The flow of granular matter in a hopper under a pressure difference

• Grant number: 13/04175-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: May 01, 2013
• End date: April 30, 2014
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Mechanical Engineering - Transport Phenomena
• Principal Investigator: Erick de Moraes Franklin
• Grantee: Newton Silva de Andrade
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Engenharia Mecânica (FEM). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Granular materials occupy an important place in our quotidian. This kind of material is a discrete medium whose rheology is unknown. As grains constitute a discrete medium, their statics and dynamics depend on the contact points. One example is the "Janssen Effect": the mechanical saturation of the forces at the low end of containers filled with grains due to the redirection of forces at the contact points. In many industrial applications, such as in petroleum and food industries, vertical descending granular flows occur in ducts and hoppers. If a fluid flows concurrently with grains, the slip between phases changes the distribution of mechanical forces at the duct low end. This "Iniciação Científica" project proposes the study of the descending vertical flow of liquids and grains in a hopper. An experimental device will be projected and built and experiments will be performed. The experimental results will contribute to better understand the roles of the fluid flow and of the mechanical contacts in the determinations of mechanical forces at the hopper low end. (AU)