Wind tunnel study of twelve dust samples by large particle size

Abstract

Due to the lack of data by large dust and sand particle, the fluid dynamics characteristics, hence the collection efficiencies of different twelve dust samplers have been experimentally investigated. Wind tunnel tests were carried out at wind velocities ranging from 1 up to 5.5 ms−1. As a large solid particle of 0.5 and 1 mm in diameter, Polystyrene pellets called STYRO Beads or polystyrene sphere were used instead of sand or dust. The results demonstrate that the collection efficiency is relatively acceptable only of eight tested sampler and lie between 60 and 80% depending on the wind velocity and particle size. These samplers are: the Cox Sand Catcher (CSC), the British Standard Directional Dust Gauge (BSD), the Big Spring Number Eight (BSNE), the Suspended Sediment Trap (SUSTRA), the Modified Wilson and Cooke (MWAC), the Wedge Dust Flux Gauge (WDFG), the Model Series Number 680 (SIERRA) and the Pollet Catcher (POLCA). Generally they can be slightly recommended as suitable dust samplers but with collecting error of 20 up to 40%. However the BSNE verify the best performance with a catching error of about 20% and can be with caution selected as a suitable dust sampler. Quite the contrary, the other four tested samplers which are the Marble Dust Collector (MDCO), the United States Geological Survey (USGS), the Inverted Frisbee Sampler (IFS) and the Inverted Frisbee Shaped Collecting Bowl (IFSCB) cannot be recommended due to their very low collection efficiency of 5 up to 40%. In total the efficiency of sampler may be below 0.5, depending on the frictional losses (caused by the sampler geometry) in the fluid and the particle's motion, and on the intensity of airflow acceleration near the sampler inlet. Therefore, the literature data of dust are defective and insufficient. To avoid false collecting data and hence inaccurate mass flux modeling, the geometry of the dust sampler should be considered and furthermore improved.