Paper Number
PO5 My Program
Session
Poster Session
Title
Bubble-fiber interactions in multiphase flow: A pathway to sustainable paper manufacturing
Presentation Date and Time
October 22, 2025 (Wednesday) 6:30
Track / Room
Poster Session / Sweeney Ballroom E+F
Authors
- McMaster, Anthony (Sandia National Laboratories, Energetics, Multiphase, & Soft Matter R&D)
- Roberts, Christine C. (Sandia National Laboratories)
- Halls, Benjamin (Sandia National Laboratories, Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science)
Author and Affiliation Lines
Anthony McMaster, Christine C. Roberts and Benjamin Halls
Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM
Speaker / Presenter
McMaster, Anthony
Keywords
experimental methods; industrial applications; surfactants; sustainability
Text of Abstract
In a 2014 report, the DOE recognized the paper industry as the third largest consumer of energy in the United States, accounting for 13% of the manufacturing energy consumed nationally. Because water is the predominate carrier fluid for paper manufacturing, evaporative drying at the end of the process can account for 2/3 of paper making energy consumption. Accordingly, fiber foams, where the carrier fluid is a bubbly foam, present a path for a predicted 10%-40% energy savings, without sacrificing product quality. To inform industrial processes, a pressure driven pipe flow apparatus is designed and used to simulate the paper making process. A representative fiber foam made of aqueous sodium dodecyl sulfate is examined as a function of gas volume fractions (20% to 80%) and fiber content (0% to 2%). Constitutive models for fiber-laden foam will subsequently inform computational models for designing nozzles and processes that will demonstrate the utility of this carrier fluid for the paper making industry.