Modeling the concentration profile of the solid phase during hydrotransport of ore in pipes

Abstract

The authors consider the calculation of movement modes for unstructured suspensions in horizontal pipes. The movement mode in these cases is conventionally defined by the proportion of the concentration at the top of the pipe and in its middle. According to multiple authors, the flow carrying capacity is determined by its average velocity. This provides an opportunity to define the solid phase concentration profile along the vertical separately from solving the movement equations. This article presents an equation to determine the vertical distribution of the concentration obtained as a balance between turbulent pulses and the gravitation settling of solid particles. The analysis of solutions showed that there is a strong dependency between solid phase distribution and its average concentration in the flow. The comparison of movement mode calculation results obtained using the developed mathematical model and popular empirical dependencies showed good correlations. The obtained concentration profile can be used for the simplification of the general mathematical model of hydrotransport by predicting the motion mode and setting the concentration profile. This shall reduce the number of equations solved in the hydraulic fluid movement model and simplify the subsequent modeling of unstructured suspension movement in pipes.