Mass, Momentum and Energy Transfer to/from Fractal-like Aggregates

Yale University, New Haven CT

Investigators

Abstract

The objective of this project is to identify scaling laws that will be useful in the quantitative analysis of transport phenomena involving fractal aggregates. Such structures are a common feature encountered in aerosol reactors producing submicron particles. Their formation is inevitable in industrial reactors where high output rates are encountered. The PIs will develop a logical methodology for calculating the scaling laws, which will relate cluster size to transport rates and provide a better base for predicting their properties. The problem is an important one with significant practical implications. Fractal-like agglomerates represent a class of geometries frequently encountered, and a general treatment would be of significant value, especially for nanoparticles. While solutions are available for large classes of spherical particles, developing a general treatment for fractal-like particles would represent a major advance. They plan to extend their analysis to the regime of moderate Knudsen numbers. The PIs plan to use the Quasi-Monte Carlo method, recently developed by others, for reduction of computation time.