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Byung Joon Lee, Fred J. Molz,
Mark A. Schlautman, Abdul A. Khan
Simulation of Turbulent Flocculation and
Sedimentation in Flocculant-Aided Sediment
Retention Basins
Clemson University
Environmental Engineering & Earth Sciences
Civil Engineering
2008 South Carolina Water Resources Conference
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Colloidal Contamination !!!
Urban
Development
Agriculture
Tillage
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Flocculant-Aided Sediment Retention Pond
http://rpitt.eng.ua.edu/Class/Erosioncontrol/Module6/Module6.htm
Polymer-Induced Flocculation
1. Bridging Flocculation
2. Electrostatic Patch Mechanisms
http://hceglobal.com/faqs.asp
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Outline
1. Conceptual Model- Flocculation/Sedimentation Model
2. Mathematical Models- CFD-DPBE Combined Model
3. Simulation- Model Sediment Pond Systems
- Numerical Strategy
4. Results and Conclusion- Steady State Flow Field Simulation
- Particle/Floc Size and Mass Distribution
5. Future Studies- Experiments – Flume Test
- Other Applications
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Conceptual Model : Flocculation and Sedimentation
Flocculation
Flow
Sedimentation
Transport
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Mathematical Models : CFD-DPBE model
1. Computational
Fluid Dynamics
(CFD)
2. Population
Balance Equations
(DPBE)
3. Flocculation
Kinetics
Computational Cell
Stream Line
Turbulence
Computational Cell
(II)Advection
(IV) Dispersion
(III) Settling
(V) Reaction
i = 3 reservior
1 2 4 8 …… 2n-1
Nomenclature of Particle/Floc Classesi = 1 2 3 4 …… n
(III) Collision with Smaller Particle
(I) Collision with Smaller Particle
(II) Collision with Equal- Size Particle
(IV) Collision with Larger Particle(V) Binary
Fragmentation
(VI) Binary Fragmentation
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Mathematical Models : 1. Computational Fluid Dynamics
Mass Conservation Equation :
Momentum
Conservation Equation :
Turbulence Model : Two-equation κ-ε turbulence model (Fox, 2003)
FLOW3D® software was used to simulate turbulent flow within a
retention pond.
21j ii i
j i
j j i
u uU U pU U
t x x x
0
i
i
U
x
Model Parameters:<Ui> : Time averaged velocity component
i, j : Indices for directional coordinates
t : Time
ρ : Fluid density
P : Piezometric pressure
ν : Kinematic viscosity of the fluid.
κ : Turbulent kinematic energy
ε : Turbulent energy dissipation rate
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Mathematical Models : 2. Multi-dimensional DPBE
Multi-Dimensional DPBEs (30 Differential Equations) :
Fractal Theory: Stokes’ Law :
The multi-dimensional DPBE is used to simulate particle/floc
transport and flocculation in the ponds.
( )( ) ( )
2 2 2
( )
( )
( ) ( ) ( )
( / )
i ix i y i z i gi
IIII II
i i ii
V
IV
n nU n U n U n u
t x y z z
n n nk k kC C C agg break
x x y y z z
Model Parameters:ni : Number concentration of class size Di
<U> : Time averaged velocity component
Cμ : CFD model constant = 0.09
D0 : Particle diameter of monomer
Di : Average particle diameter of i-th class
f f3-D D -1
gi s w 0 i
gu = ρ -ρ D D
18η
f1/Di-1
i 0D =D 2
Df : Fractal dimension
ρs : Particle density
ρw : Fluid density
g : Gravitational acceleration
η : Fluid viscosity
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Mathematical Models : 3. Aggregation/Break-up Kinetics
Aggregation and Breakage Kinetics (Ding et al, 2006):
(II)(I)
(
(III) (IV)
i-2j-i+1 2i
i-1 j i-1ij=1
(max i)i-1j-i
i j i j i
j=1 j=i
n 1= agg/break =n 2 α(i-1,j)β(i-1,j)n α(i-1,i-1)β(i-1,i-1)n
t 2
- n 2 α(i,j)β(i,j)n - n α(i,j)β(i,j)n - a(i)n
V)
(VI)
(max i)+2
j
j=i+1
b(i,j)a(j)n
Collision Efficiency
/3
i j c
1α(i, j)=
1+ D +D 2D
1
6
1
6
1/23
i j i j c
1/23
c i j c
εβ(i, j)= D +D if D ,D D
ν
εβ(i, j)= 8 D if D ,D D
ν
Collision Frequency
1/3
0 i
i
i-1
a(i)=a V
Vb(i,i-1)= =2
V
Breakup Kinetics&Distribution Function
Model Parameters:α(i, j) : Collision Efficiency Factor Between
Particle Size Classes i and j
β(i, j) : Collision Frequency Factor
a(i) : Breakup Kinetic Constant
b(i, j) : Breakup Distribution Function
a0 : Selection Rate Constant
Vi : Mean Particle Volume of i-th Class
Di : Mean Diameter of i-th Class
Dc : Critical Diameter
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Simulation : 1. Model Pond System
Computational Domain
Model Pond
The Turbulent
Mixing Zone
functions as a
flocculation basin
with high fluid
turbulence
Computational
Domain
2 Dimensional
2 m x 10 m Area
10 x 50 Mesh
Lines
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Simulation : 2. Numerical Strategy
• INITIALIZATION
- Supporting data (flow field data from CFD, solid and liquid properties)
- Computational system layout (Dimensions, Mesh)
• DPBE CALCULATION (Operator Splitting Algorithm)
↓
t+Δt
↑
Leveque’s flux-corrected upwind scheme (Advection)
0i ix i y i z i gi
n nU n U n U n u
t x y z z
FDM calculated with Gauss-Siedel iteration (Dispersion and Reaction) 2 2 2
( / ) 0i i i ii
n n n nk k kC C C agg break
t x x y y z z
• POST PROCESSING
- Mass balance, Particle/floc diameters, Solid concentrations, etc.
1. Generate Steady State Flow Field Data with FLOW-3D®
2. Solve the DPBE Equation with MATLAB ®
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Results : 1. Steady State Flow Field Simulation
Case 1 : Low Turbulence
Case 2 : Intermediate Turbulence
Case 3 : High Turbulence
Influent flow
velocities were set at
three different values
(0.222, 0.334, and 0.667
m/s) by adjusting inlet
width, to create different
levels of fluid
turbulence, and to
compare the effects of
turbulent intensity on
flocculation efficiency.
Arrows and colors
represent flow velocities
and shear rates.1/2( / )Shear Rate G
Steady state flow field profiles (CFD)
0 /s
20
40
60
80
0 /s
20
40
60
80
0 /s
20
40
60
80
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Results : 2. Consistency and Stability Tests
Mass Mean Diameter:
mi : Mass of i-th class particle
M : Total mass of all the classes
1 2
43 1 2i i I
I
m D m m mD D D D
M M M M
Solid Mass Balance:
in/out : In or out of the pond
deposit : Deposit on the bottom
retained : Retained in the pond
out,acc deposit,acc retained
in,acc
Mass +Mass +MassMass Balance(%)=
Mass
Dimensionless Residence Time (t/tmean)
0 2 4 6 8 10
Mass F
racti
on
(%
)
0
20
40
60
80
100
Case 1
Case 2
Case 3
Dimensionless Residence Time (t/tmean)
0 2 4 6 8 10
Mass M
ean
Flo
c S
ize (
d43;
m)
0
50
100
150
200
250
Case 1
Case 2
Case 3Mass Balance
Mass Out
Mass Deposit
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Dynamic Pond Simulation
Movie Clip : 20 sec / 1 frameParticle Diameter
Evolution
Results : 3. Dynamic Simulation Results
Solid Mass Conc.
Evolution
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Case 1
Case 2
Case 3
Mass mean diameter (D43) distributions
Results : 4. Steady State Simulation Results
Case 1
Case 2
Case 3
Solid concentration distributions
Particles/flocs traveling through these swirling zones are more exposed
to flocculation and thus tend to grow larger than those passing through the
other zones.
0 μm50100150200
0 μm50100150200
0 μm50100150200
1 g/L1.21.41.61.82.0
1 g/L1.21.41.61.82.0
1 g/L1.21.41.61.82.0
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Results : 5. Summary
Turbulent conditions were found to induce critical effects on both
flocculation and subsequent sedimentation efficiencies
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Case1 Case2 Case3
Ma
x S
he
ar
Ra
te (
/s)
0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
Case1 Case2 Case3
Inle
t V
elo
cit
y (
m/s
)
0
50
100
150
200
Case1 Case2 Case3
Ma
ss
Me
an
Dia
me
ter
(D43, μ
m)
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
Case1 Case2 Case3
Ma
ss
dep
osit/M
as
sin
(%)
Flow ConditionsVelocity / Turbulence
System ResponsesFlocculation / Sedimentation
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Conclusion
FLOW-3D® was a useful tool to generate steady state flow
field data, such as flow velocities and shear rates, which
were used in subsequent multi-dimensional DPBE
simulations.
As an alternative to QMOM, the DPBE formulation was
applied to simulate a multi-dimensional
flocculation/sedimentation process.
Operator splitting and Leveque’s flux-corrected
algorithms were applied to overcome computational
instability caused by nonlinearity, advection dominance and
complexity of the DPBE model.
In applications of the CFD-DPBE model, increased
turbulence was found to enhance the flocculation and
sedimentation efficiencies. However, methodology
optimizing this effect requires further study.
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Ongoing Research : Experimental Validation
Bench-scale 3-Dimensional Flume Test
EEES, Clemson University
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Future Research : Various CFD-DPBE Applications
Cohesive Sediment Transport
in River, Lake, Estuary
http://uregina.ca/~sauchyn/geog323/112.jpg
Clarifier in Water/Wastewater
Treatment Plants
http://www.veoliawaterst.com.au/en/case-studies/7741.htm
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Acknowledgments
•Funding • USDA-NRCS (NRCS-69-4639-1-0010) for the CLUE
Project
• USDA-CSREES (SC-170027)
• State of South Carolina