Predictive simulation of nanoparticle precipitation based on the population balance equation

Hans Christoph Schwarzer, Florian Schwertfirm, Michael Manhart, Hans Joachim Schmid, Wolfgang Peukert

Research output: Contribution to journalConference articlepeer-review

104 Scopus citations

Abstract

Nanoparticle precipitation is an interesting process to generate particles with tailored properties. In this study we investigate the impact of various process steps such as solid formation, mixing and agglomeration on the resulting particle size distribution (PSD) as representative property using barium sulfate as exemplary material. Besides the experimental investigation, process simulations were carried out by solving the full 1D population balance equation coupled to a model describing the micromixing kinetics based on a finite-element Galerkin h-p-method. This combination of population balance and micromixing model was applied successfully to predict the influence of mixing on mean sizes (good quantitative agreement between experimental data and simulation results are obtained) and gain insights into nanoparticle precipitation: The interfacial energy was identified to be a critical parameter in predicting the particle size, poor mixing results in larger particles and the impact of agglomeration was found to increase with supersaturation due to larger particle numbers. Shear-induced agglomeration was found to be controllable through the residence time in turbulent regions and the intensity of turbulence, necessary for intense mixing but undesired due to agglomeration. By this approach, however, the distribution width is underestimated which is attributed to the large spectrum of mixing histories of fluid elements on their way through the mixer. Therefore, an improved computational fluid dynamics-based approach using direct numerical simulation with a Lagrangian particle tracking strategy is applied in combination with the coupled population balance-micromixing approach. We found that the full DNS-approach, coupled to the population balance and micromixing model is capable of predicting not only the mean sizes but the full PSD in nanoparticle precipitation.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)167-181
Number of pages15
JournalChemical Engineering Science
Volume61
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Jan 2006
EventAdvances in Population Balance Modelling -
Duration: 5 May 20047 May 2004

Keywords

  • Computational fluid dynamics
  • Direct numerical simulation
  • Micromixing
  • Nanoparticle
  • Population balance
  • Precipitation

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