Particle hardness

A knowledge of the hardness of the particles constituting a bulk solid is valuable when a handling
installation is being designed since it will give an indication of the need to take steps to avoid undue erosive
wear of the system components. Generally speaking, the harder the particles, the more abrasive the product
will be on the materials from which the handling installation is constructed.
In common with many other characteristics of bulk solids and their constituent particles, the problem with
particle hardness is one of measurement.

Cohesion and adhesion

One of the first features to become apparent when handling a bulk solid may be described in one word as its
'flowability'. This can be regarded as the summation of a number of different effects, but is essentially
concerned with the forces of attraction or 'cohesion' between constituent particles. Thus, when these forces
of attraction are low, the bulk material can be made to flow easily under the influence of gravity with the
particles moving as individuals relative to one another. Dry sand and granulated sugar are familiar examples
of free-flowing bulk solids. However, high interparticle cohesive forces, which may be caused by moisture
or electrostatic charging, and are especially pronounced in very fine materials, result in a tendency for
agglomerates to form so that the material flows in an erratic manner as 'lumps', if indeed it flows at all.
The general term 'flowability' has been used in a qualitative sense to describe whether a bulk solid is free-
flowing or cohesive. The assessment of the probable flow behaviour of a bulk solid is very much a matter of
judgement based on experience, but there are various tests which can be carried out to provide quantitative
evidence to assist this judgement. Thus, for example, 'cohesion' can be formally defined as the resistance of
a bulk solid to shear at zero compressive normal stress, and a test can be designed to determine this quantity.
When designing systems involving the flow of bulk solids from hoppers or in chutes, or in fact in any
situation where a bulk solid slides in contact with a fixed boundary surface, the property of adhesion is
important. Whereas cohesion is defined in terms of interparticle attractive forces, adhesion describes the
tendency of solid particles to 'stick' to a containing surface, such as a wall of a hopper or the side and bottom
surfaces of a channel or chute. Quantitative measurements of adhesion between a bulk solid and any desired
type of wall material can be made in similar tests to those used for sliding under specified conditions.
A measurement that is often used, incorrectly, as an indication of flow behaviour is the 'angle of repose' that
the free surface of a bulk material takes up when the gravitational slippage occurs. Certainly, this is a
convenient and usually reproducible characteristic of bulk solids, but for the determination of flow
behaviour of such materials the appropriate tests are those involving the use of some kind of shear cell.

Angle of repose
When a quantity of bulk solid is allowed to form a heap, or when slippage of material occurs so that a
sloping surface is exhibited, the angle of the free surface may take any value up to some maximum which
depends principally upon the nature of the bulk solid concerned. To some extent the value of this maximum
angle also depends upon the way that the sloping surface is formed, but with a standardized test procedure it
is found to be reasonably consistent for a given bulk solid. Thus, it is possible to define an 'angle of repose'
as the limiting natural slope of the free surface of a bulk solid observed during a specified test procedure,
and this can be regarded as a property of the material concerned.

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Many methods have been devised for measuring the angle of repose of bulk solids, but it is important to
recognize that the value determined will depend not only upon the condition of the bulk solid (for example
its moisture content or level of electrostatic charge) but also upon the test procedure adopted and the skill of
the operator. Several different methods are illustrated in Figure 1.20. The most commonly used method
yields a value of 'poured' angle of repose, which is the angle between the horizontal and the sloping side of a
heap of the material poured gently from a funnel on to a flat surface (Figure 1.20a). The technique probably
giving the best repeatability is that illustrated in Figure 2 of, in which a circular platform of known diameter
(typically around 75 mm; 3 inches) is supported over a circular hole in a flat base plate and surrounded by a
cylinder of suitable diameter and height. After carefully filling the cylinder with the bulk solid to be tested,
the operator unplugs the hole beneath the circular platform and, when flow through the hole has ceased,
removes the cylinder. Measurement of the height of the cone of material remaining on the platform then
allows the 'drained' angle of repose to be calculated.
It is reasonable to regard the angle of repose of a bulk solid as crude evidence of its likely flow behaviour, as
follows:
Angle of repose
25-30° Very free-flowing
30-38° Free-flowing
38-45° Fair flowing
45-55° Cohesive
> 55° Very cohesive
However, whilst it is true that this gives a useful qualitative guide to the flow properties of a bulk solid, the
approach should certainly not be relied upon where more appropriate tests are available. In fact, it is
generally safer to treat angle of repose only as an indicator of the contours of heaps of the material. Thus, for
example, the angle of repose of a bulk solid is required in order to determine the ullage space in hoppers or
bins, the cross-sectional area of material transported on a belt conveyor, the surface topography of
stockpiles, and so on.

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 Figure 2. Methods of measurement of angle of repose.

Shear strength
As with continuous material, the application of any force to a bulk solid tending to cause shear deformation
will result in an opposing resistive force. As the magnitude of the applied force is increased, a point will be
reached where the bulk solid begins to deform with the constituent particles sliding relative to one another
(Figure 3). The limiting value of the resistive shear stress (when the bulk solid is on the point of sliding)
may be termed the 'shear strength' of the material. Naturally the magnitude of the consolidating force on the
bulk solid will have a major influence on the shear strength, and other factors having an effect will include
the nature of the particles themselves, the packing arrangement and the prior history of the material.

Figure 3. Crushing of compacted, but unsupported, column of powder

A plot of the relationship between the normal compressive force, F N• and the shear strength, Sr, is
commonly called the 'yield locus' for the bulk solid concerned. A simple and convenient model of the yield
locus, illustrated in Figure 4, is
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in which is the coefficient of internal friction and . is an 'apparent tensile strength', i.e., the value of
(negative) for which the shear strength is zero. The limiting value of for equal to zero (= ) is
often used as the definition of the 'cohesion' of the bulk solid. Thus, for a non-cohesive (free-flowing)
material, = 0 and the yield locus is the straight line

which passes through the origin.

Figure 4. The linear or Coulomb model for shear strength of a particulate material.
A convenient graphical treatment of the relationships between the shear and normal (consolidating) stresses
in bulk solids involves the use of the Mohr circle of stress. To illustrate the application of the Mohr circle,
consider an element of bulk solid subjected to consolidating and shear stresses as shown in Figure 1.23a.
The principal stresses are and acting on planes inclined at angles and to the plane of as
shown in Figure 5b, where

and

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 (a] Compressive and shear stresses (b] principal stresses
Figure 5. Stresses on an element of material.
Figure 6 illustrates the manner in which these stresses can be represented by the use of the Mohr stress
circle. Note that changing the consolidating or the shear stresses on the element of bulk solid will result in
changes in the radius and/or centre of the Mohr circle. Thus, for example, increasing the applied stresses to
the point of sliding of the bulk solid will result in a 'limiting' stress circle, and a series of such limiting
circles at different combinations of consolidating and shear stresses will have an envelope that corresponds
to the so-called 'yield locus' (Figure 7). Note that the limiting Mohr stress circle passing through the origin
defines the 'unconfined yield stress', , which represents the strength of the material at the free surface.
Referring to Figure 3, the unconfined yield stress can be regarded as the force per unit area applied to the top
of the column of powder at the point of collapse.

Figure 6. The Mohr circle of stress.

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 Figure 7. Yield locus for a consolidated bulk solid.
Various data can be determined from the yield locus experiment in which several different values of the
applied normal force is applied so that a graph can be plotted of the maximum (yield) shear stress recorded
against the normal load (Figure 8). This graph is the 'yield locus' for the bulk solid at the tested condition.

Figure 8. A typical yield locus.

Drawing a Mohr circle tangential to the measured yield locus and passing through point M, which
corresponds to the initial consolidating load (when preparing the specimen in the shear cell), gives the major
consolidating principal stress

where A is the area of the shear cell and is the value of the normal load at the point G on Figure 8.

Both of these parameters are of importance when designing for solids flow, The slope of the yield locus at
any point defines the dynamic 'angle of internal friction', , at that condition. On Figure 8 the 'effective
yield locus' is shown. It is the straight line tangential to the Mohr circle for the initial consolidating load and
passing through the origin. The slope of this line defines the 'effective angle of internal friction'. The plot of
shearing force against normal load is termed the 'time yield locus'.

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Arching phenomena
One of the most important practical consequences of the cohesiveness of a bulk solid is that the material can
develop sufficient 'strength' to form a stable 'arch' (or 'bridge' or 'dome') over an opening, even when the
opening is very large in comparison to the particle size of the bulk solid concerned. It is for this reason that a
knowledge of the flow behaviour of bulk solids is essential when designing storage containers and other
components of bulk handling installations. The conditions under which arching can occur, must be
established in order, for example, to design a hopper which will discharge its contents under gravity without
the flow becoming obstructed.
The main factors contributing to the tendency of a bulk solid to form a stable arch across an opening are the
presence of very fine particles or of moisture, both of which increase the cohesiveness of the material.
Compaction during storage also tends to increase the strength of the material and so aggravate the flow
situation.
Two forms of stable arch can occur across an opening. A simple 'mechanical arch' can develop directly as a
result of interlocking of particles that are of large size compared with the opening (Figure 9a). However, this
problem can usually be avoided by ensuring that the hopper outlet is at least ten times the largest particle
size. A 'cohesive arch' (Figure 9b) is somewhat more difficult to predict as it forms as a result of the
consolidation and strength of a cohesive bulk solid and can therefore occur even with materials of very fine
particle size. As engineers involved in designing bulk solids handling equipments, one of our aims is to gain
insights to the conditions necessary for a stable cohesive arch to occur so that reliable techniques for the
design of bins, hoppers and other components could be developed.
The shear strength of a particulate bulk solid is a function of the consolidating pressure. Of special
significance to the ability of a bulk solid to form a cohesive arch is the 'unconfined yield stress' which
represents the strength of the material at the free surface. For a free flowing (non-cohesive) material, such as
dry sand, the unconfined yield stress is zero and therefore a cohesive arch could not occur. The flow
behaviour of a cohesive bulk solid can be conveniently illustrated by a plot of unconfined yield stress
against the major consolidating (normal) stress, this plot being termed the 'Flow Function' of the material. In
order to plot a “Flow Function” a series of yield loci must first be drawn, using results obtained from a shear
tester. Each yield locus determines one point on the flow function. Thus, on Figure 8, a Mohr circle
tangential to the yield locus and passing through the origin gives the unconfined yield stress (point F) and a
second Mohr circle tangential to the yield locus at M, corresponding to the initial consolidating load, gives
the major consolidating stress (point G).

Figure 9. Arching phenomena in bulk solids.

Figure 10 illustrates Flow Functions for three typical bulk particulate solids. Material A is free-flowing,
therefore having no cohesion, and the Flow Function coincides with the horizontal axis. Material B is
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slightly cohesive and material C is more cohesive still; both of these materials acquiring greater strength as
the consolidating stress is increased. Note that other factors such as moisture content, storage time and
vibration can influence the strength of the materials, effectively moving the Flow Function either up or
down.

Figure 10. Typical Flow Functions for bulk solids.

Moisture content
In the large and varied industry concerned with the handling, processing and storage of bulk solids there can
be few areas where the moisture levels of these materials are not important. In addition to causing effects
such as chemical change, deterioration of quality and so on, moisture can have a dramatic influence on the
flow behaviour of bulk solids, and therefore moisture analysis is one of the most frequently performed tasks
in their characterization.
It is usual to express the moisture content in terms of the percentage of water to dry solids. Thus

However, an alternative definition gives moisture content in terms of the percentage of water to wet solids:

A simple method for determining the moisture content of a bulk solid is to weigh a sample of the material
and then place the sample in an oven for an appropriate length of time to dry it thoroughly. The decrease in
the mass of the sample should correspond to the mass of water originally in the sample so that, by the first
definition above, the moisture content can be calculated from:

Where the moisture content is low it matters little which of the above definitions is used.
It should be noted that water may be present in a bulk solid in two forms:
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(i) 'Surface moisture', which is present only on the surfaces of the particles
(ii) 'Inherent moisture', which exists as water of crystallization within the structure of the particles.
When the surface moisture has increased to the point where all the interparticle voids are filled with water,
the bulk solid is said to be 'saturated'.
The method of oven-drying suffers from the disadvantage of taking several hours to perform, and a number
of faster methods of moisture measurement have been developed. These rely upon a number of different
techniques such as infrared absorption, microwave absorption, nuclear magnetic resonance, ultrasonics,
conductivity, gas evolution and chemical methods.
Probably the most widely used methods are still those based on heating the sample to drive off the moisture,
as in the oven technique. A refinement that has recently become popular is the 'moisture balance' which
consists essentially of a conventional electronic top-pan balance adapted so that the pan is contained in an
enclosed chamber. The sample of material on the pan is subjected to infrared radiation and its mass
continually monitored as the moisture is driven off. The time taken to dry a sample of bulk solid for a
moisture analysis can be greatly reduced by using a fluid bed dryer in place of an oven. This method is
particularly suited to heat-sensitive products as it offers a relatively short residence time and a uniform
temperature distribution with an absence of 'hot-spots'.

Explosiveness
Many bulk particulate solids, when dispersed in air to form a dust cloud, constitute a potentially explosive
mixture which may be ignited by a naked flame, a hot surface or an electrical discharge. The range of
products that are hazardous in this respect is quite wide and includes common foodstuffs such as sugar, flour
and cocoa; synthetic materials such as plastics, chemicals and pharmaceuticals; metals such as aluminium
and magnesium; and traditional fuels such as coal and wood. Other products such as sand, alumina and
certain paint pigments are non-combustible and therefore present no danger. Of those products that are
combustible, research has shown that it is only the fraction of the bulk having a particle size less than about
200 that causes the existence of an explosion hazard. The risk of an explosion occurring depends upon
parameters such as product-to-air concentration and minimum ignition temperature and energy. The
'explosiveness' of a bulk solid are dependent on these parameters.