Simulation and Analysis of the Discharge Flow of Persian Lilac Fruit using Discrete Element Method

Discrete element method has been identified as a suitable method for studying the flow of granular materials. In this research, the motion of Persian lilac fruit was initially investigated experimentally in a slopped hopper and then it was simulated using discrete element method. The experiments were carried out on the basis of factorial design with two factors of height and discharge area, each at four levels. The ANOVA tests indicated that the height of the fruits in the hopper and the surface area of the discharge and their interaction had a significant effect on the outflow of the fruits. The developed regression equation between the mass flow rate and discharge area and the interaction of discharge area and height was linear (R2 = 0.99), however, height of the fruits in the hopper had a negative impact on the discharge rate. The simulation results indicated that and the outlet size, the discharge flow and the output velocity increase, but they did not exactly follow the fluid flow relationships. The effect of fruits friction showed that the discharge rate increased with decreasing internal friction. In general, comparing the simulation results with laboratory tests showed that the discrete element method was well able to simulate the flow of particles within and through the hopper.