Interaction between dual spherical particles during settling in fluid

Settling of solid particles in the fluid is one of the most basic forms of sediment transport. However, due to the complex particle–particle and particle–fluid interactions, the mechanism of settling is not yet fully understood. This study focuses on characterizing the dynamics of dual particles settling side by side. Both settling experiments and simulations are conducted with different initial spacings between particles and Reynolds numbers (Re). The range of Re is from 30 to 300, which corresponds to the transition zone between the Stokes and the Newton regime. Particle tracking velocimetry and particle image velocimetry are used in the experiments to determine particles’ trajectories and velocity fields around particles. A new electromagnetic release device is manufactured, which ensures accurate control of the initial condition. Together with the experiments, settling processes of particles are simulated based on discrete element–lattice Boltzmann method to investigate detailed flow structures. The results show that no attraction exists between particles when released simultaneously side by side. The repulsion between the two particles is a result of the asymmetry between the inside and outside vortices, and this repulsion will vanish when the initial spacing exceeds 5 particle diameters. Depending on the repulsion between particles, the settling process can be divided into three stages. The results also demonstrate that the initial spacing of the particles and Re are the two key parameters in the determination of the final settling velocity and separation distance. Their influence can be separated into two phase regimes depending on a critical Re (≈60), which is consistent with the one for the appearance of the Karman vortex street. In regime I (Re < 60), the settling process is dominated by viscous effects, and the effect of vortex interaction starts to take dominance in regime II (Re > 60). Overall, small initial spacing and large Re lead to strong repulsion between particles.