DEM analysis of heat generation and transfer during granular flow in a rotating drum

In many granular material handling processes, heat generation, and subsequent temperature rise, due to contacts between particles and surfaces is common. Aiming to explore this phenomenon, friction-induced heat generation and heat transfer models are developed and implemented into a Discrete Element Method (DEM) in this paper. The DEM models are validated qualitatively for the temperature distribution pattern and quantitatively for the evolution of particle temperature rise using data obtained experimentally. Moreover, the temperature distribution of the drum end plates obtained in the simulations shows the same annulus pattern observed in experiments. It is also found that increasing the rotation speed of the drum leads to an increase in the annular heated region of drum and in the net heat that particles obtain. In addition, a higher rotation speed leads to higher absolute fluctuations and lower relative variability of particle temperature.