Numerical modelling of the carrier gas phase in a laboratory-scale coal classifier model

The pneumatic transport of fine ideally combustible coal dust to the burner furnace is an important process in coal fired power plants. The strongly swirling air phase responsible for the particle separation and transport in a coal pulverising mill was characterised experimentally and numerically. Measurements of the swirl velocity component were taken in a scaled laboratory model of the device and compared to CFD model. In particular, an evaluation of the turbulence models used to describe the flow was performed. The modified isotropic k-epsilon turbulence models (RNG k-ε and Realizable k-ε) were compared to the anisotropic Reynolds stress model (RSM) and their ability to predict the bulk flow structure present in the classifier was assessed. The experiments showed that the swirling flow structure, responsible for coarse-fine particle classification, has several flow regimes which are governed by the areas it is bounded by. The numerical model predictions generally corroborate the results. However, a distinction in performance between the three models can be made based on accuracy, solution generation time and numerical stability. The RSM model predicted both the trends and magnitude the most accurately when compared to the isotropic models. However, the Realizable k-epsilon model, with its relatively low solution generation time, shows potential when using CFD as a classifier design optimization tool. The investigation has given some insight on single phase classifier flow and suggests a design improvement based on the results.     

Entropy generation minimization on electromagnetohydrodynamic radiative Casson nanofluid flow over a melting Riga plate

Minimizing entropy generation is a technique that helps improve the effectiveness of real processes by studying the associated irreversibility of system performance of nanofluid. This study examines the entropy generation analysis of electromagnetohydrodynamic radiative Casson flow induced by a stretching Riga plate in a non-Darcian porous medium under the influence of internal energy change, Arrhenius activation energy, chemical reaction, and melting heat transfer. The thermophysical features of the fluid are assumed constant in most of the literature. However, this current research bridges this gap by considering viscosity, conductivity, and diffusivity as temperature-dependent variables. Also, the exponential decaying Grinberg term is used as a resistive force in this investigation due to the electromagnetic properties of the Riga plate in the momentum conservation equation. Some suitable dimensionless variables are introduced to remodel the transport equations into unitless ones and then solved numerically by employing Galerkin Weighted Residual Method. Analyses reveal that the Casson parameter declines the fluid velocity, while the existence of the melting parameter has the opposite effect. Also, this article includes some future recommendations.     

Optimizing acido-basic profile of support in Ni supported La2O3+Al2O3 catalyst for dry reforming of methane

The increasing alarm of global warming always draws interest in reactions like dry reforming of methane (DRM) where both global warming gases (CO₂ and CH₄) are converted into value-added chemical building blocks, such as syngas. Nickel catalyst active sites along with support acid-base profiles play a key role in DRM. Herein, xLa₂O₃+(100-x) Al₂O₃ (x = 0, 10, 15, 20%) supports are prepared and followed by NiO dispersion over the produced support by impregnation method. It was tested for DRM reaction and characterized with TGA, XRD, TEM, IR, Surface area and porosity measurement, H₂-TPR, CO₂-TPD and NH₃-TPD techniques. Upon increasing the basic lanthana proportion in the acidic alumina support, the crystallinity of alumina and acidity of total support decline. Up to 15% Lanthana addition in support claims a low acid and rich basic surface including super basic sites (related to unidentate carbonates) which governed optimum catalytic performance 64% CH₄ conversion, 79% CO₂ conversion and H₂/CO ~ 1 up to 460-min in time on stream test. 20% lanthanum oxide loading led to inferior performance due to rapid loss of surface area, pore-volume, pore diameter, acidity and medium basic strength sites. Fine-tuning of acid-base lanthana-alumina support with dispersed Ni species are a means for understanding DRM.     

Two dimensional flow deflection screen model

A flow deflection screen model is proposed and implemented to predict the influence of expanded metal screens on a turbulent wind tunnel flow. The screen model successfully predicted the mean velocity and turbulence distribution in the flow field downstream of different screen types and orientation in the wind tunnel flow.     

Object-oriented implementation of a graph-theoretic formulation for planar multibody dynamics

The objective of this paper is to describe the object-oriented implementation and computational efficiency of a multibody dynamics algorithm for planar mechanical systems. The underlying formulation uses a unique combination of orthogonal projection techniques and graph-theoretic methods to automatically generate the equations of motion in terms of ‘branch’ co-ordinates that are selected by a user. The direct analogy between the physical components in a multibody system and the ‘objects’ in Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) methods is exploited in a C++ implementation of the dynamic formulation. Issues associated with this OOP implementation are discussed, and the results of computer simulations are presented and examined for different sets of user-selected co-ordinates. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Tuberculous cerebellar abscess

We report uncultured rod-shaped magnetotactic bacteria from natural waters that biomineralize magnetic crystals in two different size ranges. Electron spectroscopic imaging of whole bacteria deposited over formvar-coated grids permitted a better visualization and measurement of the magnetosomes. All magnetosomes of individual bacteria could be observed by this technique. The magnetosomes formed one large chain, composed of three to four columns of crystals, disposed in parallel to the main axis of the bacteria. The magnetosomes ranged from 19 to 136 nm in length and 14 to 112 nm width. Smaller magnetosomes (less than 80 nm in length) localized mostly in extremities of the bacterial body while larger preferentially localized in the middle part of the cell. Electron spectroscopic diffraction and X-ray microanalysis indicate that both types of magnetosomes contain magnetite (Fe3O4). In projection, most magnetosomes seem to present pseudo-hexagonal morphologies described for magnetite. As the aspect ratios for smaller and larger magnetosomes are different, we suggest that different levels of control on biomineralization of magnetosomes may exist.     

Vertical two-phase flow: Part II. Holdup and pressure drop

Two-phase gas-liquid flow has been investigated in a 1-inch internal diameter vertical tube coil containing two risers and a downcomer all connected by “U” bends. Pressure drop, holdup and flow pattern data were successfully obtained simultaneously in the three vertical tubes, each 17.30 ft. long, for five different air-liquid systems at about 25 psia and 50°F-80°F over flow ranges of 0–700 lb_m air/min-ft² and 140--25300 lb_m liquid/min-ft². Pressure drops and liquid holdups were plotted against gas volume flowrate with liquid flowrate as a parameter. From these plots it was found that for a combination of an increase in liquid viscosity and density, and a decrease in surface tension, the frictional pressure drop increased in down flow and decreased in upflow. Holdup, on the other hand, increased for both types of vertical flow with respect to the same combination of parameters. The Lockhart-Martinelli scheme was satisfactory in correlating frictional pressure drop and holdup in all the flow regimes except the frothy-slug regime in upflow. In downflow however, the Lockhart-Martinelli scheme met with limited success because of a strong influence of liquid flowrate, physical properties and pipe orientation. Holdup in the falling film and falling bubbly film regimes in downflow were satisfactorily treated by the drift flux approach which emphasizes the relative motion of the two phases.     

Turbulence decay behind expanded metal screens

An experiment study of the turbulent flow behind expanded metal screens has been carried out in a low‐turbulence wind tunnel using an X‐probe hot‐wire anemometer system. The expanded metal screens turn flow due to a complex array of vaned elements. The flow turning was found to vary accordingly with the dimensions of the strands that make up the screen. The turbulence generated by the screens decays at a rate proportional to the downstream distance to the power ‐ 5/7, consistent with studies in the literature of conventional screens types, and was found to scale with the thickness of the screen strands. The mean velocity, pressure drop and turbulence characteristics of expanded metal screens are presented.