Post-doctorate position at IFPEN-Lyon (France) 
“CFD-DEM modeling of Pneumatic Transport of non-spherical particles”

Location: 
IFP Energies nouvelles (Solaize, Rhône, France), Process Design and Modeling 
Division – Chemical Engineering and Technology Department (R124)
Supervisor / Contact:

Dr. Mathieu Morin and Dr. Jean-Lou Pierson
Chemical Engineering and Technology Department
IFP Energies nouvelles - Etablissement de Lyon
Rond-point de l'échangeur de Solaize
BP 3
69360 Solaize

Tel: 04 37 70 34 53
Mail: mathieu.morin@ifpen.fr; jean-lou.pierson@ifpen.fr

Topic / position:
Waste recovery is one of the main pillars of the energy transition. The energy 
needs associated with environmental issues require the use of new energy sources 
and the development of eco-efficient processes for recycling waste. In this 
context, thermal and/or catalytic solid waste treatment processes (urban, 
biomass or plastics) have become an essential step in their recovery process in 
a sustainable development and circular economy approach. The most common 
operations in bulk material processing and handling are dosing, weighing, 
drying, grinding, sieving, mixing, storage and conditioning. In the vast 
majority of cases, these operations are linked together by pneumatic conveying 
which becomes a key step in the process.

The PHOBARS project (Pneumatic Handling Of Bio And Recycled Solids) is a 
collaboration between UTC (University of Technology of Compiègne), Neu-JKF 
Process and IFPEN which aims at studying the pneumatic transport of non-
spherical powders resulting from plastic wastes or second-generation biomasses. 
Those particles are more challenging to convey and were less investigated in the 
literature. A lack of knowledge on the relationship among the properties of 
particles, the operating conditions, the dimensions and configuration of the 
installations, and the performance of the operation results in difficulty of 
design of transport lines. There is therefore a need to better understand and 
model the behaviour of these non-spherical powders during pneumatic transport in 
order to better control and optimize their implementation and transformation 
processes.

As a part of the project, multi-scale modelling of experimental results 
according to different approaches such as Euler-Euler (TFM), Euler-Lagrange 
(DEM-CFD) or hybrid Euler-Lagrange (Multi-Phase-Particle in Cell, MP-PIC), is 
utilized to take into account the effect of gas/particle and particle/particle 
interactions on transport dynamics.

CFD-DEM simulations of pneumatic conveying are increasingly used for modelling 
and analyzing key phenomena such as flow regimes and their transitions, particle 
attrition, electrostatic forces, etc. Despite the still very limited number of 
particles that can be treated by this approach, it remains the only one capable 
of giving a detailed description of the hydrodynamics of the operation by 
integrating all the interactions which take place within the system. 

The objective of this postdoc project is to perform CFD-DEM simulations to study 
the effect of particles shape and electrostatic phenomena on pneumatic transport 
of solids. The results will be compared to experimental data with the aim of 
developing numerical models capable of predicting gas/solid flow behaviour with 
various types of non-spherical solids and determining at which conditions the 
common TFM or MP-PIC approaches may be used without losing significant 
information on the flow dynamics. Phase diagrams of pneumatic conveying (ΔP vs. 
gas velocity for different solid flow rates) will then be plotted. Special 
attention will be paid to the implementation of non-spherical forces model to 
properly consider the hydrodynamic interactions between the fluid and the 
particles. The simulation will be performed for vertical and horizontal flow. 
The average data relative to ΔP, particle velocity, concentration, particle-
particle and particle-wall forces will be collected for each simulation. In 
addition to phase diagrams, further effort will be dedicated to find the common 
properties/parameters that define the transition from one flow regime to the 
other as function of the main dimensionless parameters.

Candidate profile:
The candidate should have a PhD in Chemical or Mechanical Engineering with 
knowledge of multiphase flow. Extensive experience with CFD-DEM is required 
(LIGGGHTS, OpenFOAM, …)

Duration and remuneration :
1.5 year contract. Gross salary of around 3150 euros/month + welcome bonus.

To Apply:
Please send your Resume and a Motivational letter