Computation of the interaction of electrically charged particles

In industrial applications, the dynamics of particles is frequently controlled through electrical charges, e.g. in electrostatic precipitators or during powder coating. However, the electrification of particulates can also cause the formation of deposits, hazardous sparks and dust explosions. The objective of our work is to propose a new computational model which captures accurately the dynamics of particles during their approximation. This model focuses especially on the precise prediction of the contribution of the electrostatic and collisional forces whose time-scales are typically much smaller than the numerical time-step used to compute forces other than Coulomb force. To this end, binary particle interaction is calculated through the implementation of a sub-grid model and local refinement of the time-step. In our talk we present results concerning binary and multiple particle interaction. Further, we elaborate on the conditions, in terms of particle charges and sizes, for which our model is superior to previously employed approaches.