A novel apparatus for particle-particle single-contact electrification experiments
Autor(in); Institution
Obukohwo, Otome; Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, CANADA
Jantac, Simon; 3.5, Explosionsschutz in der Energietechnik, PTB-Braunschweig
Sowinski, Andrew; Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, CANADA
Mehrani, Poupak; Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, CANADA
Grosshans, Holger; 3.5, Explosionsschutz in der Energietechnik, PTB-Braunschweig; Institute of Apparatus and Environmental Technology, Otto von Guericke University of Magdeburg, Magdeburg, GERMANY
The experiment of a single contact between two sub-centimeter high-speed particles is often difficult to execute, especially if the collision must be physically and electrically isolated, as is the case for triboelectrification studies. Apparatuses designed for this type of experiment fall short of providing high-speed isolated collisions with a high probability of contact. In this article, we propose a novel apparatus that combines pneumatic conveying and acoustic levitation to provide an electrically and physically isolated, high impact speed collision between two sub-centimeter particles with a collision success rate of 93%. We can vary the pre-contact charge, material, and size of both particles, and the impact speed and angle. Test results show that triboelectrification of insulator particles is not solely driven by contact potential difference; it is a stochastic process that requires large datasets to resolve and understand. Our new apparatus can efficiently generate these datasets and provide new insights into the stochastic nature of triboelectrification, and the effect of each of the collision parameters mentioned earlier on particle-particle triboelectrification
Forschungsprojekt
PowFEct
Förderinformationen (1)
Förderername: European Research Council (ERC)
Förderer ID: 0000 0000 8923 0953
Förderer ID Typ: ISNI
Förderprogramm: H2020
Förderungsnummer: 947606
Zitierung
Obukohwo, O., Jantac, S., Sowinski, A., Mehrani, P., & Grosshans, H. (2026). A novel apparatus for particle-particle single-contact electrification experiments. Powder Technology, 474, 1–7. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.powtec.2026.122259
