Ultrasound-assisted microfeeding of fine powders

Ultrasonic microfeeding of powders is a new and promising method for use in solid freeforming and pharmaceutical dosing. In this work, computer-controlled microfeeding systems using ultrasonic vibration of a capillary were built. A wide range of controlled, stable rates of flow and switching control were achieved in the acoustic vibration system and uniform powder doses were obtained in the ultrasonic system. Experimental results show that nozzle diameter, transmission fluid depth, waveform, voltage amplitude, frequency and oscillation duration all influence the dose mass. Among these factors, nozzle diameter, voltage amplitude and oscillation duration can be best used to control the dose mass. An artificial neural network (ANN) technique was applied to predict the dose mass. Based on these research results, four types of microfeeding were proposed.