Thesis-2002-Scarlett.pdf (1.73 MB)
Download fileParticle technology: the 4M business
thesis
posted on 11.09.2018, 08:36 authored by Brian ScarlettI have never thought of Particle Technology as a separate discipline or training, rather have I seen it as an
integral and vital part of the engineering discipline of Process Technology. This discipline is often called
Chemical Engineering but the process industries encompass far more than chemicals, they include other
industries such as pharmaceutics, minerals and food. It has been estimated that 70% of the final or
intermediate products of these process industries are in particulate form. They may be called a powder,
paste, slurry, suspension, emulsion, aerosol or spray. The common feature is that there is a continuous and a
disperse phase. The disperse phase is in the form of particles. Of course, the science of particulate materials
has important applications in almost every branch of technology, for example in civil engineering,
electronics and combustion engineering. The essential difference, in process engineering, is that the
particulate nature of the materials is not just inherent; rather we deliberately design both the particulate
product and the process to make it. Thus, two of the Ms in this business are the Manipulating and
Making of particles. The properties of a particulate material depend upon those of the constituent materials
but also critically upon the disposition of the particulate phase. To manipulate the product, we create a
mixture of sizes, shapes and species that will deliver the required functional properties. The consequent
step, the making, is to design and operate the processes that will make that mixture. The tools that we use
are Measuring and Modelling. These tools are not exclusive to particle technology, they are the tools used
by any process engineer.
History
School
- Aeronautical, Automotive, Chemical and Materials Engineering
Department
- Chemical Engineering