluid-particle flows. In addition, there will be other broad impacts from the research through involvement of one PhD student and several undergraduate students each year via The University of Florida's Particle Engineering Research Center's (PERC's) Undergraduate Research Awards program. Finally, there will be broad impacts from the research via dissemination of our findings to the scientific community - both through journal publications/conference presentations and through the education of large numbers of students via courses offered through PERC. The dataset resulting from the effort will be made available to the public via a website maintained by the PI.