Particle Size

Prepared by
Prof. Nishant Sawale
MGMCET, Kamothe
Characterization of Solid Particles
 Solid particles are characterized by their shape, size and
density.
 Particles of homogeneous solids have the same density
as the bulk material.
 Particles obtained by breaking up a composite solid have
various densities, different from the density of the bulk.
 Size and shape are easily specified for regular particulars
(e.g. spheres and cubes).
 Size and shape for irregular particles are not so clear.
Particle Shape
 Shape of individual particle is expressed in terms of
the sphericity (ɸs). It is independent of particle size.
 Sphericity is a measure of how spherical (round) an
object is. It is the ratio of the surface area of
a sphere (with the same volume as the given particle) to
the surface area of the particle.
 For spherical particle of diameter Dp, ɸs=1.
Particle Shape

 Particle Size
 Diameters are specified for equidimensional particle.
 Particles which are not equidimensional are
characterized by the second longest major dimension.
 For needlelike particles, Dp would refer to the
thickness of the particle.
 Coarse particles are measured in inches or centimeters,
fine particles in terms of screen size, very fine particles
in micrometer or nanometers, ultra fine particles in
terms of their surface area per unit mass, usually in square
meters per unit mass (m2/g).
PARTICLE SIZE
 Particle size is characterized using these terms :
i. Very coarse
ii. Coarse
iii. Moderately coarse
iv. Fine
v. Very fine
 Particle size can influence variety of important factors :
- Dissolution rate
- Suspendabillity
- Uniform distribution
- Penetrability
- Lack of grittiness (hardness)
Mixed Particle Sizes and size Analysis

Mixed Particle Sizes and Screen Analysis
 Mixtures of particles having various sizes and densities can be
sorted into fractions.
 Each fraction can be weighed.
 Information from particle size analysis is tabulated to show
the mass or number fraction in each size increment as a
function of the average particle size.
 The analysis tabulated in this way is called differential
analysis(fig. a) or cumulative analysis(fig. b).
Specific surface area the of mixture

Average Particle size

Methods To Determine Particle Size
 Sieving Method
 Microscopy
 Sedimentation Techniques
 Laser Light Scattering Techniques
 Laser Diffraction Particle Size Analysis
 Photon Correlation Spectroscopy (PCS)
Sieving Method
Standard Screen
Effectiveness of Screen
Capacity and effectiveness of screen
Effect of mesh size on capacity of screen

The probability of passage of a particle through a screen

depends on
1. Fraction of the total screen which is open for screening
2. Ratio of diameter of the particle to the width of an
opening in the screen
3. Number of contacts between the particle and screen
surface.
Capacity of actual screen
Some of the factors which reduce the capacity and effectiveness of
screen are:

1. Blinding of screen
2. Cohesion of particles with each other
3. Adhesion of particles with screen surface
4. Angle of approach of the particle to the screen surface.
5. Interference of bed of particles with the motion of the other.
 Comparison of ideal screen and actual screen
Ideal screen Actual screen
i. Efficiency of the screen is 1 i. Efficiency of screen is less than 1
ii. These screens are not found in ii. All screens which are available
practice are actual
iii. Perfect separation of particles are iii. Perfect separation of particles is
obtained not obtained
iv. Separation is based on cut iv. Separation is based on size and
diameter of particle shape of particle.

Cut diameter: It is defined as the smallest particle in the over size which is just larger than the
largest particle in undersize. Dpc = mesh opening of the screen.
Ex. 1: A quartz mixture having analysis shown in table is screened
through a standard 10 mesh screen. Calculate mass ratios of overflow and
underflow of feed and overall effectiveness of screen

Total 1000 gm 701.4 gm 300 gm

Solution:

Mesh Dp Mass fraction Cumulative mass fraction

No. mm
Feed Overflow Underflow Feed Overflow Underflow

4 4.699 0 0 -- 0 0
6 3.327 0.025 0.071 -- 0.025 0.071
8 2.362 0.125 0.359 0 0.15 0.43
10 1.651 0.320 0.42 0.195 0.47 0.85 1
14 1.168 0.26 0.12 0.385 0.73 0.97 0.805
20 0.833 0.155 0.022 0.25 0.885 0.99 0.42
28 0.589 0.055 0.01 0.08 0.94 1 0.17
35 0.417 0.02 -- 0.03 0.96 -- 0.09
65 0.208 0.02 -- 0.02 0.98 -- 0.06
Pan ---- 0.02 -- 0.04 1 -- 0.04

Corresponding cut diameter for 10 mesh screen is Dpc = 1.651

Plot a graph of

(i) Cumulative mass fraction of feed vs Dp

(ii) Cumulative mass fraction of overflow vs Dp
(iii) Cumulative mass fraction of underflow vs Dp

Dpc (cut diameter) is taken as mesh number = 10.

The equivalent mesh opening for mesh number = 10 is plotted on x axis.

A vertical line parallel to y axis is drawn through Dpc.
The line which cuts the curves is taken as XF, XB & XD.
Using these values the overall effectiveness is calculated

From graph
XF = 0.635
XB = 0.281
XD = 0.935
Fig – Dp vs cumulative fractions
The ratio of overflow to feed

(D / F) = (XF – XB) / (XD – XB) = 0.541

The ratio of underflow to feed is

(B / F) = 1 – (D / F) = 0.49

The overall effectiveness is given by

E = {(XF – XB) (XD – XF) XD (1 – XB)} / {(XD – XB)2 (1 – XF) XF}

E = 0.724 (72.4%)