Pulp-froth Interface Detection by Using ERT Linear Sensor

The electrical resistance tomography (ERT) could be utilized as an effective tool for imaging the multi-phase flows, which are frequently met in the flotation and stirring processes. In this paper, a level measurement method that employs ERT and linear sensor has been proposed to determine the interface level of pulp-froth two-phase flows from ERT images. It could estimate the interface by tracing the changes in the conductivity profile. In addition, the sensitivity matrix of linear sensor has been investigated, i.e., by utilizing the prior information of layered conductivity distribution. Numerical simulations showed that, the method could achieve a good estimation for the level of pulp-froth interface, with a maximum relative error of ±6%. Experimental results have also verified a similar accuracy, with a maximum relative error of ±8%.