The study of the performance of an electrostatic valve used for bulk transport of particulate materials

In many mass transfer processes it is necessary to accurately control the flow of particulate materials. When an electric field is applied to a packed bed of particulate solids, several types of electrical forces may be generated, depending on the bulk and surface resistivities of the particle, the geometry of the electrodes as well as the nature of the applied field. in this study the influence of the electrode geometry on flow control was investigated using computer modelling of the field based on finite element techniques. Furthermore, the effect of the applied field with respect to the magnitude, frequency, pulse width and pulse shape on flow controllability was experimentally investigated. The influence of the moisture content of turnip seeds on flow controllability and specific charge was studied and the results obtained are discussed in this paper