SBIR Phase I: Multi-Phase Acoustic Fluid Micro-Mixing and Mass Transport

这个小型企业创新研究第一阶段项目将建立一种方法，定量预测由一种新的低频声学技术产生的单相和多相流体系统中的微混合和质量传输水平。第一阶段的主要目标是论证从理论上理解高强度、低频率的声能辐射转变为多相流体中的混合和质量传输应用的有用工作的可行性。次要但基本的目标将是开发将声换能器与流体中的辐射声能相耦合的传递函数。这些模型将伴随着将经典微观混合和传质技术与声场实验数据相关联的实验方法。拟议的工作将导致建立对声学驱动的单相和多相流体过程的控制机制以及流体-颗粒相互作用的基本理解。分析模型对于通过新兴的创新低频声学混合方法开发工业市场是必不可少的。混合是化学加工工业中最常见的操作。仅在北美，传统工业搅拌机市场的年销售额就在2亿至2.5亿美元之间。其他依赖混合和大规模运输的行业包括食品、石油、采矿、制药、纸浆和造纸、水处理和城市废水处理。

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project will establish a method to quantitatively predict the level of micromixing and mass transport in single-phase and multiphase fluid systems that are generated by a novel low-frequency acoustic technology. The primary Phase I objective is to demonstrate the feasibility for development of a theoretical understanding of the governing mechanisms for the transformation of high-intensity, low-frequency, acoustic energy radiation into useful work for mixing and mass transport applications in multi-phase fluids. A secondary, but essential, objective will be to develop the transfer functions coupling the acoustic transducer to the radiated acoustic energy in the fluid. The models will be accompanied by experiment methods that will correlate classical micromixing amd mass transport techniques with acoustic field experiment data. The proposed work will result in establishing a fundamental understanding of the governing mechanisms for acoustically-driven, single-phase and multiphase fluid processes, as well as fluid-particle interactions. The analytical models are essential for exploitation of the industrial market by innovative low-frequency acoustic mixing methods that are emerging. Mixing is the most common operation encountered in the Chemical Processing Industries. In North America alone, the conventional industrial mixer market is between $200 million and $250 million annually. Other industries reliant upon mixing and mass transport include food, petroleum, mining, pharmaceutical, pulp and paper, water treatment and municipal waste water treatment.