Simulation disc stirrer with round bottom

The simulation of mixing in a disc stirrer with round bottom can be accurately performed using NOGRID points CFD software. Optimize your mixing process with this powerful tool, which is widely used in the chemical, pharmaceutical, food, and health care industries - especially where achieving  homogeneous mixing in round-bottom vessels is crucial.

Use of disc stirrers 

The inclined blade or disc stirrer  featured in this case study is a tangentially conveying stirrer type, typically used for low-viscosity media. The container designs often vary in terms of slenderness and bottom shape. This particular stirrer has a round (drum-shaped) bottom, making it suitable for pressure-resistant stirring processes. In addition, fluid-dynamic dead zones are avoided due to the smooth, continuous transition between the bottom and the cylindrical container wall of the container.

Containers with low slenderness ratios, as in this case, are generally designed for small-volume applications. The disc stirrer does not generate a strong axial conveying effect, as the contents of the container are primarily moved tangentially. However, a vortex (trombe) still forms as a result of the mixing action.

Mixing plays a crucial role in the healthcare industry and is involved in processes such as the dispersion of two or more liquid, powdery, or gaseous components, deagglomeration to prevent lump formation, and the homogenization of mixtures.  

Improve product performance and reduce costs

Mixing simulation can provide valuable insights into the flow behavior within an agitator, enabling quick identification of potential improvements in design and operating parameters. This helps enhance product performance while reducing both production and maintenance costs.

Compute any conceivable agitator geometry with mixing simulation

NOGRID provides a broad range of rheology models, including those commonly used in the chemical industry. Its unique capability to handle moving parts within the fluid domain enables the simulation of any conceivable agitator geometry and operating mode, such as

• rotating and counterwise rotating agitator blades, possibly moving up and down periodically at the same time
• overlapping operation ranges of moving parts as found in twin-screw agitators
• free surfaces at inlets or for different fluid levels or for fast rotating agitators with high centrifugal forces

Benefit of very short computation time

The particular strengths of NOGRID's meshless CFD software are the rapid preprocessing (no grid generation is required) and the outstanding short computation times, even for complex moving parts like those typically found in agitators.

Capabilities of NOGRID software

NOGRID combines the ability to handle free surface flows and moving parts within the domain. This leads to the following advantages:

• computation is in full 3D solving complete Navier-Stokes-Equations
• easy and intuitive setup mixing cases
• free definable material properties by equations or curves,
• evaluation of the mixing quality
• open or closed domains including inflow and outflow areas (non-batch mode)
• moving of the mixers in any direction