Competition of mixing and segregation in rotating cylinders

TL;DR

This study uses discrete element methods to analyze how mixing and segregation compete in rotating drums, revealing how filling fraction and particle size ratio influence the segregation process and the dynamics of particle distribution.

Contribution

It provides new insights into the effects of filling fraction and particle size ratio on segregation and mixing in rotating drums, including the linear dependence of segregation on size ratio.

Findings

Segregation peaks at more than half-filled drums due to fluidized layer width.

Radial segregation occurs for any small particle size difference.

Segregation can occur without prior mixing of particle components.

Abstract

Using discrete element methods, we study numerically the dynamics of the size segregation process of binary particle mixtures in three-dimensional rotating drums, operated in the continuous flow regime. Particle rotations are included and we focus on different volume filling fractions of the drum to study the interplay between the competing phenomena of mixing and segregation. It is found that segregation is best for a more than half-filled drum due to the non-zero width of the fluidized layer. For different particle size ratios, it is found that radial segregation occurs for any arbitrary small particle size difference and the final amount of segregation shows a linear dependence on the size ratio of the two particle species. To quantify the interplay between segregation and mixing, we investigate the dynamics of the center of mass positions for each particle component. Starting with initially separated particle groups we find that no mixing of the component is necessary in order to obtain a radially segregated core.