The Forge 2024  - November 12 - 13, 2024

About The Forge

The Forge, organised by the Particle Characterisation Interest Group of the Royal Society of Chemistry, is a unique particle science conference focused on inspiration and knowledge sharing among early-career scientists and experts alike. Unlike traditional conferences, The Forge blends technical lectures with a personal touch: speakers are encouraged not only to present their research but also to share the personal motivations and passions that drive their work. This approach aims to spark enthusiasm and inspire all attendees.

This year, a special session on instrumentation, led by field experts, will allow attendees to present, discuss, and delve deeper into particle characterization techniques with hands-on guidance and expert insights.

Presentation - Evaluation of powder triboelectric properties: a must have for material optimization

12 November at 16:10

Filip Francqui, Managing Director at Granutools, will delve into the challenges and solutions surrounding charge buildup in powder processing, a common issue in industries handling particulate materials. During processing, powders can accumulate electrostatic charges due to tribocharging, or frictional contact between particles, which can lead to process disruptions like clogged pipes, agglomerated particles, and uneven particle size distribution. These issues can hinder productivity, require costly cleaning, and even increase the risk of dust explosions in certain applications.

In the pharmaceutical industry, where precision and continuity in manufacturing are paramount, controlling tribocharging becomes critical. This presentation will introduce the GranuCharge, Granutools' innovative solution for assessing a powder’s tendency to accumulate electrostatic charges. This instrument measures the net charge in powders before and after flow through various pipe materials, simulating real processing environments. By altering the pipe materials, users can understand how different surfaces influence charge buildup, enabling the prediction of processing behavior and facilitating the design of optimized, more efficient production lines.

Through real-world case studies, M. Francqui will illustrate how GranuCharge’s data aids in material optimization and process improvement, providing insights that help formulators and engineers foresee tribocharging issues early in the development stage, thus saving time and cost in production.

Presentation - Linking Powder Flowability Measurements to Spread Layer Quality Metrics in Additive Manufacturing via DEM

12 November at 16:25

Additionally, Benjamin Jenkins will showcase the exciting collaboration between the University of Birmingham and Granutools in his presentation “Linking Powder Flowability Measurements to Spread Layer Quality Metrics in Additive Manufacturing via DEM”.

For more information, visit their website.