An experimental and analytical investigation into the factors controlling powder flowability from particle to bulk scale
This project is led by Professor M Bradley and Dr. Stefan Zigan
Researcher: Mr. Vivek Garg
Summary: The main objective of the work is to be able to predict the flowability of the powder at the bulk scale from a very small quantity of the particles (few cc or even milligrams) which may be of the size distribution different from eventual production.
The work will be comprised of understanding the physics of a single particle and linking it to bulk flow characteristics of the powder. It will also include on how different factors such as particle shape, particle size and cohesiveness affect the flowability of powders. The investigation will be undertaken with wide range of materials, different substrates and a working model will be developed to predict the flow function from small sample of powder. In addition, the study on effect of surface energy on flowability of powders will also be undertaken and a mathematical model will be developed to predict the flowability of same powder with difference in particle size range. The denouement of the work will help many industries especially pharmaceutical and food industries where they do not have enough quantity of drug or material to test the bulk scale at an early stage of formulation.
Most of the work is used as a part of a software toolkit in Virtual Formulation Laboratory – a project funded by EPSRC, 2017-2020