Abstract
With the fast development of nano technologies, some of the applications have been recently employed for high-tech products in mass production as particle sizes are being miniaturized; for example, ink for inkjet printers and fabric dyes are the typical ones. However, due to the high surface energy characteristics of nano materials, the separation of raw materials and grinding media has become the bottleneck during mass production. The main objective of this thesis is to develop a novel separation method for preparing nano-particle mixtures such that the magnetic grinding fillers can be separated via electromagnetic forces from the suspensions without disturbing the dispersed state ready for down-stream packaging. At first, literature survey has been conducted for providing patent analysis and intellectual properties reviews. The basic design parameters have been rendered after the preliminary survey. In theoretical analysis, the required magnetic forces for holding steel-balls immersed in steady-state and laminar flow have been calculated via hydrostatic force-balance analysis. Then, the magnetic field generated by electric magnets has been simulated by making use of commercial magnetic field analysis packages. Then, a down-scaled experimental apparatus was built in-house for verification and comparison purposes. By going through pre-selected processes for design, analysis, simulation and experimentation, the current magnetic separation system has fulfilled the design expectation. Finally, the method will be promising for future applications in the nano materials industry. Keywords: Nano Mixing, Magnetic Separation, Electromagnetic Magnets.