Many economically valuable ores must be processed after raw mining. These include: titanium dioxide used as a white pigment in paint or as a strategic metal (Ti), polycrystalline silicon in ultrahigh purity form used in photovoltaic (PV) panels and semiconductors,  zirconium dioxide for nuclear fuel rod cladding, as well as many other applications. The processing of such ores encompasses a wide range of gas-solids and liquid-solids flow processes. Below are some select examples of fluid-particle modeling pertinent to ore processing for which Barracuda has already been successfully applied.

Reactor Components → Issues

• Sparger or risers → jet penetration / wear / location / number / geometry
• Cyclones → efficiency / pressure balance / flooding / reliability
• Feedline / Valves / Withdrawal → location, wear, number
• Transfer Lines → size / orientation / wear / internals

Reactor Phenomena

• Fluidization quality: bubbling to turbulent regimes
• Gas bypassing or streaming in the bed
• Particle attrition / agglomeration
• Gas / solids contacting efficiency
• Bed average density, DP/L
• Segregation of size/materials
• Elutriation rate / PSD
• TDH / freeboard densities
• Bed circulation rates
• Chemical Reactions
• Thermal performance of fluid / solids / coils

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