The nature of bulk solids

The characterisation of bulk solids can be categorised into two levels:

1) By means of features of the constituent particles such as size, density, hardness,
shape and surface texture
2) By means of features descriptive of the behaviour of the material in its normal bulk
form: e.g. the way it compacts, flow properties, the influence of moisture and
electrostatic charging
Sampling
The purpose of sampling is to control and improve the quality of the product
Obtaining a gross sample
Situations where it is necessary to
take a sample from a large quantity of
bulk material are:
Segregation in a poured heap
1) A moving stream of material
2) A static batch of material; e.g. in a
bin, lorry or rail wagon
Voidage/porosity
The bulk solid is a combination of particles and space
The percentage of the total volume not occupied by particles is the voidage
voids soilds
voids
V V
V
voids and particles of volume total
voids of volume
voidage

The actual volume of solid particles is (1 ) The actual volume of solid particles is (1 )
Typical values of the voidage in static bulk materials of mono-sized spheres
range from 0.26 for regular hexagonal packing to 0.48 for regular cubic packing
For irregular particles in random packing the values will lie between these two
Packing arrangements for
mono-sized spheres
a) Regular hexagonal = 0.26
b) Regular cubic = 0.48
Bulk density
The bulk density is important in order to design storage vessels and conveying
systems.
A quantity of particulate or granular material will have an apparent density (bulk
density) which can be defined as:
voids soilds
voids soilds
B
V V
m m

B
= (
p
-
f
) (1- ) +
f

B
(
p

f
) ( )
f
Where: r
p
is the true density
r
f
is the density of the fluid or void spaces
For dry bulk solids the void spaces would usually contain air making r
f
negligible
compared to r
p
so that the previous equation becomes:

B
=
p
(1- )
Particle density
It is important that the difference between the bulk density and the true particle
density is understood
For a single particle the density is defined as the mass of the particle divided by its
volume
For the bulk material the average particle density is defined by dividing the mass of
material by the true volume (not including the void)
Particle shape p
The shape of particles in a bulk solid is an important characteristic as it has a
significant impact on their packing and flow behaviour
Particle hardness
Particle hardness is important when a handling installation is being designed as it
gives an indication of the steps needed to avoid erosive wear of the system
components
The harder the particle the more abrasive the effect will be on the materials from
which the handling installation is constructed
A semi-quantitative scale of hardness
was proposed by Mohs who selected
10 mineral standards, beginning with
the softest, talc, and ending with the the softest, talc, and ending with the
hardest, diamond.
Figure: The relationship, between the
Mohs scale of hardness and the
Vickers, Brinell and Rockwell C scales
Cohesion and Adhesion
The flowability of a bulk solid may be regarded as the summation of a number
of effects but is essentially concerned with the forces of attraction or cohesion
between particles
When these forces are low the material can be made to flow more easily under
the influence of gravity with the particles moving as individuals relative to
eachother
When these forces are high, caused by moisture, liquid bridge, van der Walls
attraction or electrostatic charging there is a tendency for agglomerates to form
so the material flows as lumps if it flows at all
PVC powder showing the effect of electrostatic charging. (a) Uncharged. (b)
Charged
Angle of Repose
When a bulk solid is allowed to form a
heap or when spillage of material occurs so
that a sloping surface is exhibited, the
angle of the free surface may take any
value up to a maximum which depends on
the nature of the solid.
The angle of repose is the limiting natural
slope of the free surface of a bulk solid
observed during a specific test
The angle of repose can be regarded as a
property of the material itself
The angle of repose can be related to the
flow behaviour as follows:
21-30 Very free-flowing
30-38 Free-flowing
38-45 Fair flowing
45-55 Cohesive
>55 Very cohesive
Methods of measurement of the angle
of repose
Shear strength
The application of force to a bulk solid tending to cause shear deformation will result
in an opposing resistive force
As the force is increased a point is reached where the bulk solid begins to deform with
the constituent particles sliding relative to one another as shown in the diagram
The limiting value of the resistive shear stress when the material is on the point of
sliding may be termed the shear strength of the material
Factors affecting the shear strength are:
1) The magnitude of the consolidating force on the bulk solid
2) The nature of the particles p
3) The packing arrangement
4) The prior history of the material
Shear strength
cohesive
Free flowingg
The Coulomb failure criterion is a plot of the relationship between the
normal compressive force, and the shear strength,
The figures show a simple model
where is the coefficient of internal friction and C is the
cohesion of the material
C
Storage and flow of powders Hopper design
Mass flow (fig (b))
In perfect mass flow, all the powder in a
silo is in motion whenever any of it is
drawn from the outlet as shown in Fig(b).
The flowing channel coincides with the
walls of the silo.
Mass flow hoppers are smooth and
steep.
Core flow (fig (a))
This occurs when the powder flows
towards the outlet of a silo in a
channel formed within the powder
itself.
Sequence of a mass flow pattern
as a hopper empties
the powder surface remains level
until it reaches the sloping
section.
Sequence of a core flow
pattern as a hopper empties
Janssen (1895) used the method of
differential slices to solve the stresses within a
cylindrical silo.
The equations were solved by asserting:
Leading to a relationship for the stress in the z
direction (Janssen equation):
z
Wall Stress
Hydrostatic
Bulk solids
Stresses in hoppers and silos
This predicts an asymptotic wall stress for large
depths that is only a function of the silo
diameter. This typically leads to silo designs
that are tall and narrow.
Note the contrast of wall stress with hydrostatic
stress. Bulk solids exhibit a different stress
profile due to wall friction exerting a vertical
upward force.
The stress field in the hopper discharge region
indicates zero stress at the hopper outlet, which
allows rotary valves to turn easily.

= stress in z direction
= bulk density of powder
= silo diameter
= acceleration due to gravity
= coefficient of wall friction
= Janssen coefficient
= depth
Hopper design philosophy
The blockage or obstruction to flow is
called arching (see figure opposite) and
it is assumed that if this does not
happen flow will occur
In general, powders develop strength
under the action of compacting
stresses stresses
The greater the compacting stress, the
greater the strength developed
Flow-No flow criterion
Gravity flow of a solid will take place provided the strength developed by the solids
under the action of consolidating pressures is insufficient to support an obstruction
to flow
An arch develops when the strength developed by the solids is greater than the
stresses acting within the surface of the arch
The hopper flow factor, ff
hopper the in developed stress
hopper the in stress compacting
ff
D
C

The hopper flow factor, ff relates the stress developed in a particulate solid with the
compacting stress acting in a particular hopper
A high value of ff means low flowability since high
C
means greater compaction and
l l f h f h f i a low value of
D
means more chance of an arch forming
Conversely a low value of ff means high flowability
The hopper flow factor depends on:
1) The nature of the solid
2) The nature of the wall material
3) The slope of the hopper wall
Unconfined yield stress,
y
The yield stress is the stress which causes flow
The stress
y
is known as the unconfined yield stress of the powder and is the yield
stress at the exposed surface of the arch
If the stresses developed in the powder forming the arch,
D
are greater than the
unconfined yield stress of the powder at the arch then the powder will flow
i.e.
For flow

D
>
y
This equation can be incorporated into the equation for the hopper flow factor which is
given on the previous slide to give a criteria for flow: given on the previous slide to give a criteria for flow:
y
C
ff

Powder flow function
The unconfined yield stress y of the solids varies with compacting stress C
This relationship is determined experimentally and is usually presented graphically
It is called the powder flow function and is a function only of the powder properties
Critical conditions for flow
As previously defined the limiting condition for flow is:
y
C
ff

This can be plotted on the same axes as the powder flow function shown in the
previous slide to show the conditions under which flow will occur for a particular
powder in a particular hopper
An example plot is shown in the next slide
The limiting condition gives a straight
line, gradient 1/ff
Function (a) powder has a yield stress
greater than
C
/ff NO FLOW
Function (b) The unconfined yield
stress
y
is equal to the stress
developed in the powder,
C
/ff giving
rise to a critical value of stress
crit
Critical conditions for flow
crit
Function (c) powder has a yield stress
less than
C
/ff - FLOW
If actual stress developed <
crit
NO FLOW
If actual stress developed >
crit
FLOW
Critical outlet dimension
The stress developed in the arch increases with the span of the arch and the weight of
the solids in the arch
Therefore the stress developed is related to the size of the hopper outlet, B and the bulk
density
B
of the material:
g
H
B
B
crit

) (

Thi ti i f th i i tl t di i This equation is for the minimum outlet dimension

H() is a factor determined by the slope of the hopper wall
G is the acceleration due to gravity
An approximate expression for H() in conical hoppers is:
60
0 . 2 ) (

H
Shear Cell Tests
The data discussed,C and y, can be found by performing shear cell tests
The figure below shows a jenike shear cell which allows powders to be compacted
to any degree and sheared under controlled load conditiond
Shear force and shear stress can also be measured
The next slide details the procedure for carrying out a shear cell test using
equipment like that shown in the figure below
The horizontal force needed to initiate shear of flow of the powder is recorded
A normal load is applied to the lid of the cell and the horizontal force applied to the sample via the
loading bracket is recorded
Using a standardised test procedure prepare 5 or 6 samples of the same bulk density
How the Jenike shear cell works
The pairs of values can be plotted to give a yield locus
Thus 5 or six pairs of values for load and shear force and for compacting stress and shear stress are
generated
This procedure is repeated for each identical powder sample but with a greater load applied to the
lid each time
The points obtained from the procedure discussed are plotted to form a yield locus
The whole process is repeated 2 or 3 times so that a family of yield loci are obtained
A single yield locus A family of yield loci
The end point of a yield locus corresponds to critical flow conditions where initiation
of flow is not accompanied by a change in bulk density
Analysis of shear cell test results
Mohrs circle
The Mohrs circle represents the possible combinations of normal and shear stresses
acting on any plane in a body under stress
Each point on the yield locus represents the point on a particular Mohrs circle for which
failure of the powder will occur
A yield locus is then a tangent to all of the Mohrs circles representing stress systems
under which the powder will fail
Mohrs circle construction
Analysis of shear cell test results
The circles in this figure are sections of Mohrs circles
Mohrs circles (a) and (b) represent stress systems under which the powder would fail
In Mohrs circle (c) the stresses are insufficient to cause flow
Mohrs circle (d) is not relevant since the system cannot support stress combinations
above the yield locus
Determination of
y
and
c
Two tangential Mohrs
circles are of particular
interest
The smaller represents conditions at
the free surface of the arch
This is a plane in which there is no
shear and no normal stress
Therefore the Mohrs circle which
represents failure (flow) under these
conditions must pass through the
origin of the plot
This gives the major principal
unconfined yield stress which is the
value used for
y
The larger is tangential to the yield
locus at the end point
It represents the conditions for critical
failure
The major principal stress from this
circle is taken as the value for
compacting stress
C
Determination of the effective angle of internal friction, from Shear cell tests
Mohrs circles for the critical failure are all tangent to a straight line through the origin
The slope of the line is tan
This line is the effective yield locus of the powder
By drawing this line can be determined by measuring the angle it makes with the
origin
is not a real angle within the powder but is a tangent of the ratio of shear stress to
normal stress
For a free flowing solid (one which does not gain strength under compaction) there is
only one yield locus and this coincides with the effective yield locus
effective yield locus & effective angle of
internal friction o.
Yield locus for a free flowing powder
The kinematic angle of friction between powder and hopper wall,
W
The kinematic angle of friction between powder and wall is known as the angle of
wall friction
It gives the relationship between normal stress acting between powder and wall and
the shear stress under flow conditions
To determine
W
the wall yield locus should be constructed from shear cell tests
This is determined by shearing the powder against a sample of the wall material
under various normal loads
Apparatus for the measurement of
kinematic angle of wall friction, |
W
Kinematic angle of wall friction, |
W
, given
by the gradient of the wall yield locus:
wall the at stress normal
wall the at stress shear
w
= = | tan
Determination of the hopper flow factor, ff
The hopper flow factor is a function of ,W and q
Jenike obtained values for a wedge-shaped hopper for values of 30, 40 , 50 , 60
ff values for =30
ff values for =40
ff values for =50
ff values for =60
1. The results of shear cell tests on a powder are shown in Figure 1.
In addition, it is known that the angle of friction on stainless steel is
19 for this powder, and under flow conditions the bulk density of the
powder is 1300 kg/m
3
. A conical stainless steel hopper is to be
designed to hold this powder.
Determine:
(a) the effective angle of internal friction;
(b) the maximum semi-included angle of the conical hopper which will
confidently give mass flow;
(c) the minimum diameter of the circular hopper outlet necessary to (c) the minimum diameter of the circular hopper outlet necessary to
ensure flow when the outlet slide valve is opened.
g
B
B
crit

o
u
|
.
|

\
|
+
=
60
0 . 2
Solution
(a) From Figure 1, determine the slope of the effective yield locus (line
AB). Slope = 0.578.
Hence, the effective angle of internal friction, o = tan
1
(0.578) = 30
Figure 1: Shear cell test data
Determination of the hopper flow factor, ff
The hopper flow factor is a function of ,W and q
Jenike obtained values for a wedge-shaped hopper for values of 30, 40 , 50 , 60
ff values for =30
ff values for =40
ff values for =50
ff values for =60
(b) From Figure 1, determine the pairs of values of o
C
and o
y
necessary to plot the powder flow function (Figure 2).
o
C
2.4 2.0 1,6 1.3
o
y
0.97 091 085 0.78
Using the flow factor chart for o = 30 (Figure 18 (a)) with |W = 19 and a 3
margin of safety gives a hopper flow factor, ff =1.8, and the semi-included angle of
hopper case, u = 27.5 (Figure 3).
(c) The relationship o
y
= o
C
/ff is plotted on the same axes as the
powder flow function (Figure 2) and where this line intercepts the powder
flow function we find a value of critical unconfined yield stress, o
crit
= 0.83
kN/ m2. From Equation (5),
H(u) = 2.46 when u = 27.5
and from Equation (4). the minimum
outlet diameter for mass flow, B, is
m B 160 . 0
81 . 9 1300
3
10 83 . 0 46 . 2
=

=
2- Shear cell tests on a powder give the following information:
Effective angle of internal friction, o = 40
Kinematic angle of wall friction on mild steel, |w = 16
Bulk density under flow condition, B = 2000 kg/m3
The powder flow function which can be represented by the relationship,
o
y
= o
C
0.6
where o
y
= unconfined yield stress (kN/m2) and o
C
= consolidating stress (kN/m2)
Figure 1: Determination of u and f
Determine (a) the maximum semi-included angle of a conical mild steel
hopper that will confidently ensure mass flow, and (b) the minimum diameter
of circular outlet to ensure flow when the outlet is opened.
Solution
(a) With an effective angle of internal friction o = 40 we refer to the
flow factor chart in Figure 18(b), from which at |
w
= 16 and with a
safety margin of 3 we obtain the hopper flow factor, ff = 1.5 and hopper
semi-included angle for mass flow, u = 30 (Figure 1).
(b) For flow:
y
ff
C
o
o
>
(3)
but for the powder in question o
y
and o
C
are related by the material flow
function:
o
y
= o
C
0.6
y
c
ff
o
o
= ] [
6 . 0
1
and so the critical value of unconfined yield stress o
crit
is found when
hence, o
crit
= 1.837 kN/m
2
.
From Equation (5),
H(u) = 2.5 when u = 30 and hence, from Equation
m B 234 . 0
81 . 9 2000
3
10 837 . 1 5 . 2
=

=
(4), minimum diameter of circular outlet,
Summarizing, mass flow without blockages is ensured by using a mild steel
hopper with maximum semi-included cone angle 30 and a circular outlet
diameter of at least 23.4 cm.
FORMULA SHEET
Hopper critical outlet dimension
g
B
B
crit

o
u
|
.
|

\
|
+
=
60
0 . 2
where
u l d d l f h h u = semi-included angle of the hopper.
o
crit
= is the critical stress,. g = acceleration due to gravity.
Values for flow factor exist only in a triangular region which defines the consitions under
which mass flow is possible
Example of use of the diagrams
Suppose that shear cell tests have given us o & |
W
equal to 30 and 19 respectively, then
entering the chart for conical hoppers with effective angle of friction o =30, we find that
the limiting value of wall slope u, to ensure mass flow is 30.5 (point X in the figure). In
practice it is usual to allow a safety margin of 3, and so, u is chosen as 27.5 and ff =1.8
(point Y).
Summary of design procedure for the design of conical hoppers for mass flow
Pairs of values of o
y
and o
C
give the Powder Flow Function
Mohrs Circle stress analysis gives pairs of values of unconfined yield stress, o
y
and compacting stress, o
C
and the value
of the effective angle of internal friction o
Shear cell tests on powder give a family of yield loci
o
crit
, H(u) and bulk density,
B
are used to calculate the minimum diameter of the conical hopper outlet B
Powder Flow Function and Hopper Flow Factor are combined to give the stress corresponding to the critical flow - no
flowcondition, o
crit
|
W
and, o are used to obtain Hopper Flow Factor, ff and semi-included angle of conical hopper wall slope, u
Shear cell tests on the powder and the material of the hopper wall give the Kinematic Angle of Wall Friction, |
W
Summarizing, then, to achieve mass flow without risk of blockage
using the powder in question we require a stainless steel conical
hopper with a maximum semi-included angle of cone, 27.5 and a
circular outlet with a diameter of at least 16.0 cm.
Figure 2. Determination of critical stress
Figure 3. Determination of u and ff