Computational approaches to granular segregation in tumbling blenders

We discuss cellular automata (CA) simulations of granular segregation in several different tumbling blenders, including simple rotating drums, V-blender shells, drums tumbling end-over-end and double-cones. In all cases, simplified CA generates data that agree surprisingly well with companion experiments. This implies that a predictive understanding of segregation mechanisms in a wide variety of problems may be achievable using relatively simple algorithms.