Effects of particle fractions on the Bingham yield stress and viscosity of fine-coarse particle suspensions

The rheological behaviors of highly concentrated fine particle suspensions(clay-silt-water mixtures)and coarse particle suspensions(coarse particles within a fine particle suspension)were investigated in this study.Experimental results demonstrated that the Bingham Fluid Model with two rheological parameters,Bingham yield stressand viscosity,wellcharacterized the rheological behavior of fine particle suspensions at shear rates between 4 and 20 s^(-1).The inclusion of coarse particles within a fine particle suspension induced an enhancement to the rheological parameters.The rheological parameters of a coarse particle suspension not only depend on its total particle fraction but also on its relative fine/coarse particle fractions.Empirical equations of these two parameters were proposed,quantitatively related to both fine and coarse particle fractions.Results indicated that the Bingham yield stress and viscosity are much more(an order larger)sensitive to changes in fine particle fraction than to changes in coarse particle fraction.

Difference in Organic Carbon Contents and Distributions in Particle-size Fractions between Soil and Sediment on the Southern Loess Plateau, China

The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of long-term cultivation and water erosion on the soil organic carbon （OC） in particle-size fractions. The study site is located at Nihegou Watershed in the Southern Loess Plateau, China. The soil at this site is loess with loose and silty structure, and contains macropores. The results showed that the OC concentrations in sediments and in the particle-size fractions of sediments were higher than those in soils and in the particle-size fractions of soils. The OC concentration was highest in the clay particles and was lowest in the sand particles. Clay particles possessed higher OC enrichment ability than silt and sand particles. The proportions of OC in the silt fractions of soil and sediment were the highest （mean value of 53.87% and 58.48%, respectively）, and the total proportion of OC in the clay and silt fractions accounted for 96% and 98% of the total OC in the soil and sediment, respectively. The loss of OC was highest in silt particles, with an average value of 0.16 Mg ha^-1 y^-1, and was lowest in the sand （0.003 Mg ha^-1 y^-l）. This result suggests that the fine particle-size fraction in the removed sediment may be an important indicator to assess soil OC losses.

Distribution of Cu and Pb in particle size fractions of urban soils from different city zones of Nanjing, China

Soil samples from 4 defined city zones of Nanjing were randomly collected at 0-5 cm and 5-20 cm intervals and size fractions of soil particles were separated from undisturbed bulk soils by low energy dispersion procedure. The total contents of Cu and Pb in the different particle size fractions of the urban soils were analyzed by HNO3-HF-HClO4 digestion and flame atomic absorption spectrophotometer determination. The total content of Cu and Pb in soil particle size fractions varied with their size and with city zones as well. Both the content and variation with the size fractions of Pb was bigger than of Cu supporting our previous finding that there was Pb pollution to different degrees in the urban soils although the two elements were generally enriched in clay-sized fraction. Contaminated Pb tended to be preferentially enriched in the size fraction of 2000-250 μm and clay-sized fraction. While the size fractions of the soils from newly developed and preserved area contained smaller amount of Cu and Pb, the partitioning of them in coarse and fine particle size fractions were insignificant compared to that from inner residence and commercial area. The very high Pb level over 150 mg/kg of the fine particle fractions from the soils of the inner city could be a cause of high blood Pb level reported of children from the city as acute exposure to Pb of fine particles of the urban soil might occur by soil ingestion and inhalation by young children. Thus, much attention should be paid to the partitioning of toxic metals in fine soil particles of the urban soils and countermeasures against high health risk of Pb exposure by soil ingestion and dust inhalation should be practiced against the health problem of blood Pb for young children from the cities.

NUMBER CONCENTRATION,SIZE DISTRIBUTION AND FINE PARTICLE FRACTION OF TROPOSPHERIC AND STRATOSPHERIC AEROSOLS

Aerosol observations were carried out at Xianghe Scientific Balloon Base (39.45N, 117E) using a strato-spheric balloon. The particle number concentrations of the tropospheric and stratospheric aerosols were directly explored. The vertical distributions of the number concentration, number-size (that is, particle number versus particle size) distribution, and the fraction of fine particles (0.5 mm>r>0.15 mm/ r>0.15 mm) are reported in this paper. The profiles of particle concentration present multi-peak phenomenon. The pattern of size distribution for atmospheric aerosol indicates a tri-modal (r=~0.2 mm, ~0.88 mm and ~7.0 mm) and a bi-modal (r=~0.13 mm and 2.0 mm). The number-size distribution almost fits the Junge distribution for particles with r<0.5 mm in the stratosphere of 1993 and the troposphere of 1994. But the distributions of coarse particles (r>0.5 mm) are not uniform. The number-size distribution exhibits also a wide size range in the troposphere of 1993. The results demonstrate that fine particles represent the major portion in the tropo-sphere during the measurement period, reaching as high as 95% in 1994. Certain coarse particle peaks in the tropo-sphere were attributed to clouds and other causes, and in the stratosphere to volcanic eruption. The stratospheric aerosol layer consists of unique fractions of fine or coarse particles depending on their sources. In summary, the process of gas-to-particles conversion was active and the coarse particles were rich over the Xianghe area. The measurements also demonstrate that the spatial and temporal atmospheric aerosol distributions are nonuniform and changeful.

Effect of Volume Fraction of Particle on Wear Resistance of Al_2O_3/Steel Composites at Elevated Temperature

Based on previous work, abrasive wear resistance of Al 2O 3/steel composites with different Al 2O 3 particle volume fraction (VOF) at 900 ℃ was investigated. The experimental results showed that a suitable particle VOF is important to protect the metal matrix from wear at elevated temperature. Both too high and too low particle VOF lead to a poor abrasive wear because a bulk matrix is easily worn off by grits when it exceeds the suitable VOF and also because when VOF is low, the Al 2O 3 particles are easily dug out by grits during wearing as well. When the particle VOF is 39%, the wear resistance of tested composites is excellent.

Experimental determination of grain density function of AZ91/SiC composite with different mass fractions of SiC and undercoolings using heterogeneous nucleation model

The grain density,Nv,in the solid state after solidification of AZ91/SiC composite is a function of maximum undercooling,ΔT,of a liquid alloy.This type of function depends on the characteristics of heterogeneous nucleation sites and number of SiC present in the alloy.The aim of this paper was selection of parameters for the model describing the relationship between the grain density of primary phase and undercooling.This model in connection with model of crystallisation,which is based on chemical elements diffusion and grain interface kinetics,can be used to predict casting quality and its microstructure.Nucleation models have parameters,which exact values are usually not known and sometimes even their physical meaning is under discussion.Those parameters can be obtained after mathematical analysis of the experimental data.The composites with 0,1,2,3 and 4wt.% of SiC particles were prepared.The AZ91 alloy was a matrix of the composite reinforcement SiC particles.This composite was cast to prepare four different thickness plates.They were taken from the region near to the thermocouple,to analyze the undercooling for different composites and thickness plates and its influence on the grain size.The microstructure and thermal analysis gave set of values that connect mass fraction of SiC particles,and undercooling with grain size.These values were used to approximate nucleation model adjustment parameters.Obtained model can be very useful in modelling composites microstructure.

Performance Analysis of Optimization Based FOC and DTC Methods for Three Phase Induction Motor

Three-phase induction motors are becoming increasingly utilized in industrialfield due to their better efficiency and simple manufacture.The speed control of an induction motor is essential in a variety of applications,but it is dif-ficult to control.This research analyses the three-phase induction motor’s perfor-mance usingfield-oriented control(FOC)and direct torque control(DTC)techniques.The major aim of this work is to provide a critical evaluation of devel-oping a simple speed controller for induction motors with improving the perfor-mance of Induction Motor(IM).For controlling a motor,different optimization approaches are accessible;in this research,a Fuzzy Logic Controller(FLC)with Fractional Order Darwinian Particle Swarm Optimization(FODPSO)algorithm is presented to control the induction motor.The FOC and DTC are controlled using FODPSO,and their performance is compared to the traditional FOC and DTC technique.Each scheme had its own simulation model,and the results were com-pared using hardware experimental and MATLAB-Simulink.In terms of time domain specifications and torque improvement,the proposed technique surpasses the existing method.

Influence of soil physicochemical properties,particle size fractions and mineralogy on the leaching potentials of arsenic and antimony in abandoned mine soils

At abandoned mine sites,arsenic(As)-and antimony(Sb)-enriched soils are often disposed of through onsite burial or capping.In highly weathered mine sites,the mobility of As and Sb is typically controlled by iron(Fe)(III)/Fe(II)phases;thus,the suitability of such disposal methods and appropriate testing techniques are questionable.In the present study,leaching potentials of As and Sb were examined using the toxicity characteristic leaching procedure(TCLP),waste extraction test(WET),and WET-extended procedure(WET-EXT)at three abandoned mine site soils in Australia.The leached concentration of As regularly exceeded USEPA criteria(5 mg L^(-1)).The highest leached concentrations of As and Sb were observed in the finest particle size fraction(<0.053 mm)by WET-EXT(1040 mg L^(-1)for As and 21.10 mg L^(-1)for Sb)followed by WET(800 mg L^(-1)for As and 20.90 mg L^(-1)for Sb).The TCLP method resulted in the lowest concentrations of leached As(0.0009 mg L^(-1))and Sb(0.0003 mg L^(-1)).Crystalline and amorphous As-bearing Fe oxides were the main phases in the soils studied.However,the best correlations of leached As determined by TCLP(0.832),WET(0.944),and WET-EXT(0.961)were found with the non-specifically sorbed(NS1)As fraction.The mineralogical and sequential extraction data clearly indicate the dominant role of Fe geochemistry in controlling leachability of As and Sb.The TCLP method was unlikely to be suitable for assessing leachability,as it exhibited no relationship with leachable Fe and substantially lower leached As and Sb than the other two methods.Given the high to extremely high leachable As and Sb concentrations,most of the soil samples would not be recommended for placement in capping works,old shafts,or reduction systems(e.g.,collection in drainage basins).

Study of the Stacking Sequences of an Irregular Mixed-Layer Illite/Smectite (I/S) Clay Mineral—with a Discussion on the Existence of Minerals with Two-Dimentional Lattice and One-Dimentional Quasi-Lattice

There are two aspects in the study of irregular mixed-layer clay minerals: one is the kinds and ratios of their basic structural unit layers and the other is the junction probabilities of the unit layers. Irregular mixed-layer illite/smectite clay minerals (I/S) are widespread in nature. While studying the clay minerals from the Permian-Triassic (P/T) boundary bed, the authors found that I/S clay minerals are developed in all P/T boundary clay layers in areas from the northwest to southeast of China. Systematic mineralogical studies of the I/S clay minerals from Hunan, Hubei, Sichuan and Zhejiang were made by means of X-ray, infrared spectroscopic, electron microscopic and chemical analyses and a deepened study of the stacking sequences of their structural unit layers was conducted by the MacEwan one—dimentional direct Fourier transform. It was found that the stacking of the illite and smectite crystal layers along the c axis can be derived from Fibonacci sequences. Hence, the authors propose that such I/S clay minerals are possessed of two—dimentional crystal lattice and one—dimentional quasicrystal lattice.

Comparative analysis on soil engineering classifications of China and America

Based on China National Standard of Soil Engineering Classification (GB/T 50145-2007) and the Unified Soil Classification System of American Society for Testing Materials (ASTM D-2478), two kinds of soil laboratory engineering classification methods were discussed and analyzed from the aspects of the definition in particle fraction, classification of soil type and evaluation standard for soil gradation. There is a same limit of fine grains fraction in the two standards, and there are three main types of soil in GB/T 50145-2007 and two in ASTM D-2487. Different evaluation standards of gradation are put forward for gravels and sands in ASTM D-2487. Same criteria of A line, B line and controlling value of plastic index are in the plasticity chart of both standards.

Behavior of different phosphorus species in suspended particulate matter in the Changjiang estuary

Suspended particulate matter （SPM） collected in the Changjiang （Yangtze River） estuary in June 2006 was separated into five fractions via water elutriation： clay-very fme silt （〈8 μm）, fine silt （8-16 μm）, medium silt （16--32 μm）, coarse silt （32~53 μm） and sand （〉63 μm）. The SPM and fractionated particles were sequentially analyzed by a modified SEDEX sequential extraction method to obtain six species of phosphorus： exchangeable or loosely-sorbed P, organic P, Fe-bound P, authigenic P, detrital P and refractory P. The results indicated that all particulate phosphorus species except for detrital P were negatively correlated to particle size; a high detrital P content was found in coarse silt and very coarse silt. From the inside of the river mouth to the gate of the fiver mouth, organic P, Fe-bound P and refractory P in the suspended particles decreased and a higher amount of exchangeable P appeared around the gate of the fiver mouth. From the gate of the river mouth to the sea, exchangeable P and organic P in suspended panicles increased distinctly. The total particulate P flux into the estuary from the Changjiang River was about 45.45×10^8μmol/s during sampling. Of this, about 8.27×10^8μmol/s was associated with the ＂truly suspended＂ fraction. The bio-available particulate P flux was about 13.58×10^8μmol/s. Of this, about 4.24 ×10^8μmol/s w as transported by ＂truly suspended＂ particles.

Analysis of behaviour of computational model to evaluate performance of heat pipe containing nanofluids

Application of nanofluids in heat pipes usually presents satisfactory experimental results regarding a thermal resistance reduction of the heat pipe.However,the existing computational studies connecting heat pipes and nanofluids lack a deeper discussion regarding the validity of the models currently used for representing the behaviour of a nanofluid in a heat pipe,particularly for unusual base fluids and nanoparticles such as carbon nanotubes or ethylene glycol.Thus,this comparative study presents the results of a set of computational simulations using pre-established equations for modelling a nanofluid in a heat pipe with experimental data from the literature.The results show agreement with the expected behaviour qualitatively and the presented maximum variations between 1.5% and 23.9% in comparison to the experimentally measured average temperatures.Also,the experimentally obtained temperature distribution of a heat pipe could not be reached numerically only with the use of adequate thermal properties,indicating that the boiling phenomenon is more complex than the current model used for computational simulations.Moreover,the existence of an optimal particle volume fraction for using nanofluids in this application could be observed by combining different properties models.

COMPUTATION OF FLEXURAL PROPERTIES OF HA/PLLA COMPOSITE USING A CELL MODEL APPROACH

A three-dimensional finite element analysis was conducted to evaluate the feasibility of predicting the flexural properties of hydroxyapatite-reinforced poly-L-lactide acid （HA/PLLA） biocomposite using three different schemes. The scheme 1, originated from a beam analysis, was used to determine the flexural modulus analytically while the scheme 2 and 3 were designed to have different loading and boundary conditions using a finite element cell modeling approach. An empirical approach using Chow＇s formula and experimental data were used for comparison with the predicted results. In order to reduce the computational time and save the storage space involved in determining the effect of varying particle volume fractions on the flexural properties of HA/PLLA, a superelement technique was applied. The results using the scheme 3 and the Chow＇s formula were found to be in reasonable agreement with experimental results over the range of particle volume fraction. In addition to the Chow＇s formula, local stress distribution and the failure processes in HA/PLLA were simulated using the finite element technique.

Distribution and Accumulation of Major and Trace Elements in Gypsum Samples from Lignite Combustion Power Plant

Flue gas containing volatile elements, fine fly ash particulates not retained by particle control devices, and limestone are the most important sources of trace and major elements (TMEs) in wet flue gas desulphurization (WFGD) gypsum. In this study, samples of gypsum slurry were separated into fine and coarse fractions. Multi-elemental analysis of 45 elements in the different size fractions of gypsum, slurry waters and lignite were performed by k0-INAA (k0-instrumental neutron activation analyses). The study found that the volatile elements (Hg, Se and halogens) in the flue gas accumulate in the fine fractions of gypsum. Moreover, the concentrations of most TMEs are considerably higher in the fine fractions compared to the coarse fractions. The exceptions are Ca and Sr that primarily originate from the limestone. Variations of TMEs in the finer fractions are dependent on the presence of CaSO4·2H2O that is the main constituent of the coarse fraction. Consequently, the content of TMEs in the fine fraction is highly dependent on the efficiency of separating the fine fraction from the coarse fraction. Separation of the finer fraction, representing about 10% of the total gypsum, offers the possibility to remove effectively TMEs from WFGD slurry.

Degradation of the fungicide metalaxyl and its non-extractable residue formation in soil clay and silt fractions

The proportion of organic matter and mineral composition are important factors determining the formation and type of non-extractable residues(NERs) of pesticides in soil. In this study, we investigated the enantioselectivity in degradation and NER formation of the chiral fungicide metalaxyl in soil particle size fractions(silt and clay). Microbial and extracellular enzyme activities during these processes were monitored in incubation of silt and clay samples isolated from sterilized and non-sterilized soil samples collected from a long-term agricultural field experimental site in Ultuna, Sweden. The temporal influence on the fate of the fungicide was noted by short-term(10-d) and long-term(92-d) incubations. Besides the acquisition of quantitative data with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry(GC/MS), stereoselective analyses were performed with chiral GC/MS. Quantitative results pointed to a higher metabolism rate of the pesticide through microbial activity than through extracellular enzyme activity. This was also confirmed by the enantioselective depletion of R-metalaxyl and the subsequent formation of R-metalaxyl acid in microbially active samples from non-sterilized soil. The silt fraction containing a high amount of organic matter exhibited a significant hydrolyzable proportion of metalaxyl NERs that was releasable under alkaline conditions. On the contrary, the clay fraction showed an enhanced affinity for covalently bound residues. Based on our results, we recommend differentiating between reversibly and irreversibly bound proportions of pesticides in persistence and environmental risk assessment because the reversible fraction contained potentially bioavailable amounts of residues that may be released under natural conditions.

Experimental study of the solid circulation rate in a pressurized circulating fluidized bed

The solid circulation rate is essential for design of pressurized circulating fluidized beds(PCFBs).With increasing pressure from atmospheric pressure to a few bars,the gas density linearly increases with the pressure,which affects the gas-solid flow characteristics.In this work,experiments were performed at room temperature in a cold PCFB apparatus with a riser of 3.3 m in height and 0.05 m in diameter.The solid circulation rate was studied from 20 to 80 kg/(m^(2)·s)under various conditions with increasing pressure from 0.1 to 0.6 MPa and fluidizing gas velocity from around 1.5 to 8.0 m/s for different Geldart B group particles.Most of the conditions were in the flow regimes of core-annulus flow(CAF)only and CAF with a turbulent fluidized bed at the bottom.The trend of the apparent slip factor with the dimensionless slip velocity was similar at different pressures and for different average particle sizes,and it converged to an exponential function.An empirical equation was obtained by fitting the solid circulation rate with the operating parameters(particle transport velocity,particle volume fraction,Archimedes number,and Froude number),which is helpful for design and operation of PCFBs.

A model for expansion ratio in liquid-solid fluidized beds

Liquid-solid fluidized beds are used in mineral processing industries to separate particles based on parti- cle size, density, and shape. Understanding the expanded fluidized bed is vital for accurately assessing its performance. Expansion characteristics of the fluidized bed were studied by performing several experi- ments with iron ore, chromite, quartz, and coal samples. Using water as liquid medium, experiments were conducted to study the effects of particle size, particle density, and superficial velocity on fluidized bed expansion. The experimental data were utilized to develop an empirical mathematical model based on dimensional analysis to estimate the expansion ratio of the fluidized bed in terms of particle character- istics, operating and design parameters. The predicted expansion ratio obtained from the mathematical model is in good agreement with the experimental data.

Two and three dimensional modeling of fluidized bed with multiple jets in a DEM-CFD framework

Fluidized beds with multiple jets have widespread industrial applications. The objective of this paper is to investigate the jet interactions and hydrodynamics of a fluidized bed with multiple jets. Discrete element modeling coupled with in-house CFD code GenlDLEST has been used to simulate a bed with nine jets. The results are compared with published experiments. Mono dispersed particles of size 550 ~m are used with 1.4 times the minimum fluidization velocity of the particles. Both two and three dimensional computations have been performed. To the best of our knowledge, the results presented in this paper are the first full 3D simulations of a fluidized bed performed with multiple jets. Discrepancies between the experiment and simulations are discussed in the context of the dimensionality of the simulations. The 2D solid fraction profile compares well with the experiment close to the distributor plate. At higher heights, the 2D simulation over-predicts the solid fraction profiles near the walls. The 3D simulation on the other hand is better able to capture the solid fraction profile higher up in the bed compared to that near the distributor plate. Similarly, the normalized particle velocities and the particle fluxes compare well with the experiment closer to the distributor plate for the 2D simulation and the freeboard for the 3D simulation, respectively. A lower expanded bed height is predicted in the 2D simulation compared to the 3D simulation and the experiment. The results obtained from DEM computations show that a 2D simulation can be used to capture essential jetting trends near the distributor plate regions, whereas a full scale 3D simulation is needed to capture the bubbles near the freeboard regions. These serve as validations for the experiment and help us understand the complex jet interaction and solid circulation patterns in a multiple jet fluidized bed system.