Structure and density of deposits formed on filter fibers by inertial particle deposition and bounce

The morphology and packing density of particle deposits formed by accumulation on thin steel fibers suspended in an aerosol stream were studied by confocal microscopy. Measurements were made with electrically neutral polystyrene spheres (dP=1.3, 2.0, 2.6 and 5.2 μm) as a function of flow velocity (v=0.7–5 m/s) and fiber diameters (dF=8 and 30 μm). Deposition under these conditions was dominated by inertia (Stokes number St=0.3–9), interception (interception parameter R=0.04–0.35) and particle bounce, with a negligible contribution from diffusion.The experiments show a systematic transition of deposit morphologies with a newly introduced particle bounce parameter β∼St/R, where St and R are based on the diameter dF of the bare fiber. Compact, forward facing deposit structures dominate in case of significant particle bounce (i.e. for β>β⁎, where β* represents the critical conditions for the onset of bounce on the bare fiber). Dendritic structures with pronounced sideways branching are formed at β<β*. R is of relatively little influence as an independent parameter, probably because interception occurs mostly on preexisting deposit structures with dimensions in the order of dP.The mean porosity ε of the deposit structures was determined on the basis of contour measurements by confocal microscopy, in combination with data on the accumulated particle volume per unit fiber length (known accurately from a previous paper by Kasper, Schollmeier, Meyer, and Hoferer (2009). Once noticeable deposits had formed, ε was found to attain stable values between 0.80 at dP=1.3 μm and 0.55 at dp=5.2 μm.