Influence of interparticle forces on selective wet agglomeration

The influence of interparticle forces between primary particles, which include interaction force between dispersed particles in liquid calculated by DLVO theory and two kinds of forces caused by a liquid bridge of bridging liquid between particles, on selective wet agglomeration was investigated on the basis of the relationships between the results of separation efficiency obtained in author’s previous study and these interparticle forces. The first step of selective wet agglomeration is the collision between bridging liquid droplets and objective particles to be agglomerated. This collision is mainly influenced by the interparticle force calculated by DLVO theory. Incorporation of two objective particles, the second step in the agglomeration process, is influenced by liquid bridge force between objective particles. Growth to pellet-type agglomerates, the third step in the agglomeration process, is thought to be influenced mainly by aggregation force in the agglomerates by entry suction potential. The results of this study showed that selective wet agglomeration under the experimental conditions used in this study is influenced greatly by liquid bridge force and entry suction potential, which play major roles in the second step and third step, respectively, of the selective wet agglomeration process.