Numerical and Experimental Study of Dispersive Mixing of Agglomerates
V. Collin (1)*, E. Peuvrel-Disdier (1), B. Alsteens (2) **, V. Legat (2), T. Avalosse (3), S. Otto (4), and H. M. Metwally (5)
(1) Ecole des Mines de Paris, Centre de Mise en Forme des Matériaux, UMR CNRS / Ecole des Mines de Paris N°7635, BP207, F-06904 Sophia-Antipolis, France.
(2) University of Louvain, Center for Systems Engineering and Applied Mechanics (CESAME) Av. Georges Lemaître 4, B-1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium.
(3) Fluent Benelux, Av. Pasteur 4, B-1300 Wavre, Belgium.
(4) Manufacture Française des Pneumatiques Michelin, Place des Carmes Dechaux, F-63040 Clermont-Ferrand, France.
(5) Fluent USA Inc, 1007 Church Street, Ste. 250, Evanston, IL 60201.
. * Present address: Lafarge Centre de Recherche, rue du Montmurier 95, BP 15, 38291 St Quentin Fallavier Cedex, France
. ** Present address: LMS, Researchpark Z1, Interleuvenlaan 68, B-3001 Leuven, Belgium
EditABSTRACT
The degree of filler dispersion has a major influence on the physical properties of rubber compounds. Typical fillers, e.g. carbon black and silica, are difficult to disperse, particularly if they are fine and low structured. As a result, the quantity of undispersed fillers generally amounts for 1% to 10% of the compound. The elimination, or at least the reduction, of agglomerates will result in rubber parts (e.g. tires, seals, belts) with improved properties and higher reliability. Clearly, a better understanding of the physics of batch mixers would help improve their mixing performance. Due to the complexity of the real process, experiments on a representative device were held from which a model has been deduced. It appears to be a generalization of the law of Kao and Mason, but for high viscous matrices. The
next step was to get a model available for statistically large number of pellets as can be found in any sample taken out of the mixer. A statistical approach is used where we define a model describing the evolution of mass density function of agglomerate sizes. Eventually, we
implement this model within available numerical simulation tools to estimate dispersion in real mixers.
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