Filtration of micro-particles within multi-fiber arrays by adhesive DEM-CFD simulation

• Published in: Journal of Zhejiang University. A. Science Vol. 19; no. 1; pp. 34 - 44
• Main Authors: Tao, Ran, Yang, Meng-meng, Li, Shui-qing
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hangzhou Zhejiang University Press 2018; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Arrays; Breathing masks; Civil Engineering; Classical and Continuum Physics; Computational fluid dynamics; Computer applications; Computer simulation; Contractors; Discrete element method; Efficiency; Engineering; Fibers; Filtration; Fluid filters; Industrial Chemistry/Chemical Engineering; Mechanical Engineering; Particulates; Pressure; Pressure drop; Product development; Staggered arrays; Fiber arrays; 纤维阵列; Filtration; 滤料过滤; TK09; Discrete element method (DEM); 错列; 离散元方法
• ISSN: 1673-565X; 1862-1775
• DOI: 10.1631/jzus.A1700156

A 3D multi-time scale discrete element method-computational fluid dynamic (DEM-CFD) coupling approach was applied to investigate the filtration of micron-sized particles by different types of fiber arrays. Both the pressure drop and the filtration efficiency were examined to indicate the filtration performance of the fiber arrays. Fibers that were uniformly arrayed in a parallel or staggered manner were compared. Results showed that the staggered array showed a better performance than the parallel array in terms of both pressure drop and filtration efficiency. Further, we compared the performance of different staggered arrays, i.e. a regular case, one densified in the front layers and another densified in the back layers. The front densified array was found to enter the clogging and cake filtration stage in the shortest time, leading to the highest filtration efficiency, but the highest pressure drop. The back densified array still achieved a much higher filtration efficiency, despite a much lower pressure drop comparable to that of the regular array. The results suggest that the two kinds of densified arrays may be suited for different purposes, e.g. baghouse filters or breathing masks.