Granular dynamics: theories, modelling and simulation. Particle science and technology is a rapidly developing interdisciplinary research field and is of paramount importance Australia in view of the heavy dependence on raw materials processing. This project will tackle the core problems in this field by developing novel theories and mathematical models to describe the flow of particles. Application of the research outcomes can lead to better process or product control, a decrease in energy cons ....Granular dynamics: theories, modelling and simulation. Particle science and technology is a rapidly developing interdisciplinary research field and is of paramount importance Australia in view of the heavy dependence on raw materials processing. This project will tackle the core problems in this field by developing novel theories and mathematical models to describe the flow of particles. Application of the research outcomes can lead to better process or product control, a decrease in energy consumption and an improvement in productivity, which, together with the research training offered through the conduct of the work, is very helpful to maintaining Australia's leading position in resource, energy, process and allied industries.Read moreRead less
Discrete particle modelling and analysis of complex particle-fluid flows. Multiphase processes are widely used in both conventional and modern industries in Australia and worldwide, however rarely reach more than 60% of design capacity because of a poor understanding of their fundamental characteristics. This project aims to overcome this problem using an extensive combined fundamental and applied approach. The resulting theories, computer models and simulation techniques will be applied to imp ....Discrete particle modelling and analysis of complex particle-fluid flows. Multiphase processes are widely used in both conventional and modern industries in Australia and worldwide, however rarely reach more than 60% of design capacity because of a poor understanding of their fundamental characteristics. This project aims to overcome this problem using an extensive combined fundamental and applied approach. The resulting theories, computer models and simulation techniques will be applied to improve process design, control and optimisation. Consequentially, productivity and Australian competitiveness will be significantly enhanced in its most important industries such as minerals, metallurgical, chemical, energy, and materials.Read moreRead less
Multi-scale modelling of particle breakage in grinding process. The minerals industry is the largest exporter in Australia, contributing approximately 40% of Australia's total exports. Grinding is one of basic operations in mineral processing to liberate valuables from the host rock. Grinding process, however, has very low efficiency and may account for 50% of the direct operating cost of a mineral processing plant. This project is to develop a novel, multi-scale model to investigate grinding at ....Multi-scale modelling of particle breakage in grinding process. The minerals industry is the largest exporter in Australia, contributing approximately 40% of Australia's total exports. Grinding is one of basic operations in mineral processing to liberate valuables from the host rock. Grinding process, however, has very low efficiency and may account for 50% of the direct operating cost of a mineral processing plant. This project is to develop a novel, multi-scale model to investigate grinding at both process and individual particle levels and to provide a more accurate prediction of grinding performance. This will result in improved control and design of grinding process with reduced energy consumption and mineral waste, which will be of immense economic and environmental benefit to Australia.Read moreRead less
Fundamental Studies of the Packing of Cohesive Particles. Particle/powder technology is of paramount importance to Australia in view of its heavy dependence on the handling and processing of raw materials. Particle packing is here a most basic operation. This project will examine the underpinning physics of the packing of cohesive particles and develop novel generic theories and mathematical models for solving packing problems. Its outcomes can lead to better process or product control, a decrea ....Fundamental Studies of the Packing of Cohesive Particles. Particle/powder technology is of paramount importance to Australia in view of its heavy dependence on the handling and processing of raw materials. Particle packing is here a most basic operation. This project will examine the underpinning physics of the packing of cohesive particles and develop novel generic theories and mathematical models for solving packing problems. Its outcomes can lead to better process or product control, a decrease in energy consumption and an improvement in productivity in many processes/operations in mineral/material and relevant industries, which, together with the research training offered, will help strengthen and maintain Australia's leading position in particulate science and technology.Read moreRead less
The elutriation of ultrafine particles according to their density. This study is concerned with exploiting a new and powerful mechanism for separating particles according to their density, with strong potential for recovering and concentrating tens of billions of dollars worth of valuable minerals annually. By coupling the new separation mechanism with a centrifugal force it should be possible to apply gravity separation technology, arguably for the first time, to the recovery of ultrafine parti ....The elutriation of ultrafine particles according to their density. This study is concerned with exploiting a new and powerful mechanism for separating particles according to their density, with strong potential for recovering and concentrating tens of billions of dollars worth of valuable minerals annually. By coupling the new separation mechanism with a centrifugal force it should be possible to apply gravity separation technology, arguably for the first time, to the recovery of ultrafine particles from 200 microns to well below 10 microns, at high separation efficiency, and high feed rates. This study is also ideal for training new researchers, especially at the PhD level, in an area of importance to Australia's economic future. Read moreRead less