What are Chemical Engineers?

“Chemical engineers”
• Apply KNOWLEDGE of math, physical sciences
(physics, chemistry), life sciences (biology,
microbiology and biochemistry), and economics to
solve practical problems.
• The difference between chemical engineers and other
types of engineers is that they apply a knowledge of
chemistry in addition to other engineering disciplines.
• Chemical engineers may be called “universal
engineers” because their scientific and technical
mastery is so extensive.
 TOP Chemical Engineering Contribution to Society
Slow Pace of Dangerous Change : CO2 emission

1. FUELING THE WORLD’S ECONOMIES

• Production, refining & Purification crude oils
• Kerosene, gasoline, diesel, jet oil, asphalts etc.
2. CREATING CLEANER ENERGY
Chemical engineers are creating a new generation of
clean energy technologies.
- Nuclear power plant
- NiMH Re-chargeable batteries ( Nickel Metal hydride)
- Alternative energies such as Air , Wind, Water,
Solar, etc.
 3. PRODUCTS FOR GROWING POPULATIONS
 - Water purification
 - Water desalination
 - GMO foods
 - Green productions

 4. REMOVING HARMFUL SULFUR FROM FUELS

 - Catalytic converter to reduce exhausted gas
 - Unleaded gasoline
 - Air pollution control
5. BETTER LIVING THROUGH CHEMISTRY
• Chemical engineering contributes to the fertilizer industry
that helps enhance food production.
• Chemical engineers develop various food products and
medicine,
• Chemical engineers developed synthetic rubber, penicillin,
and plastics, Bio-plastics
6. DEVELOPMENT OF NEW PROCESSES, TECHNOLOGIES,
CATALYSTS
• Slow Pace of Dangerous Change : CO2 emission,
Global Warming • Rise in Sea level • Reductions in
the ozone layer •Increased intensity and frequency
of extreme weather conditions •Impacts on
agriculture •Spread of disease . Dynamics of
Deforestation and Ecology
7. LARGE SCALE ECONOMICAL PRODUCTION

8. POWERING THE PERSONAL COMPUTER &

AUTOMATION
The chemical engineer advances in electronic gadgets to make more
powerful systems.
- Germanium-based silicon chips that help your
laptop perform faster.
- From thin-film liquid crystal displays to software
that simulates complex industrial processes.
The Essential Points:
• Chemical Engineers have remain ready for future Challenges
&Interesting times ahead,
• Nano Technologies
• The Process Industry will become more dominant & will be
the trade and industry driver
• Control Concentrated Economic, Growth socioeconomic
structures with a “new products” based revolution & Complex
world Politics and Supply Chain of billions of products.
Material Handling and
characterization,
separation, mixing,
storage and conveying
CH 241: Particle Technology
Text Book

 UNIT OPERATIONS OF
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING,
7th Edition,
 McCabe, Smith, Harriott
Reference Book

 Chemical Engineering
Volume 2 - 5th Edition
 Coulson And Richardson
 Industrial importance of Particle Technology
 Most of the industrial processes essentially involve particulate kinetics.
 Kinetics i.e. production, handling, utilization of a wide variety of particulate
(nature of materials, wet/dry, sizes range from nanometres to centimetres;
 Knowledge of particle behaviour and mechanics is essential to ensure
successful;
i. Particle synthesis, separation, storage, dynamics and handling,
ii. Size reduction including crushing and grinding;
iii. Size enlargement; flocculation, granulation, tableting, crystallization & powder
compaction;
iv. particle separation, i.e. sieving, flotation, filtration, sedimentation,
magnetic/ electrostatic separation ,fluidization & Centrifugation;
i. analytical processes such as particle size analysis.
ii. Particulate system design & optimization in operation.
Its scope in industries e.g. chemical, petrochemical, cement, ceramics, glass,
fertilizer, agricultural, food, pharmaceuticals, mineral processing, powder
metallurgy & civil Engineering etc.
 Quantitative Benefits Of P. Tech..
 A significant contribution to enhance the efficiency of a
process and productivity;
 Enable the reduction of wastages and production costs;
 Economy of time and quality intensification;
 Facilitate Separation, filtration, blending and segregation;.
 Augment fluid dynamic processes for physical (unit operation)
and chemical reaction e.g. combustion, crystallization;
 Develop expertise in silo/hopper design, powder mechanics,
pneumatic conveying and drying.
 Main Preview PARTICLE TECHNOLOGY

 Mechanics of discrete, tiny but visible materials (usually solid)

 Particle interaction/ performance and characterization (in

isolation, collective or in bulk)
Equipment, processes and system design for particle or
products manufacturing ( size & synthesis) and particulate
analysis etc.

Parametric relationships between particle properties and their

collective interaction during agitation, mixing, sedimentation
and filtration.
 What is a Particle?
A sub-microscopic, localized matter to ascribe several physical or
chemical properties such as volume or mass.

Such as granular, crushed, powdered, subatomic, microscopic,

nanomaterial.
A miniature part of matter,(human hair 1:70 part of
a micron and a bacteria is bigger than 0.2 micron);
A very small speck of solid matter,
 Unit
of matter of indeterminate dimensions and
volume.
PARTICLE TECHNOLOGY DEALS WITH:

i. The particle mechanics, material handling, silos, transporting, powder

technology, and nanotechnology;
ii. Size reduction equipments e.g. crushing, grinding, coarse, moderately
fine, fine, very fine, powder and Nano-particles
iii. Particle size growth by flocculation, granulation, precipitation, powder
compaction, tableting, crystallization.
iv. Size analysis & separation i.e. sieving, tabling, flotation, magnetic
separation, electrostatic precipitation, fluidization, Centrifugal
separation, solid-liquid filtration;
v. Analytical procedures for particle characterization.
 Chapter # 28

CHARACTERIZATION OF
PARTICULATE SOLID PROPERTIES
CHARACTERIZATION means Classification of particles on the
basis of their size, shape and density.

Size and shape can be specified for:

• Regular particles, e.g. spheres, cubes, needles, crystals etc.
• Irregular particles e.g. uneven, unequal, asymmetric etc.
Cont.……

• Solid particles are characterized by the

following;
shape, size, molecular weight, structure and
crystallography, surface hydrophobicity and density.

• Particles of homogeneous solids have the same density

as the bulk material.
Particle Technology (An introduction)

 Particle technology based on particle/powder sciences, is a common

unit operation (physical) applied in chemical and process industries e.g.
Cement, Ceramics, Fertilizer, Sugar, oil refinery etc.

(Catalyst size in cracking reactor influence the

production of gasoline from oil.)

 Tools of particle technology may

i. enhance productivity and product quality,
ii. reduce health hazards & provide safe working environment,
iii. control dust explosion and leakages,
iv. improve shelf life & maintain quality of materials in storage silos.
Why? Where?
 Chemical engineer apply the knowledge of particle
technology for various industrial operations e.g.

 Crushing (deform, pulverize by compressing forcefully)

 Drying (removal of water or any other solvent by evaporation from
a solid, semi-solid or liquid)
 Filtering ( A porous media through which a liquid or
a gas is passed to separate the fluid from suspended particulate matter ).
 Crystallization (A solid-liquid separation technique to purify solid by
transferring solvent from the solution to produce a solid crystalline phase.)
 Solid fluid reacting
 Dust collecting and many more
Objectives
 The objective of this course is to introduce the subject of
particle technology to students in disciplines requiring
knowledge of the processing and handling of particles
and powders.
 Characterize particles and particulate systems,
 Identify and design important traditional unit operations.
 Introduction
 In addition to Chemical Composition, the behavior of
particulate materials is often dominated by the Physical
Properties of Constituent particles.
 From manufacturing and development perspective, some
of the most important physical properties to measure are,
Particle Size Mechanical
Particle Shape Properties
Surface Charge Properties
Properties Microstructure
Importance…???
Reactivity Solubility dependence
dependence
on Particle Size
on Particle Size
Particle Shape & Size
Particle Shape (Regular or irregular)
1-) Regular shape particles can be described precisely
by its shape and dimension.

2-) Irregular shape particle, can not be described

conveniently due to irregularity of the particle shape &
dimension.
Dp = equivalent/nominal diameter
Vp = volume of one particle
Sp = surface area of particle
 Sphere
 A sphere is a perfectly round
geometrical object in three
dimensional space that is the
surface on a completely round
ball.
 For a perfectly spherical diameter, the value for Sphericity equals to 1.
 In case of Irregular shape particles, nominal value of equivalent diameter is taken.
 Nominal Size:
 Size used for the general identification of the actual size of the particle.
 Nominal size gives us a domain within which actual size lies with little bit tolerance.
 It will approximately be equal to actual size, but need not to be exactly the same
as particle size.
 E.g: 100 ± 0.05 m rod is available.
 Equivalent Spherical Diameter:
 Diameter of an irregular shape object is the diameter of a sphere of equivalent
volume.

Bulk Properties:
An intensive property is a bulk property, meaning that it is the physical
property of the system that does not depends upon the size or the amount of
material in the system. E.g: temperature, density, hardness of the object etc.
Intensive Properties: Properties that does not depend upon the size or the
amount of material in the system, e.g: temperature, density, hardness of the
object etc.
Extensive Properties: Properties that depend upon the size or the amount of
material in the system, e.g: mass, volume etc.
Particle Size
PARTICLE SIZE
 In general, diameter is specified for equidimensional particles.
 Most of the particles are not equidimensional, therefore they can not be specified
by a single dimension “diameter”.
 Therefore the concept of equivalent sphere has been introduced.
Equivalent spheres in comparison with Particle
dimensions:

 Based upon the measurement techniques, the particles are related to equivalent sphere
diameters by,
 a. The sphere of the same volume of the particle.
 b. The sphere of the same surface area as the particle.
 c. The sphere of the same surface area per unit volume.
 d. The sphere of the same area when projected on a plane normal to the direction of
motion.
 e. The sphere of the same projected area as viewed from above when lying in a position
of maximum stability (as with a microscope).
 f. The sphere which will just pass through the same size of square aperture as the particle
(as on a screen).
 g. The sphere with the same settling velocity as the particle in a specified fluid.
Mixed Particles and SIZE ANALYSIS
 If we have a sample of uniform particles of diameter = Dp,
 The total volume of the particles will be = m/ρp, (representing mass
and density of the particles),
 Since the volume of one particle = Vp,
 Total volume ‘V’ of N particles = V = Vp.N
 The total number of particles in sample = N = m/ ρpVp
 Total surface area of the particles is given by,
Mixed particle size and size analysis

 Both these equations are applied to mixtures having various sizes and densities.
 The mixture is sorted into fractions, each of constant density and approximately
constant size.
 Each fraction is then weighed, or the individual particle can be counted or
measured by number of methods.
 Information from such a particle size analysis is tabulated to show the mass or
number fractions in each size increment as a function of average particle size in
the increment.
 An analysis tabulated in this way is called a differential analysis.
 The results are often presented in histogram as shown in the figure.
Description of populations of particles
 Particle population is described in terms of Particle size distributions.
 Cumulative Size Distribution.
 Frequency Size Distribution.
 Specific surface area of mixture
 If the particle density ρp and Sphericity Φs are known, the surface area
of particles in each fraction can be calculated and added to give the
specific surface, Aw (The total surface area of the unit mass of
particles):

 For deriving this equation, it has been assumed that Sphericity and density of the
mixture is constant.
 Where xi = mass fraction in a given increment,
Dpi = average diameter (taken as arithmetic average of the smallest and largest
particle diameters in increment).
Average particle size
 The average particle size for a mixture of particles is defined
in several different ways.
 Volume surface mean diameter Ds:

If number of particle Ni in each fraction is known,

instead of mass fraction xi, then:
 Arithmetic mean diameter:
NT = number of particles
in the entire sample

 Mass mean diameter:

 Volume mean diameter:

 Total volume of the sample
 Divided by number of particles

 For sample consisting of uniform particles these average diameters are, of

course, all the same. For mixture containing particle of various sizes, however,
the several average diameters may differ widely from one another.
Number of particles in mixture
 The volume of any particle is proportional to its "diameter" cubed.


a = volume shape factor
 For sphere the value of a is 0.5236 and for short cylinder it is 0.785.
Assuming that a is independent of size, then:
Screen analysis
•Testing sieves are made of
woven wire screens.
•Openings are square.
•Screens are identified by Mesh
No.
•Mesh No. is the numbers of
opening per linear inch.

•Area of opening in any screen

= 2 x Area of opening in next
smaller screen.
•Mesh dimension of any screen
= 1.41 x Mesh dimension of next
smaller screen.
Sieving
Sieving
 Screens or sieve analysis is used to measure the size (and size
distribution) of particles in size range of 0.0015 and 3 inch.
 Woven wire screens, Silk, Plastic cloth, perforated or punched plate.
 Openings are in the form of squares.
 Each screen is identified in meshes per inch.
 A stack of screens is arranged with the smallest mesh at the bottom
and the largest one at the top.
 Vibratory motion is produced to cause better separation of
particles.
 Particles retained on each screen are then removed and weighed
to draw the Cumulative and Frequency distribution curves.
 Sieving
 The results of screen analysis are tabulated to show the mass fraction of each screen
increment as a function of the mesh size range of the increment.
 The notation 14/20 means “through 14 mesh and on 20 mesh”.
 Typical screen analysis is given in next slide.
 First column: mesh size,
 second column: width of opening of screen,
 third column: mass fraction of total sample that is retained on that screen xi (where i is the
number starting from the bottom of the stack),
 fourth column: averaged particle size Dpi (since the particle on any screen are passed
immediately by the screen ahead of it, the averaged of these two screen are needed to
specify the averaged size in that increment).
 Fifth column: cumulative fraction smaller than Dpi.
Description of populations of particles
 Particle population is described in terms of Particle size distributions.
 Cumulative Size Distribution.
 Frequency Size Distribution.
Mass quantities of sample of
particles
Different distributions
Example 28.1
 The screen analysis shown in the table applies to a sample of
crushed quartz.
 The density of the particles is 2,650 kg/m3 (0.00265 g/mm3).
 The shape factor are a = 0.8 and φs = 0.571.
 For the material between 4-mesh and 200-mesh in particle size,
calculate
 Aw in square millimetres per gram and Nw in particles per gram.
 DV, Ds, Dw and Ni for the 150/200 mesh increment.
 What fraction the total number of particles is in the 150/200-mesh
increment?
 PARTICLE SIZE ANALYSIS
 Some common diameters used in microscope analysis are statistical
diameters, including:
 Martin’s Diameter: Length of line that bisects the particle.
 Feret’s Diameter: Distance between two tangents on two opposite sides
of the particles.
 Shear Diameter: Particle diameter obtained using an image shearing
device.
Sauter Diameter
 It is defined as, “the diameter of the sphere that has the same volume-surface area
ratio as the particle of interest”.
 It is normally represented by D[3,2].

𝒅𝑺𝑻 = 1൘ µ3,𝒊
σ𝑵
𝒊=1 𝒅
𝒎,𝒊
 Properties of masses of particles
 Masses of solid particles, especially when the particles are dry and
not sticky, have many of the properties of a fluid.
 They exert pressure on the sides and walls of a container, they flow
through openings or down a chute.
 They differ from liquids and gases in several ways.
 However because the particles interlock under pressure and
cannot slide over one another until the applied force reaches and
appreciable magnitude.
Interlocking
Properties of masses of particles

 Unlike most fluids, granular solids and

solid masses permanently resist distortion
when subjected to a moderate distorting
force.
 When the force is large enough, failure
occurs and one layer of particles slides
over another, but between the layers on
each side of the failure there is
appreciable friction.
 Properties of masses of particles
 Solid masses have the following distinctive properties
 The pressure is not the same in all directions. In general, a
pressure applied in one direction creates some pressure in
other directions.(unlike hydraulic pressure in fluids).
 But it is always smaller then the applied pressure.
 Itis minimum in the direction at right angles to the applied
pressure.
Properties of masses of particles

 In a homogenous mass the ratio of the normal

pressure to the applied pressure, pL/pV, is a
constant K’, which is the characteristic of a
material.
 It depends upon the shape and interlocking
tendencies of the particles, on the stickiness of the
grain surfaces, and on how tightly the material is
packed.
 It is nearly independent of particle size until the
grains become very small and the material is no
longer free flowing.
Properties of masses of particles
A shear stress (stress parallel to the surface of the
material) applied at the surface of a mass is
transmitted throughout a static mass of particles
unless failure occurs.
 Thedensity of the mass may vary, depending on the
degree of packing of the grains.
 The density of a fluid is a unique function of
temperature and pressure, as is that of individual
solid particle, but the bulk density of the mass is not.
Properties of masses of particles

 The bulk density is a minimum when the

mass is loose. It rises to a maximum
when the mass is packed by vibrating or
tamping.
 Before a mass of tightly packed
particles can flow, it must increase in
volume to permit interlocking grains to
move past one another.
 Without such dilation flow is not possible.
 Properties of masses of particles
When granular solids are piled up to a flat
surface, the sides of a the pile are at a
definite reproducible angle with the
horizontal.
This angle αr, is called the angle of repose
of the material.
For free flowing granular solids αr is often
between 15O and 30O.
Properties of Masses of Particles
 Properties of masses of particles
Depending on their flow properties,
particulate solids are divided into two
classes, cohesive and non cohesive.
Non cohesive materials such as grain, dry
sand and plastic chips flow freely out of a
storage bin or silo.
 Properties of masses of particles
For these solids K’ (normal pressure/applied
pressure) is often between 0.35 and 0.6.
Cohesive solids, such as wet clay, are
characterized by their reluctance to flow
through openings.
For them, the value of K’ approaches to
zero.
COHESIVE VS NON-COHESIVE SOLIDS:
Storage and
Conveying
of Solids
Storage and conveying of solids
(bulk storage)
 Coarse solids such as gravel and coal are stored
in large piles, unprotected from the weather.
 When hundred or thousands of tons of material
are involved, this is the most economical
method.
 The solids are removed from the pile by dragline
or tractor shovel and delivered to a conveyor or
to the process.
Storage and conveying of solids
(bulk storage)
 Outdoor storage can lead to environmental
problems such as dusting or leaching of soluble
material from the pile. (Leaching of sugar from
sugar beat with hot water).
 Dusting may provide a protective cover of some
kind for the stored solid. Leaching can be
controlled by covering the pile or by locating it in a
shallow basin(little depth) with an impervious floor
(an artificial structure) from which the runoff may
be safely drawn.
Storage and conveying of solids
(bin storage)
 Solids that are too valuable or too soluble
to expose in outdoor piles are stored in
bin, hoppers, or silos.
 These are cylindrical or rectangular vessels
of concrete or metal.
A silo is tall and relatively small in diameter.
A bin is not so small and usually fairly wide.
Storage and conveying of solids
(bin storage)
A hopper is a small vessel with a slopping
bottom, it is used for temporary storage
before feeding solids to a process.
 All these containers are loaded from top
to by some kind of elevator, discharging is
ordinarily done from the bottom.
 A major problem in bin design is to provide
satisfactory discharge.
Pressure in bins and silos
 When granular solids are placed in a bin
or silo, the lateral pressure exerted on the
walls at any point is less then predicted
from the head of material above that
point.
 Furthermore there usually is friction
between the wall and solid grains, and
because of the interlocking of the
particles, the effect of this friction is felt
throughout the mass.
Pressure in bins and silos
 The friction force at the wall reduces the pressure
exerted by the mass on the floor of the container.
 The vertical pressure on the floor vessel or the packing
support is much smaller than that exerted by the column
of liquid of the same density and weight.
 The actual pressure from the solids depends on the
 value of K’ for the solids,
 the coefficient of friction between the solids and the
vessel wall,
 and the way the solids are placed in the vessel.
 Pressure in bins and silos
 In general when the height of the solid column is greater than
about the 3 times diameter of the container, additional solids
have no effect on the pressure at the base.
 The total mass off course increases if more solids are added, but
the additional mass is carried by the walls and foundation, not
by the floor of the vessel.
 In granular solids a higher pressure does not always increase the
tendency of the material to flow, as it does in liquid, instead,
increased pressure packs the grains more tightly together and
makes flow more difficult.
 Pressure in bins and silos
 In extreme cases the combination of
gravitational and friction forces at some
point in the container causes the solids
to arch or bridge, so that they do not fall
even the material below them is
removed.
 Nearly all large bins contains an arch
breaker, an upward pointing shallow
metal cone set near the bottom to keep
the solids at the discharge opening from
becoming tightly packed.
 Granular solids , especially with angular
particles, must be loose in order to flow.
Flow out of bins
 Solids tend to flow out of any opening near the bottom
of bin but are best discharged through an opening in
the floor.
 Flow through a side opening tends to be uncertain and
increases the lateral pressure on the other side of the bin
while the solids are flowing.
 A bottom outlet is less likely to clog and does not induce
abnormally high pressures on the wall at any point.
 When the outlet at the bottom of a bin containing free
flowing solids is opened, the material immediately above
the opening begins to flow.
Flow out of bins

 One of two flow patters will develop depending

upon the steepness of the wall in the bottom
section of the bin and on the coefficient of friction
between the solids and the bin walls.
 Mass flow occurs in cone bottomed bins with a
tall, steep cone, all the material moves downward
uniformly from the top of the bin.
 Tunnel flow develops in bins with a shallow cone
angle or with vertical walls and a central opening
in the floor.
Flow out of bins
 Here a vertical column of solids above the
opening moves downward without
disturbing the material at the sides.
 Eventually lateral flow begins, from the top
most layer of solids.
 A conical depression in formed in the
surface of the mass.
Flow out of bins
 The solids at the bin floor, at or near the walls, are the last to
leave.
 The material slides laterally into the central column at an
angle approximating the angle of the internal friction of the
solids.
 If additional material is added at the top of the bin at the
same rate as material is flowing out the bottom, the solids
near the bin walls remain stagnant and do not discharge, no
matter how long flow persists.
 Flow out of bins
 The rate of flow of granular solids by gravity through a
circular opening in the bottom of a bin depends on the
diameter of the opening and on the properties of the
solid.
 Within
wide limits it does not depend on the height of
the bed of solids.
 Withfree flowing particles the rate of solids flow m varies
approximately with Do3, where Do is the dimeter of the
discharge opening.
 Flow out of bins
 With cohesive solids it is often hard to start flow.
Once flow does start, however, it again begins
in the material directly above the discharge
opening.
 Frequently the column of solids above the outlet
moves out as a plug, leaving a rat hole with
nearly vertical slides.
Flow out of bins
 Stickysolids and even some dry powders adhere
strongly to vertical surfaces and have enough shear
strength to support a plug of considerable diameter
above an open discharge.
 Thus to get flow started and to keep the material
moving, vibratos on bin walls, internal flows near the
bin floor, or jets of air in the discharge opening are
often needed.
 Flow out of bins

 Thedischarge opening should be small enough to be

readily closed when solids are flowing, yet not so
small that it will clog.
 Itcan then be opened further to clear a partial
choke.
 If
the opening is too large, however, the shutoff valve
may be hard to close and control of the flow will be
poor.
Conveyors
 Common devices for transportation include belt
conveyors and bucket elevators, closed belt
conveyors with zipper like fasteners, and various kinds
of drag and flight conveyors.
 These all include a return leg that carries the empty
belt or chain back from the discharge to the loading
point.
Conveyors
Vibrating conveyors and screw conveyors
have no return leg but only operate over
relatively short distances.
Pneumatic conveyors also have no return
leg and are not so limited as to distance of
travel.