Particulate solids include a range of small materials (from millimeters to nanometers) of varying composition and complexity (powders, powder mixtures, coated particles, composite particles, polymers, biomass, etc.). They are used in the manufacture of a wide range of finished products in many industrial sectors (pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, agri-food, chemicals, energy, etc.). The solids studied at RAPSODEE range from waste/biomass and other industrial by-products to active pharmaceutical ingredients, cosmetic or food powders and polymers.
RAPSODEE focuses on:
- the value chain, from the production of organic and inorganic solids to their processing and shaping by means of various processes to structure and/or functionalize them. The properties sought are efficacy (bioavailability, chemical reactivity, absorption capacity, catalytic effect, etc.), granular texture, flowability, homogeneity and mechanical strength
- and their conversion into energy carriers (CH4 , H2 , heat, etc.).
Scientific objectives
To control processes, optimize yields and reduce development times for new processes and products, the main challenges are:
- The development of coupled experimental and numerical methods and tools for characterizing the properties of divided solids to describe the "material properties - process parameters – end-product properties" relationships
- the characterization of solids and the development of specific characterization methods (chemical, physical, thermal, morphological, etc.), online or upstream and downstream of the unit operation
- the understanding and prediction of their transformation and structuring in the process, as a function of the operating conditions
- the understanding and prediction of their functionality in terms of their response to mechanical, physicochemical and/or chemical stresses in an environment representative of the intended use