Powder Flow I: Measuring Powder Flowability & Its
 Applications - A Hands-On Design-Oriented Workshop
Nashville, TN • June 20-21, 2011 •Registration form
An intense 2-day powder flow & handling workshop, for those involved in industrial chemical, pharmaceutical or solids processing issues in which powder flow properties are critical, including material transfer/handling, segregation, feeding and filling operations, encapsulation, roll pressing and tabletting. This course lays the groundwork for understanding the unique nature of powder flow properties, and its impact on processing and compaction, through team design problems and first hand powder flow lab measurements by shear cell, permeability cell, fluidization and segregation testing. The course is equally of interest to those involved in formulations, bulk drug production, or quality control, who wish to engineer or control powder flow properties to minimize handling problems or improve product quality.

Powder Flow II: Industrial Solids Handling & Mixing - Plant Design Principles & Operation
Nashville, TN • June 22-23, 2011 •Registration form • New Course!
By popular request, a new follow-on companion workshop treating industrial applications of the powder flow principles of Powder Flow I and solids mixing, which delves into commonly encountered design & operational issues of powder handling and blending systems.  Topics include unassisted mass/funnel flow discharge; flow promoting devices such as inserts, aeration and vibration; handling difficult powders; feeders and feed control; mechanical and pneumatic conveying of powders; processing of segregating blends; solids blending & mixing, mixer selection and mixture quality.  This course is useful for anyone optimizing current or designing future solids mixing and handling systems. It presumes a requisite knowledge of powder flow principles such as Powder Handling I, or equivalent experience.

An Introduction to Powder Processing
Nashville, TN • June 20-21, 2011 •Registration form • New Course!
A new, first powder technology workshop introducing participants to the unique attributes of powders, contrasted to more well understood liquids, and the impact of these complexities on solids processing.  Topics include powder characterization (particle size, moisture sorption, surface area, surface chemistry, hardness, density); segregation & powder sampling; and an overview of key unit operations of mixing, grinding, agglomeration, classification, fluidization, and drying, as well as solids transport between unit operations.   It is valuable to anyone new to powder processing or current practitioners who have not had the opportunity to learn underlying principles of handling and characterizing powders.

Design & Optimization of Granulation & Compaction Processes
Nashville, TN • June 20-21, 2011 •Registration form
Course content will include principles of agglomeration; demonstrations of characterization techniques and key agglomeration rate process phenomena; design, scale-up & operation of various granulation processes and compaction techniques (fluid-beds, mixers, pans, tabletting, roll pressing, and extrusion).  Interactions between formulation properties and process equipment are particularly emphasized in the course. Course features include scale-up sessions for mixer and fluid-bed granulation, and demonstrations of the impact of stress transmission & lubrication on tabletting and compaction.

Solids Mixing, Blending & Handling
Offered upon request at Powder Schools •Registration form• New Course!
An in depth, two-day course focusing on the mixing, blending, and subsequent handling of powders and their blends.  Course content includes fundamental differences of mixing free-flowing versus cohesive powders; the impact of powder flow characteristics on effective mixing; particle mobility; ordered versus random versus segregated mixes; main mixer types, common combinations, and mixer selection; using mixture variance to measure a mixer’s performance; proper system design to enhance a quality mix; impact of scale of scrutiny on mixture variance; effect of moisture and sprays on mixture variance; proper sampling techniques; fundamental approaches to mixer scale-up; segregation issues and fixes in transporting blends; and related topics in solids handling to maintain mixture quality or aid in reblending. Offered upon sufficient request.

Contacts:
Registration, lodging & course content questions should be directed to:
courses@powdernotes.com • Registration: 615.469.1342 • Fax: 240.524.8482
Additional details regarding conference center can be obtained at: www.evinsmill.com , Tel: 615.269.3740

Downloads:
Registration form: Registration form
Complete syllabus: E&G Powder School Syllabus

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Practicum concept - Offered on sufficient request
To reinforce the learnings and principles of the week's workshops, a structured hands-on practicum is being offered as part of our Powder School. Participation is free for workshop attendees, but is also open for new visitors hoping to gain a first-time exposure to powder handling and processing. Practicum students will work as small groups through a step-by-step, 1/2-day, structured lab of unit operations, and powder characterization tests Friday afternoon, followed by group presentations and discussion of data Saturday morning, ending at 10 am.

Friday lunch & dinner, Saturday breakfast, and lodging are included in the Practicum accomodation fee. Offered upon sufficient request.

Typical Schedule:
Friday morning:
• Arrival and check-in for new attendees
• Lunch at 12:00 pm
Friday: 1:00 - 4:30 pm
• Feed powder particle size by laser diffraction
• High shear mixing, followed by laser diffraction
• Roll pressing, followed by particle size by imaging
• Granulate flow properties by shear & permeability cell
• Blending w/lubricants
• Mass discharge rate through orifice
• Die compaction, and die force measurements
Saturday: 8:00 - 10:00 am
• Group presentations of findings
• Discussion and contrasting of results

Note: Schedule subject to changes and updates. Only offered upon sufficient request.
Registration, lodging & course content questions should be directed to:
courses@powdernotes.com • Registration: 615.469.1342
Registration form for workshops: Registration form
Complete syllabus: E&G Powder School Syllabus


       

Perry's ChE Handbk 8Ed: Solids Processing Sect.
 Section Editor, B.Ennis. 2007, McGraw-Hill (Characterization, Solids Handling & Mixing, Grinding, Granulation, Compaction). 2007, McGraw-Hill.

Handbook of Pharma. Granulation Tech., 2Ed.
 Dilip Parikh (ed.), Taylor & Francis, 2005. Theory of Granulation: An Engineering Perspective. B.Ennis.

The Science & Engineering of Granulation Processes
 James Litster & Bryan Ennis, Kluwer Academic, 2004.

Bryan J. Ennis, Ph.D.
Dr. Bryan J. Ennis is a founder of E&G Associates, Inc. and iPowder Systems.  He has three decades of experience in powder process manufacturing, and has consulted for over 100 clients, including all major US pharmaceutical and consumer products companies and the US Food & Drug Administration. He led granulation research, solids handling, & powder characterization programs of DuPont Engineering, and served as an Adjunct Professor of Vanderbilt Univ.  He received his B.S. (Chemical Engineering) from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute & Ph.D. from The City College of New York.  Dr. Ennis is a founder and previous Technical Vice-Chair of the Particle Technology Forum (PTF) and previous Chair of the Powder Technology Programming Group of the American Institute of Chemical Engineering (AIChE).   Honors include two national AIChE awards for service to the profession, Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst Award (Germany), Stanley Katz Memorial Award (City College of NY), and a Visiting Research Fellow of Delft Technische Hogeschool (Netherlands).  He is the author of several other invited contributions on particle processing, including presentations to National Science Foundation, and Section Editor of Section 21: Solid-Solids Operations & Equipment (Powder Processing) of the Perry's Chemical Engineer's Handbook (8th Ed.) and Section 20: Size Enlargement (7th Ed.); Theory of Granulation: An Engineering Perspective, in Handbook of Pharmaceutical Granulation, 2nd Ed., and The Science & Engineering of Granulation Processes, Kluwer Academic.

James Davis, P.E.
Jim Davis is a Principal Consultant to E&G Associates, and President of Powder Processing Solutions LLC. As a previous solids handling technical leader with Procter & Gamble, he has 26 years of experience  in the optimization, design & startup of powder processing/material handling systems, spanning over 20 countries and 4 continents.  He offers many practical, unique insights for resolving difficult processing problems, and for minimizing design and development costs, from his experience in developing low cost systems for low income, third world markets.  Jim holds a BSc in Mechanical Engineering degree from the University of Cincinnati, and a Professional Engineer’s license from the State of Ohio. He has served on the Executive Committee of the International Fine Particle Research Institute, as Chairman of the ASTM subcommittee on Powder and Bulk Systems, as Chairman of the Powder Handling subcommittee of the Particle Technology Forum of AIChE, and sits on the industrial advisory board for the trade journal Powder & Bulk Engineering.