DEM Solutions, a Scottish company specialising in material flow simulation, has released version 2.3 of its of EDEM simulation software. Utilising EDEM 2.3, the latest version of the company's unique simulation technology platform, companies can substantially reduce the number of physical prototypes and tests required to get a product to market or a process on-stream.
EDEM's physics-based analysis greatly improves the understanding of system fundamentals, enabling engineers to test virtual prototypes of bulk solids handling and processing equipment to help optimise the material flow and to trouble-shoot difficult particle processes - leading to better process design, innovation and improved control over final product quality.
EDEM 2.3 extends features for multi-format CAD file import and automatic meshing, allowing users to manipulate geometry components such as chutes, baffles, mixing blades, and other structures in imported CAD models of equipment. Users can now directly modify, translate, and rotate CAD model elements within EDEM - without going back to the original CAD model. The software also offers viewing of models with perspective or orthographic projection, and improved camera control and image rendering functions increase the flexibility, speed, and ease of visualising complex models. The latest version's visualisation features provide excellent results when generating videos to highlight specific aspects of equipment performance for use in engineering analysis, as well as for product marketing and sales presentations.
The company states that users of EDEM 2.3 will find it easier to visualise the effect of interaction between bulk particles and equipment surfaces. Particle-Structure Interactions (PSI) such as impact loads, surface pressure, and charge distribution can be visualised on all equipment surfaces - even those with complex shapes – to help users identify problems areas and explore the effects of changes in design and process conditions.
In version 2.3, the EDEM API has been developed to increase the flexibility and extensibility of the software. In addition to customisable particle properties, it is now possible to associate any user-defined attribute with any model element – particle or geometry – at the level of a contact event, the equipment, or globally within a simulation. These user-defined attributes or variables can be dynamically updated during a simulation from models implemented using user-defined Libraries or linked to external models and third party solvers coupled with EDEM in a multi-physics solution. This powerful capability enables development of solutions for highly complex processes involving particles.
