Simulation of gas-solid adsorption process considering particle-size distribution

The particle-size distribution of adsorbents usually plays an important role on the adsorption performance. In this study, population balance equation(PBE) is utilized in the simulation of an adsorption process to model the time-dependent adsorption amount distribution on adsorbent particles of a certain size distribution. Different adsorption kinetics model can be used to build the adsorption rate function in PBE according to specific adsorption processes. Two adsorption processes, including formaldehyde on activated carbon and CO_(2)/N_(2)/CH_(4) mixture on 4A zeolite are simulated as case studies, and the effect of particle-size distribution of adsorbent is analyzed. The simulation results proved that the influence of particle-size distribution is significant. The proposed model can help consider the influence of particlesize distribution of adsorbents on adsorption processes to improve the prediction accuracy of the performance of adsorbents.

Sorption of pyrene on two paddy soils and their particle-size fractions

In the present study, the sorption of pyrene on two kinds of bulk paddy soils, Gleyic Stagnic Anthrosols, and Ferric accumulic Stagnic Anthrosols as well as their particle-size fractions was investigated. The sorption isotherms fitted well with Freundlich equation. For both soils, the clay fraction（ 〈 2μm） and coarse sand fraction（2000-250μm） had higher sorption capacity than fine sand fraction（250-20 μm） and silt fraction（20-2 μm）. The IogKoc values obtained of each soil and its particle-size fractions were similar, proving that SOM content was a key factor affecting pyrene sorption. The Kd values showed a significant correlation with contents of dithionite-extractable Fe in both paddy soils and a good relationship with CEC in Gleyic Stagnic Anthrosols, indicating possible effects of surface properties of particle-size fractions on the sorption of pyrene.

A computational particle fluid-dynamics simulation of hydrodynamics in a three-dimensional full-loop circulating fluidized bed: Effects of particle-size distribution

A computational particle fluid-dynamics model coupled with an energy-minimization multi-scale(EMMS)drag model was applied to investigate the influence of particle-size distribution on the hydrodynamics of a three-dimensional full-loop circulating fluidized bed.Different particle systems,including one monodisperse and two polydisperse cases,were investigated.The numerical model was validated by comparing its results with the experimental axial voidage distribution and solid mass flux.The EMMS drag model had a high accuracy in the computational particle fluid-dynamics simulation of the three-dimensional full-loop circulating fluidized bed.The total number of parcels in the system(Np)influenced the axial voidage distribution in the riser,especially at the lower part of the riser.Additional numerical simulation results showed that axial segregation by size was predicted in the two polydisperse cases and the segregation size increased with an increase in the number of size classes.The axial voidage distribution at the lower portion of the riser was significantly influenced by particle-size distribution.However,radial segregation could only be correctly predicted in the upper region of the riser in the polydisperse case of three solid species.

The Correlation Between Particle-Size Dispersity and Percolation Threshold of Brittle-Ductile Transition in Polymer Blends

Percolation threshold of Brittle-Ductile （B-D） transition and its relation with the affecting varibles （such as particle-size dispersity, interphase adhesion）in polymer blends are studied.Percolation Threshold (Φsc) which is equivalent to that of B-D transition and critical matrix ligament thickness （Tc） are first independently calculated and the correlated equation between Φsc and σg is also given.In addition, a new type of master curve of S1（G0,toughness） with Φs （stress volume fraction） for polymer blends is proposed and the new parameter Φso （up-limited stress volume fraction） is also discussed. The results confirm that Φsc is not only related with σg,but also tightly related with the interphase adhesion.

Real-Time Fracture Aperture Identification Using Mud Loss Data and Solution for LCM Combination

Managing server lost circulation is a major challenge of drilling operation in naturally fractured formations and it causes much nonproductive rig time. When encountered with loss, the fracture aperture intersecting the wellbore is not well-identified in time, which has a significant impact on the decision of drilling operation and the undesired result of loss curing. Therefore, the onset of fracture is identified in a timely manner and evaluated comprehensively to formulate an appropriate strategy over time. However, the mud loss date, which is the primary source of information retrieved from the drilling process, was not properly used in real-time prediction of fracture aperture. This article provides a detailed mathematical study to discuss the mechanism of mud invasion in the near-wellbore region and prediction of fracture aperture. The fracture aperture can be calculated from mud-loss data by solving a cubic equation with input parameters given by the well radius, the overpressure ratio, and the maximum mud-loss volume. It permits the proper selection of loss-circulation material (LCM) with respect to particle size distribution and fiber usage. The case study illustrates the applicability of this methodology with a discussion on LCM particle distribution in different scenarios and the result demonstrates the outcome of inappropriate LCM usage and the advantages of the novel fiber-based LCM treatment.

Interactions between wind and water erosion change sediment yield and particle distribution under simulated conditions

Wind and water erosion are among the most important causes of soil loss, and understanding their interactions is important for estimating soil quality and environmental impacts in regions where both types of erosion occur. We used a wind tunnel and simulated rainfall to study sediment yield, particle-size distribution and the fractal dimension of the sediment particles under wind and water erosion. The experiment was conducted with wind ero- sion firstly and water erosion thereafter, under three wind speeds （0, 11 and 14 m/s） and three rainfall intensities （60, 80 and 100 ram/h）. The results showed that the sediment yield was positively correlated with wind speed and rain- fall intensity （P〈0.01）. Wind erosion exacerbated water erosion and increased sediment yield by 7.25%-38.97% relative to the absence of wind erosion. Wind erosion changed the sediment particle distribution by influencing the micro-topography of the sloping land surface. The clay, silt and sand contents of eroded sediment were also posi- tively correlated with wind speed and rainfall intensity （P〈0.01）. Wind erosion increased clay and silt contents by 0.35%-19.60% and 5.80%-21.10%, respectively, and decreased sand content by 2.40%-8.33%, relative to the absence of wind erosion. The effect of wind erosion on sediment particles became weaker with increasing rainfall intensities, which was consistent with the variation in sediment yield. However, particle-size distribution was not closely correlated with sediment yield （P〉0.05）. The fractal dimension of the sediment particles was significantly different under different intensities of water erosion （P〈0.05）, but no significant difference was found under wind and water erosion. The findings reported in this study implicated that both water and wind erosion should be controlled to reduce their intensifying effects, and the controlling of wind erosion could significantly reduce water erosion in this wind-water erosion crisscross region.

Quantitative relationship between flagellate abundance and suspended particle density in Huanghai Sea and East China Sea in summer

An investigation was carried out in the Huanghai Sea and the East China Sea to study the quantitative relationship between the abundance of flagellates and the density of suspended particles in the summer of 2001. The results show that the abundance of flagellates varies from 44-12 600 cell/cm^3, and flagellates sometimes constitutes a significant part of suspended particles. The size-spectra of suspended particles can be divided into four categories： flat spectrum, humped spectrum, plankton spectrum and mixed spectrum. In general, the abundance of flagellates varies in proportion to the density of suspended particles. However, their quantitative relations reveal different characteristics in the seawater samples of different types of particle-size spectrum. This is only a preliminary study of the quantitative relationship between flagellates and suspended particles, which might lead to a potential convenient approach to the estimation of flagellate abundance in the sea.

Fertile island effect in the sedimentary process of Tetraena mongolica Maxim nebkhas in steppe–desert ecotones on the Inner Mongolia Plateau,China

Phytogenic mounds(nebkhas)formed by shrubs are a common phenomenon in arid and semiarid areas.The formation of nebkhas is accompanied by the appearance of the fertile island effect.Quantitative evaluation of the shrub sand compost island effect is a key link in preventing soil erosion and nutrient loss.This study took the typical shrub Tetraena mongolica in desert areas as the research object and quantified the sand-trapping capacity of the shrub.We revealed the influence of sediment texture and volumetric soil water content on fertile islands during the development of T.mongolica nebkhas.The results showed that(1)the single shrub intercepted large amounts of sediments due to the high density of branches of T.mongolica,forming nebkhas that were positively correlated with the shrub size.(2)The overall soil nutrient content below the shrub was greater than the soil nutrient content outside the shrub,forming a typical fertile island effect.The soil organic carbon(SOC),alkaline hydrolytic nitrogen(AHN),available phosphorus(AP),and available K(AK)content all increased gradually with increasing nebkha volume.Compared with the deep soil of nebkhas,the nutrient content of the surface soil was generally higher.(3)There was a positive correlation between the volumetric water content and nutrient content in nebkhas.(4)The semi-ellipsoid shape of T.mongolica enabled it to intercept large amounts of coarse-grained material.Fine sand(100–250μm)was the main particle size in the sediment aggregates inside the nebkhas.The fine sand content generally increased with increasing shrub size.Redundancy analysis(RDA)revealed that the fine sand content of the nebkha sediments had a strong positive correlation with the soil nutrient content.This paper provides an example for evaluating the fertile island effect during the deposition process of nebkhas in the desert transition zone.

The Solids Conveying Mechanism for Helically Grooved Single-screw Extruders

A novel particle-size conveying model was established to examine the effects of the dimension relationships of the groove depth and particle size on the solids conveying mechanism of the helically grooved feed section. In the model, one or two shear interfaces were proposed based on the dimension relationships of the groove depth and particle size, and the solid-plug embedded in the groove and screw channel were divided into two or three layers by the shear interfaces to consider the solids conveying mechanism of each layer by the boundary condition equation for positive conveying. By the particle-size model, the effects of different dimension relationships on the transformation of solids conveying mechanisms between the friction-drag conveying and the positive conveying were discussed and compared with the on-line measuring experimental data. The results showed that the shear interfaces among the solids existed indeed and the dimension relationships determined the conveying mechanism and the throughput of helically grooved extruders, which was well confirmed by the excellent consistence between the predicted and measured data.

Novel Approach for Automatic Region of Interest and Seed Point Detection in CT Images Based on Temporal and Spatial Data

Accurately finding the region of interest is a very vital step for segmenting organs in medical image processing.We propose a novel approach of automatically identifying region of interest in Computed Tomography Image(CT)images based on temporal and spatial data.Our method is a 3 stages approach,1)We extract organ features from the CT images by adopting the Hounsfield filter.2)We use these filtered features and introduce our novel approach of selecting observable feature candidates by calculating contours’area and automatically detect a seed point.3)We use a novel approach to track the growing region changes across the CT image sequence in detecting region of interest,given a seed point as our input.We used quantitative and qualitative analysis to measure the accuracy against the given ground truth and our results presented a better performance than other generic approaches for automatic region of interest detection of organs in abdominal CT images.With the results presented in this research work,our proposed novel sequence approach method has been proven to be superior in terms of accuracy,automation and robustness.

DESCRIPTION OF G-S PARTICLE SIZE DISTRIBUTION OF ROCK COMMINUTION WITH FRACTAL GEOMETRY

The fractal model of rock comminution is presented with Mandelbrot's fractal geometry.The results show that it is difficult for those with only a linear similarity ratio to fit practical situations.The comminution prob ability of the central part should be considered so the geometric meaning of the constant in Gaudin-Schuhmann's distribution function can be explained more clearly.

A study of soil dispersivity in Qian'an, western Jilin Province of China

Saline soil is vulnerable to water erosion because of its dispersivity. This characteristic has a great influence on dam and slope engineering. There is a large area of saline soil in western Jilin Province, the seasonal frost zone, and this soil is highly dispersive. We studied the properties of soil samples collected from vertical holes near Qian＇an Dabusu Lake, as- sessing the particle size distribution and the chemical components. We also comprehensively identified the level of soil dispersivity by three standard methods, the pinhole test, the crumb test, and the double-hydrometer test. The soil compo- sition and basic physicochemical properties are proved to be the most important factors which determine the dispersion degree of the saline soil. Our results showed that, within depth ranges from 0 to 1 m, silt particles highly influenced the soil dispersivity, and the total soluble salt accounted for ≥0.3%. At the first sampling point, in a tall soil column, the dispersion degree decreased with increasing depth, but this was not as obvious at the second sampling point, which was in a flat area. Nevertheless, the superficial soils of these two sampling sites were strongly dispersive, which must be taken into consid- eration for soil engineering in this region.

Particle size regression correction for NIR spectrum based on the relationship between absorbance and particle size

Based on the effect of sample size on the near- infrared （NIR） spectrum, the absorbance （log（R）） in any wavelength is divided into two parts, and one of them is defined as non-particle-size-related spectrometry （nPRS） because it is not influenced by particle size. To study the relationship between the absorbance and l^article size, the experiment material including nine samples with different particle size was used. According to the regression analysis, the relationship was studied as the reciprocal regression model, y = a ~ bx ＋ c/x. Meanwhile, the model divides absorbance into two parts, one of them forms nPRS. According to the nPRS, a new correction method, particle size regression correction （PRC） was introduced. In discriminate analysis, the spectra from three different samples （rice, glutinous rice and sago）, pretreated by PRC, could be directly and accurately distinguished by principal component analysis （PCA）, while by the traditional correction method, such as multiplicative signal correction （MSC） and standard normal variate （SNV）, could not do that.

Prediction of particle size and layer-thickness distributions in a continuous horizontal fluidized-bed coating process

To predict the particle size and layer-thickness distributions(LTDs)in a continuously operated horizontal fluidized-bed granulation process,two alternative models were considered.A one-dimensional two-zone model was proposed,which describes with population-balance equations the particle growth in a spraying zone that is separated from the drying zone.The residence-time distribution(RTD)was calculated from a literature correlation and was coupled with a population-balance model via a tank-in-series model with reflux.A two-dimensional,one-zone population-balance model,which was based directly on the RTD and the feed particle-size distribution(PSD)was also used.Granulation experiments were conducted and analyzed microscopically and with a camera optical device to determine the sample PSDs.LTDs over the particle population were derived from the PSDs and were analyzed directly by micro-computer-tomography.To compare the simulated data with the experimentally determined distributions,the PSDs were converted to LTDs.The good agreement shows that both methods are suitable to determine the PSD from an RTD of an arbitrary granulation process in a horizontal fluidized bed.Improvement appears necessary with regards to the LTD spread.

Treatability of volatile chlorinated hydrocarbon-contaminated soils of different textures along a vertical profile by mechanical soil aeration：A laboratory test

Mechanical soil aeration is a simple, effective, and low-cost soil remediation technology that is suitable for sites contaminated with volatile chlorinated hydrocarbons（VCHs）. Conventionally, this technique is used to treat the mixed soil of a site without considering the diversity and treatability of different soils within the site. A laboratory test was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of mechanical soil aeration for remediating soils of different textures（silty,clayey, and sandy soils） along a vertical profile at an abandoned chloro-alkali chemical site in China. The collected soils were artificially contaminated with chloroform（TCM） and trichloroethylene（TCE）. Mechanical soil aeration was effective for remediating VCHs（removal efficiency 〉 98%）. The volatilization process was described by an exponential kinetic function.In the early stage of treatment（0–7 hr）, rapid contaminant volatilization followed a pseudofirst order kinetic model. VCH concentrations decreased to low levels and showed a tailing phenomenon with very slow contaminant release after 8 hr. Compared with silty and sandy soils, clayey soil has high organic-matter content, a large specific surface area, a high clay fraction, and a complex pore structure. These characteristics substantially influenced the removal process, making it less efficient, more time consuming, and consequently more expensive. Our findings provide a potential basis for optimizing soil remediation strategy in a cost-effective manner.