Coarse-grained discrete element simulation of particle flow and mixing in a vertical high-shear mixer

Abstract There is a huge demand for the development of a coarse-grained model of a discrete element method (DEM) to perform a numerical simulation of a high-shear mixer with large-scale production. Recently, we developed a coarse-grained method for granular shear flow (CGSF) for coarse-graining dense granular shear flow. Using the CGSF, we here perform a coarse-grained DEM simulation of a vertical high-shear mixer at different coarse-graining ratios and different rotational speeds of the impeller. The simulation results with the CGSF are quite similar to those in the original case in terms of the particle velocity distribution, geometry of the moving powder bed, and particle mixing behavior. The CGSF is effective at various rotational speeds of the impeller. In particular, the CGSF exhibits high accuracy under a fully developed granular shear flow at a high rotational speed. We demonstrate the effectiveness of CGSF for coarse-grained DEM simulation of a high-shear mixer.