Analysis of characteristics of electric field-enhanced multi-gradient of solid particles in oil.

Lubricating oil is easily polluted by solid particles, causing it to deteriorate; therefore, solid particles must be separated from the oil. Furthermore, as conventional filtration devices cannot meet both filtration accuracy and service life requirements, an oil and solid separation method for multi-gradient filtration enhanced by an electric field is proposed. A numerical model for multi-gradient separation was established by coupling the governing equations of electric and flow fields, the particle-wall collision equation, and the discrete phase-tracking equation. Enhanced by an electric field, the characteristics of the multi-gradient filtration of solid particles in oil were investigated using finite element method. The effects of the main control parameters on the filtration performance were analyzed. The results indicate that using the electric field-enhanced multi-gradient filtration method can achieve highly efficient separation of solid particles from the oil. When the electric field strength was increased from 0 kV/mm to 2 kV/mm, the deposition concentration of particles was 2.5 times higher and filtration efficiency of the system increased to 97.46%. Additionally, the deposition concentration and filtration efficiency decreased from 0.15 m/s to 0.3 m/s, while gradually increased from 0.3 m/s to 0.5 m/s, for a particle size range of 10–40 µm. [Display omitted] • An oil and solid separation method for multi-gradient filtration enhanced by an electric field was proposed. • A numerical model for multi-gradient separation enhanced by an electric field was established. • Characteristics of electric field-enhanced multi-gradient of solid particles in oil were investigated. • The effects of the main control parameters on the filter efficiency were analyzed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]