Grant: Collaborative Research and Development Grants

Pressure filtration is an important method for removing liquids from a suspension. Difficulties arise in modeling this process for cases where the particles are soft and porous. Here the dewatering is governed by processes occurring on two different porosity scales Although this class of problem is commonly found in natural and engineering settings, the motivation of this work stems from a Pulp and Paper application in pulp processing. In particular, this work is a partnership with Valmet (Montreal) in which we will examine 1D pressure filtration at rates comparable to industrial levels and model the dynamics occurring at the microscale. Comparisons of the model predictions will be made to pilot plant data. The project will be over a four year period in which the work will be conducted by 1 PDF, 1 PhD and 2 undergraduate students.