Increasing the location rate of positron emission particle tracking (PEPT) measurements for froth flotation

A non-invasive technique named positron emission particle tracking (PEPT) is used to study the dynamics of mineral particles found in froth flotation. High frequency tracking is required to fully resolve turbulent flow paths with highly fluctuating velocity components. Tracking frequency is also called “location rate”, which is the number of tracked locations per second. A time interpolation algorithm was implemented on the raw data of a PEPT measurement to increase the effective location rate of PEPT data. The algorithm was validated with Monte-Carlo simulations of the Siemens ECAT “EXACT3D” HR++ PET scanner at PEPT Cape Town (University of Cape Town). The paths generated from the simulated data with improved timing information had an order of magnitude lower uncertainty in both the position and time components of a location measurement. The algorithm was then applied to PEPT experiments with freely moving particles in a laboratory scale flotation vessel to demonstrate the impact of tracking with higher fidelity.