ME 437/ME 537
PARTICLE TRANSPORT, DEPOSITION
AND REMOVAL
Goodarz Ahmadi
Department of Mechanical
and Aeronautical Engineering
Clarkson University
Potsdam, NY 13699-5725
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Sample glass fiber particles.
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Dust storm over the red sea.
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Birth place of stars.
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INTRODUCTION TO AEROSOLS
Definition: Aerosol is a suspension of solid or liquid particles in a gas. Dust, smoke,
mists, fog, haze, and smog are various forms of common aerosols. Aerosol particles are
found in different shapes (isometrics, platelets, and fibers) and different sizes. For
irregular shaped particles, different equivalent diameters are defined. Examples of
equivalent diameters are:
• Equivalent area diameter,
• Feret’s diameter (maximum distance edge to edge);
• Stoke’s diameter (diameter of a sphere with the same density and the same velocity as
the particle);
• Aerodynamic diameter (diameter of a sphere with the density of water and the same
velocity as the particle).
The range of diameters of common aerosol particles is between 0.01 and 100 µm.
The lower limit of 10 nm roughly corresponds to the transition from molecule to particle.
Particles larger than 100 µm normally do not remain suspended in air for a sufficient
amount of time. Noting that the mean free path for air is about 0.07 µm and visible light
has a wavelength band of 0.4 – 0.7 µm, the mechanical and optical behaviors of particles
are significantly affected by their size.
Particles greater than 5 – 10 µm are usually removed by the upper respiratory
system. But particles smaller than 5 µm can penetrate deep into the lung and become a
health hazard. Typical ranges of values for aerosol parameters for aerosols are listed in
Table 1. The corresponding values for air (N 2 ) are also shown in this table for
comparison.
Table 1 - Parameters of Aerosol in the Atmosphere
Aerosols Air
Number Density 100-10 5
10 19
(Number/cm 3 )
Mean Temperature (K) 240 – 310 240 – 310
Mean Free Path Greater than 1m 0.06 µm
Particle Radius 0.01 – 10 µm 2 × 10 −4 µm
Particle Mass (g) 10 −18 - 10 −9 4.6 × 10 −23
Particle Charge (in 0 – 100 Weakly Ionized Single
Elementary Charge Units) Charge
The important relevant dimensionless groups relevant the motion of aerosols are
listed in Table 2.
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Table 2 – Dimensionless Groups
Knudsen Number 2λ
Kn =
d
Mach Number | vp − vf |
M=
cf
Schmidt Number ν n f λd 2
Sc = =
D 4
Brown Number v p,2 | v' p |
Br = ( )1 / 2 =
v f ,2 | v'f |
Reynolds Number | v p − v f | d 4M
Re = =
ν Kn
Here the following symbols are defined:
λ = Mean Free Path ν = Kinematic Viscosity
d = Particle Diameter D = Diffusivity
v p = Particle Velocity v’ = Thermal Velocity
v f = Fluid (Air) Velocity n = Number Density
c f = Speed of Sound
Here superscript " f " corresponds to fluid and superscript " p " denotes particle.
In these equations the root mean square fluctuation velocity is given by
| v'f | = (8kT / πm f )1 / 2
and
ν = 0.5 c f λ
The mean free path of the gas is given as
1 kT
λ= =
2πnd 2πd 2m P
2
m
Here n is the gas number density, d m is the gas molecule (collisional) diameter,
k = 1.38 × 10 -23 J/K is the Boltzmann constant, P is pressure, and T is temperature. For
air, d m = 0.361 nm and
23.1T
λ(µm) = , P is in Pa, and T is K.
P
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Table 3. Aerosol Characteristics
Particle Diameter, µm
−4 −3 −2
10 10 10 10 −1 10 0 101 10 2 10 3 10 4
Electromagnetic x-Ray UV Vis Infrared Microwaves
Wave
Definition Solid Fume Dust
Liquid Mist Spray
Soil Clay Silt Sand Gravel
Atmospheric Smog Cloud/Fog Mist Rain
Typical Viruses Bacteria Human Hair
Particles Smoke Coal Dust Beach Sand
Size Analysis Microscope
Method Electron Microscope Sieving
x-Ray Diffraction
Ultra Centrifuge Sedimentation
Gas Cleaning Ultrasonics Settling Chamber
Centrifugal
Liquid Scrubber
Air Filter
HE Air Filter Impact Separators
Thermal Separators
Electrostatic Separators
Diffusion Air 5 × 10 −2 5 × 10 −4 10 −5 3 × 10 −7 2 × 10 −9 2 × 10 −10 2 × 10 −11
Coeff. cm 2 / s Water 5 × 10 −6 5 × 10 −7 5 × 10 −8 5 × 10 −9 5 × 10 −10 5 × 10 −11 5 × 10 −12 5 × 10 −13
Terminal (S=2) Air 10 −6 1.5 × 10 −5 2 × 10 −4 7 × 10 −3 0.6 50 600 2.5 × 10 3
Velocity cm / s Water 10 −10 6 × 10 −9 6 × 10 −7 6 × 10 −5 6 × 10 −3 0 .6 12 58
10 −4 10 −3 10 −2 10 −1 10 0 101 10 2 10 3 10 4
Particle Diameter, µm
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