A novel idea to increase the performance of a wheat flour cyclone separator: Controlling the reverse flow

In this study, as a novelty, the reverse flow effect on a wheat flour cyclone performance was evaluated. A computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation was realized using a Reynolds stress turbulence model. Also, particle–air interactions were modeled applying a discrete phase model. Besides the experimental measurement, the numerical simulation was conducted in a main (without reverse flow) and six various reverse flow levels (I = 0.0385 m3 s−1, II = 0.0396 m3 s−1, III = 0.0484 m3 s−1, IV = 0.0583 m3 s−1, V = 0.0704 m3 s−1, and VI = 0.0836 m3 s−1) by CFD. The validation between pressure drop in experimental data and numerical results revealed a good agreement with a maximum deviation of 8.2%. Cyclone performance including pressure drop and separation efficiency was assessed in the mentioned reverse flow levels. Moreover, velocity field, centrifugal force, and turbulence parameter were evaluated, comprehensively. It was found that the flour separation efficiency increased with enhancing the reverse flow level to IV = 0.0583 m3 s−1, but decreased with a sharp slope in the reverse levels of V = 0.0704 m3 s−1 and VI = 0.0836 m3 s−1

Comparative performance analysis of innovative separation chamber configurations: Numerical and experimental investigations

Aim of study: Novel configurations of separation chamber are proposed to resolve the critical issue of separation in agro-industrial equipment.Area of study: Dept. of Mechanical and Biosystems Engineering, Urmia, IranMaterial and methods: Precise and instrumented experimentation has been conducted to calibrate the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) methodology in the modeling and simulating chickpea pod separation. Mechanisms were selected based on optimizing separation efficiency, relative purification and required airflow as a criterion for energy consumption.Main results: Applying a guiding blade and suction fans may potentially increase the separation efficiency while reducing the relative purification and required airflow. The highest separation efficiency (95%), the lowest required airflow (545 m³/h) and the lowest pressure drop (16.3 Pa), were obtained by such configuration. Furthermore, the highest relative purification of 90% was achieved when the mechanism was free of blade and fans.Research highlights: To integrate the advantages of the above-mentioned configurations, a series-type assembling them is proposed to preserve the separation efficiency and relative purification at the highest level, meanwhile reducing the required airflow. Also, 15% enhancement in the separation efficiency and 302.8 m³/h reductions in the airflow were found as a crucial finding. The high correlation of experimental and theoretical CFD results is the key point to motivate the researchers for extension of similar case projects

Comparative performance analysis of innovative separation chamber configurations: Numerical and experimental investigations

Aim of study: Novel configurations of separation chamber are proposed to resolve the critical issue of separation in agro-industrial equipment. Area of study: Dept. of Mechanical and Biosystems Engineering, Urmia, Iran Material and methods: Precise and instrumented experimentation has been conducted to calibrate the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) methodology in the modeling and simulating chickpea pod separation. Mechanisms were selected based on optimizing separation efficiency, relative purification and required airflow as a criterion for energy consumption. Main results: Applying a guiding blade and suction fans may potentially increase the separation efficiency while reducing the relative purification and required airflow. The highest separation efficiency (95%), the lowest required airflow (545 m³/h) and the lowest pressure drop (16.3 Pa), were obtained by such configuration. Furthermore, the highest relative purification of 90% was achieved when the mechanism was free of blade and fans. Research highlights: To integrate the advantages of the above-mentioned configurations, a series-type assembling them is proposed to preserve the separation efficiency and relative purification at the highest level, meanwhile reducing the required airflow. Also, 15% enhancement in the separation efficiency and 302.8 m³/h reductions in the airflow were found as a crucial finding. The high correlation of experimental and theoretical CFD results is the key point to motivate the researchers for extension of similar case projects

Prediction compost criteria of organic wastes with Biochar additive in in-vessel composting machine using ANFIS and ANN methods

In-vessel composting machine with the agitating system, circulating aeration system, and heating system on vegetable and food waste with coco peat additives and biochar obtained from coco peat was investigated. The composting process was tested at 55 °C, at three fresh inlet air rates of 20%, 30%, and 50%, three initial carbon-to-nitrogen (C/N) ratios of 18, 22, 26, and the addition of coco peat biochar of 5%, 10% w.b. (wet basis). To predict compost evaluation indicators of Electrical conductivity (EC), pH, C/N & GI, artificial neural network (ANN), and neural-fuzzy inference systems were used. The evaluation of the output parameters of compost showed high efficiency of the process. The amount of EC, acidity, and GI increased for all treatments, and the C/N ratio decreased. Also, the initial C/N ratio of 22 and fresh inlet air (FIA) of 30% were considered as the optimal setting conditions of the device. Treatment containing 5% biochar in the C/N of 22 resulted in the highest germination index of 93.55%. The best values of the coefficient of determination for the output parameters of the compost production process (EC, pH, C/N & GI) in the artificial neural network were 0.9252, 0.9863, 0.9691, and 0.9909 respectively. Moreover, the best values of the coefficient of determination in the fuzzy neural inference system for the output parameters of the compost include EC, pH, C/N and GI were 0.999, 0.999, 0.994, and 0.992, respectively. Also, the lowest values of MAE and RMSE in the fuzzy neural inference system for the output parameters of the compost include EC, pH, C/N, and GI were 0.0308, 0.0001, 0.2420, and 0.003 for MAE; and 0.0021, 3.66E−05, 0.1908 and 0.0041 for RMSE, respectively

Badanie i ocena czynników wpływających na wydajność młocarni orzeszka ziemnego

Peanut is an important produce in the global food chain because of their high-quality oil and protein content. Due to the significant value of its production in Iran, a threshing machine was developed for high-quality harvesting, to reduce harvesting costs and labor effort. In the course of a number of field experiments to evaluate the performance of the machine, the rotational speed of the thresher was adopted at three levels of 150, 200, and 300 rpm. Other experimental factors included the distance of the concave from the thresher (2, 6, and 8 cm) and the product feeding rate of 750, 850, and 950 kg·h-1. Regarding the measurements, the threshing efficiency, the separation rate, and the percentage of the crushed product were calculated and evaluated. The results revealed that as the rotational speed of the thresher, the increment feeding rate of the product and the distance between the thresher and the concave grate increased, the thresher efficiency decreased. The maximum threshing efficiency of 95% was obtained at a rotational speed of 150 rpm and a distance of 2 cm. Also, with increasing the rotational speed of 300 rpm and a distance of 8 cm, the threshing efficiency decreased to 75%. The separation rate decreased intensely as the distance between the thresher and the concave increased. In addition, the separation rate decreases with increasing rotational speed of the thresher. At a rotational speed of 150 rpm and a distance of 2 cm, the separation rate was 96%, but the separation rate decreased to 76% as rotational speed increased to 300 rpm and distance increased to 8 cm. With increasing rotational speed and feeding rate, the percentage of crushed pods increased. The maximum of 16% was obtained at a rotational speed of 300 rpm, a feeding rate of 950 kg·h-1 and a distance of 2 cm.Orzeszki ziemne są ważnym produktem w globalnym łańcuchu żywnościowym ze względu na jakość oleju i wysoką zawartość białka w ziarnach. Ze względu na znaczenie produkcji orzeszków ziemnych w Iranie, opracowano wysokiej jakości młocarnię do zbioru, aby zmniejszyć koszty zbioru i nakład pracy. W trakcie szeregu eksperymentów polowych mających na celu ocenę wydajności maszyny, prędkość obrotową młocarni przyjęto na trzech poziomach 150, 200 i 300 obr·min-1. Pozostałe czynniki doświadczalne to: szczelina robocza młocarni: 2, 6 i 8 cm oraz prędkość podawania produktu: 750, 850 i 950 kg·h-1. W wyniku przeprowadzonych pomiarów obliczono i oceniono skuteczność omłotu, stopień separacji oraz procent rozdrobnionego produktu. Wyniki wykazały, że wraz ze wzrostem prędkości obrotowej młocarni, przyrostu prędkości podawania produktu oraz odległości młocarni od wklęsłego klepiska, sprawność młocarni maleje. Maksymalną sprawność omłotu wynoszącą 95% uzyskano przy prędkości obrotowej 150 obr·min-1 i odległości 2 cm. Również przy zwiększaniu prędkości obrotowej do 300 obr·min-1 i odległości 8 cm sprawność omłotu malała do 75%. Szybkość oddzielania malała intensywnie wraz ze wzrostem odległości młocarni od wklęsłości. Ponadto stopień oddzielenia maleje wraz ze wzrostem prędkości obrotowej młocarni. Przy prędkości obrotowej 150 obr·min-1 i odległości 2 cm wskaźnik separacji wyniósł 96%, ale wraz ze wzrostem prędkości obrotowej do 300 obr·min-1 i zwiększeniem odległości do 8 cm wskaźnik separacji spadał do 76%. Wraz ze wzrostem prędkości obrotowej i szybkości podawania wsadu wzrastał procent rozdrobnionych strąków. Maksymalną wartość 16% uzyskano przy prędkości obrotowej 300 obr·min-1, prędkości podawania 950 kg·h-1 i odległości 2 cm

A Comprehensive CFD Assessment of Wheat Flow in Wheat Conveying Cyclone Validation and Performance Analysis by Experimental Data

Cyclone is often used in the Industry due to its low maintenance costs, simple design, and ease of operation. This work presents both experimental and simulation evaluation on the effect of inlet velocity and mass flow rate on the performance of a wheat conveying cyclone. According to the great importance of the pressure drop and separation efficiency on the separation phenomenon in the cyclone, a comprehensive study has been conducted in this regard. A computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation was realized using a Reynolds stress turbulence model, and particle-air interactions were modeled using a discrete phase model. The result showed a good agreement between the measured value and CFD simulation on the pressure drop and tangential velocity with a maximum deviation of 6.8%. It was found that the separation efficiency increased with inlet velocity up to 16 m s−1 but decreased slightly at a velocity of 20 m s−1. The pressure drop increased proportionally with inlet velocity. However, optimum performance with the highest separation efficiency (99%) and acceptable pressure drop (416 Pa) was achieved at the inlet velocity of 16 m s−1 and mass flow rate of 0.01 kg s−1

Evaluation of Centrifugal Force, Erosion, Strain Rate, and Wall Shear in a Stairmand Cyclone

In the present study, imperative parameters including centrifugal force, erosion, streamline, strain rate, and wall shear are evaluated in a cyclone separator. The flaw of the cyclone surface due to erosion is an acute problem in the industry. According to the great importance of the centrifugal force on the separation phenomenon, a comprehensive study is conducted. A computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation is realized by applying a Reynolds stress turbulence model (RSM), and particle–air interactions were modeled using a discrete phase model (DPM). The result shows a good agreement between the experimental data and CFD simulation on the tangential velocity and pressure drop. The maximum deviation of the validation process is 6.8%. It is found that the centrifugal force within the cyclone is increased with an enhancement in the inlet velocity. The separation efficiency indicates an increase–decrease treatment in various inlet velocities with inlet velocity up to 16 m⋅s−1 but decreases slightly at a velocity of 20 m⋅s−1. The pressure increases proportionally with inlet velocity. The best performance with the highest separation efficiency (99%) and pressure drop (416 Pa) obtains at the inlet velocity of 16 m⋅s−1 and mass flow rate of 0.01 kg⋅s−1. In addition, the maximum erosion rate was created in the entrance and conical part of the cyclone