Pore cross-talk in colloidal filtration
Abstract
Blockage of pores by particles is found in many processes, including filtration and oil extraction. We present filtration experiments through a linear array of ten channels with one dimension which is sub-micron, through which a dilute dispersion of Brownian polystyrene spheres flows under the action of a fixed pressure drop. The growth rate of a clog formed by particles at a pore entrance systematically increases with the number of already saturated (entirely clogged) pores, indicating that there is an interaction or "cross-talk" between the pores. This observation is interpreted based on a phenomenological model, stating that a diffusive redistribution of particles occurs along the membrane, from clogged to free pores. This one-dimensional model could be extended to two-dimensional membranes.
Cite
@article{arxiv.1711.10881,
title = {Pore cross-talk in colloidal filtration},
author = {Olivier Liot and Akash Singh and Patrice Bacchin and Paul Duru and Jeffrey F. Morris and Pierre Joseph},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1711.10881},
year = {2018}
}