Study on the Aerodynamic Performance of Electric Field Manipulator: Experimental and Modelling Research

Gas emissions containing particulate matter are the most prevalent in technological processes. To reduce emissions into the atmosphere, it is necessary to apply gas pre-treatment before high-efficiency filters, which in interaction helps to achieve a favorable result for reducing the level of fine and ultrafine particles particularly dangerous to the human health. Electric field manipulator (agglomerator) can influence these fine particulate matter and results in an increase in their size. Comprehensive aerodynamic study aim to elucidate the gas flow distribution, variation of trajectories and dynamics at different flow rates, specifically the trajectories and velocities of particles within the gas flow. These factors provide meaningful assumptions about the possible behavior of particles in the flow and there are critical for optimizing an agglomeration and its intensity. Such phenomena can have an impact on the probability of agglomeration in the manipulator channels, i.e., the sticking of small particles into larger ones, and this allows improving the design and operating conditions of the apparatus. Gas flow velocities and pressure were analyzed experimentally at various cross-sectional points in the inlet and outlet ducts at the inflow rate of 3.4-50 l/s. Pressure-based solver with the coupled scheme for pressure-velocity coupling was used. The static pressure at the inlet of manipulator varied from 8 to 178 Pa. This study provides new insights into flow pre-treatment using the electric field mechanism in a multichannel modular apparatus and provides a reasonable understanding of the necessary characteristics of the gas flow distribution for its subsequent improvement for highest agglomeration.