Efficient and Rapid Mixing of Highly Viscous Fluids

Key Problem and Market Opportunity

Conventionally, viscous fluids are mixed with mechanical methods like impellers and the mixing may be enhanced by piezoelectric disk or viscous fingering effect
The energy consumption and the mixing time needed increase sharply with the viscosity of the fluids
Heat transfer during such mechanical mixing is generally poor and it may cause damage to the ingredients, such as enzymes, being mixed
There is a constant demand of mixing equipment by the food and beverage, the pharmaceutical and the cosmetic industry

Key Advantages of the Technology

A novel method to mix two or more viscous fluids using a very simple setup at industry scale by inducing them to fold using electric field
With the voltage applied, the co-flow viscous fluids start to fold as shown in Figure 1(b)
The applied electric field exerts electric stress on the surface of viscous fluids, changing the geometry and the dynamics of the viscous fluids

	Conventional Mechanical Mixer	This Invention
Method	By mechanical stirring of the two viscous fluids using impellers	By folding two or more jets of the viscous fluids using electric field
Energy consumption	✗ High	✓ Low
Equipment Maintenance	✗ High	✓ Low
Heat Generation	✗ High Poor heat transfer of highly viscous fluid and so result in uneven temperature at different locations. This also lead to uneven mixing	✓ Low No stirring, no friction
Ability to preserve the ingredients being mixed	✗ Low	✓ High
Mixing Speed	✗ Slow	✓ Fast

Potential Product and Services

The high-performance mixing equipment may be employed by the food industry to improve quality, texture and taste
Other potential mixing applications include chemical process, pharmaceutical, beverage, cosmetics and personal care, etc

Development Status and IP Strength

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