Assessing the homogeneity of an alumina/zircon powder mixture at various scales by scanning electron microscopy

Martin Giraud (1, 2) , S. Vaudez (1) , Cendrine Gatumel (2) , G. Bernard-Granger (1) , Henri Berthiaux (2)

1 CEA-DES (ex-DEN) - CEA-Direction des Energies (ex-Direction de l'Energie Nucléaire)
2 RAPSODEE - Centre de recherche d'Albi en génie des procédés des solides divisés, de l'énergie et de l'environnement

Powder mixing is a fundamentally important unit operation in industries handling powders. The purpose of such an operation is to reach a given homogeneity, which has to be defined at a certain scale, the observation scale, in order to be relevant. This scale is defined by the final product’s requirements. Moreover, the homogeneity of a mixture can hardly be known exactly, and its assessment is always a scientific issue due to theoretical and practical limitations.

Keywords: Roller ball Mill; Powder mixing; Homogeneity; Sampling; Image analysis

Domains: Physics [physics]; Nuclear Experiment [nucl-ex]; Physics [physics]; Nuclear Theory [nucl-th]

Martin Giraud, S. Vaudez, Cendrine Gatumel, G. Bernard-Granger, Henri Berthiaux. Assessing the homogeneity of an alumina/zircon powder mixture at various scales by scanning electron microscopy. PACRIM 13 - The 13rd Pacific Rim Conference of Ceramic Societies, Oct 2019, Okinawa, Japan. ⟨cea-02614141⟩