Numerical Simulation of the Force Analysis of Gas-Solid Two-Phase Sepiolite Particles in a Horizontal Pipe

Abstract

Abstract In order to study the force that sepiolite particles exert in a horizontal pipe, a method for analysing the simulation of the two-way coupling of gas-solid two-phase flow of sepiolite particles has been proposed in this paper. A three-dimensional model of the gas-solid two-phase flow of sepiolite particles was constructed, based on the Discrete Element Method (EDM). In this model, the force and motion of the sepiolite particles were established according to Newton’s second law, turbulent flow was simulated using the k-ε model, and the two-way coupling correlation between the sepiolite particles and the turbulent flow was established according to Newton’s third law. Through numerical simulation of the gas-solid two-phase flow of sepiolite particles in a horizontal pipe, the distribution of both the velocity and pressure were obtained. In addition, the properties of the gas-solid two-phase flow of sepiolite particles were obtained. The results of the simulation demonstrated that the main forces acting on the sepiolite particles in a horizontal circular pipe in a turbulent state were drag, lift, gravity and the buoyancy of the particles. It was found that the Basset force, the Magnus force, the additional mass force and the pressure gradient force had a negligible influence on the movement of the sepiolite particles.