Um estudo sobre a filtragem utilizando meios porosos com propriedades elétricas

Abstract

Filtering is a technique that retains suspended particles in a fluid through a filtering medium. It is a process found in nature and human devices, based on particle separation by size or removal through aggregation or retention. Research in the field of filtering is active and important in various fields such as chemical engineering, petroleum geophysics, biophysics, and medicine. Physical filters can be simulated using porous media with stochastic structures. Investigating the behavior of particles in the filter in relation to the medium is essential to understand its functioning and propose improvements in efficiency. In this study, we analyzed the transport of particles in different disordered porous media using Newtonian fluids for particle flow and transport. We examined the behavior of particles transported by the fluid, considering different types of particle/fluid and structure/particle interactions. When the suspended particles do not interact electrically with the porous medium, we observed an exponential decrease in particle density along the filter, varying with the Stokes number (St). When the filter is electrically charged, we observed that the behavior of particles is governed by the competition between the interaction potential (Yukawa potential) and the fluid velocity field in which the particle is embedded, which alters the density of the retained material in the filter. This analysis considers parameters that control the system's dynamics, such as the intensity of the interaction potential between particles and the porous medium, the range of this electrical interaction, flow velocity, and Stokes number.