Powder Flow 2009, a one-day conference held at the Royal Society of Chemistry's (RSC) headquarters in London, has just finished.
It provided a forum to help develop a better understanding of powder flow.
It was organised by the Formulation Science and Technology Group (FTSG) of the RSC, in partnership with Freeman Technology and in association with Dechema.
A capacity audience at the event listened to presentations given by leaders from industry and academia.
Posters and exhibits sat alongside the conference sessions and there were opportunities to network with industrial and academic researchers.
The speakers included Prof Antonio Castellanos from Seville University, whose plenary lecture covered recent research into the influence of interparticle forces on fluidisation behaviour.
Emeritus Prof Derek Geldart, one of the pioneers of fluidisation technology, also made an appearance.
Throughout the day, powder characterisation techniques were a key area of discussion, from traditional shear testing to more modern approaches such as indentation testing, dynamic powder rheometry and laser imaging techniques, all designed to give greater insight into powder behaviour.
The issue of electrostatics and their impact on powder flow was discussed in some detail, while an application-focused presentation about dry-powder inhalers provided a practical demonstration of the relevance of powder-flow measurements.
