Continuous blending of cohesive granular material

Results are presented from discrete element method (DEM) computer simulations of cohesive particles in a periodic slice of a continuous blender. The influence of inter-particle cohesion at various impeller speeds and fill levels is reported. Although increasing cohesion does not significantly change axial flow rates, mixing rates in the transverse plane and axial direction are affected. Mixing is generally enhanced for slightly cohesive materials, but decreases for larger cohesion, similar to trends observed in tumbling batch mixers. Changes in fill level are also shown to affect axial transport rates and mixing. These results suggest that the controllable operating parameters, such as feed rate and impeller speed, may be adjusted for cohesive powder formulations to obtain optimal mixing performance. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.