STAFF PROFILE
Professor Paul Slatter
Position:
Casual Academic
College / Portfolio:
College of Science, Engineering and Health
School / Department:
School of Engineering
Phone:
+61 3 9925 1830
Email:
paul.slatter@rmit.edu.au
Contact me about:
Research supervision
- BSc (Eng), University of Natal, Durban, South Africa
- MSc (Eng), University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
- PhD, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
- NHD Post School Education, Cape Peninsula University of Technology
Employment history
- 2009 – Current: Professor of Rheology and Fluid Engineering, Director, Rheology and Materials Processing Centre (RMPC).
- 1980 – 2008: Lecturer/Senior Lecturer/Principal Lecturer/Professor, Science and Engineering, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Cape Town, South Africa.
Affiliations / Professional memberships
- Registered as a Professional Engineer (PrEng) (ECSA).
- Fellow of the Southern African Institution of Mining and Metallurgy FSAIMM.
- Fellow of the Water Institute of Southern Africa FWISA
- Fellow of the South African Institution of Civil Engineers FSAICE.
- Member of the Royal Society of South Africa MRSSAf.
- Member of the International Water Association (MIWA) and elected International Secretary of the Management Board of the IWA Specialist Group on Sludge Management (1999-2003).
Areas of research and consulting expertise
Sludge and Slurry Transport, Rheology, Multiphase Mixtures, Complex Flow Processes, Emulsions, Nanoparticles
Professional experience
- Professor of Rheology and Fluid Engineering (Jan 2009- ), Director: Rheology and Materials Processing Centre (Jan 2009 - ), School of Civil, Environmental and Chemical Engineering, RMIT University, 124 La Trobe St, Melbourne, Vic, 3000. AUSTRALIA.
- Teaching: Appointed as Lecturer (1980), Senior Lecturer (1983) and Principal Lecturer (1995). Merit awards for outstanding achievement in teaching (1988) and research (2000). Lectured Physics, Mathematics and Hydraulics/Fluid Mechanics related subjects from 1st to 5th year level.
- Research: Main expertise is the measurement and application of Slurry, Sludge, Suspension and Emulsion Rheology in Engineering Hydrodynamics. Actively involved in Flow Process Hydraulic Research for the past twenty-six years. Initiated the Slurry Flow Research Programme (1993), the Hydro-Mechanics Research Group (1997) and the Rheology Centre (2000) for the research of complex fluid flow processes at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT), South Africa. Rationalised these activities into the Flow Process Research Centre in 2001 and expanded these activities into the Institute of Material Science and Technology in 2007. Achieved B Rating with the National Research Foundation (NRF). Supervised 14 Masters and 5 Doctoral candidates to successful completion.
- Appointed to serve on 35 International Technical Committees.
- Appointed to the editorial board of the Journal of Hydrology and Hydromechanics. Invited Peer Reviewer for 29 Journals and Research Institutions.
- Successfully managed (initiated, funded, staffed, executed, completed and reported on) 57 Research Projects – total group funding attracted = $8.4M. Recently renewed two 3-year multi-million dollar research contracts (AEL and AMIRA)
- Maintained close links with industry in order to ensure industrial relevance. Associated with 31 National and International Companies and Institutions.
- Received 26 Awards and Recognition at International Level for Achievement of Excellence in Teaching and Research.
- Invited to present 9 International Keynote Addresses, and Chaired 38 International Technical Conference Sessions.
- Awarded the title Professor ad hominem for outstanding contributions in research and teaching, at International Level, in 1996.
- Has presented courses to industry in Australia, Ireland, South Africa, Turkey and the UK, in the field of Rheology, Slurry Flow and Pump and Pipeline Design, on a regular basis – to secure technology transfer objectives.
- Founding President of the Southern African Society of Rheology, and a Fellow of; the South African Institution of Civil Engineering, the Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and the Water Institute of Southern Africa. Has served on nine Professional Committees.
- Produced a total of 349 Technical and Educational Engineering publications, presentations and Technical Reports.
Consulting and Collaboration
Consultant and Collaborator to a large number of industries in rheology, slurry pumping, paste and emulsion processing and suspension characterisation. Some of the activities were of short duration (1-2 days) while some continued for many months or years. Major collaboration with:
- AEL
- AMIRA
- ASPEN/AEA/ESDU UK
- BHP Billiton
- CSIR
- CSIRO
- De Beers
- DemoEnvironment/Nutek/Sida/Swentec/Swedish Trade Council
- ESCOM
- Ethekwini Water Services
- EXXARO
- International Association on Water Quality (IWA) - Specialist Group on Sludge Management
- ISCOR Heavy Minerals
- Mhlathuze Water Board
- Mittal Steel
- Rio Tinto
- Rossing Uranium
- SA Foundation for Process Analytical Chemistry
- SANPAD
- SASOL
- Serina Kaolin
- TICOR
- Veolia/Anjou Recherche
- Weir-Envirotech
- WMC
Book chapters
- SLATTER P T (2007); Suspension Rheology And Its Use In Engineering Hydrodynamics; Book Chapter in “Frontiers in Particle Science and Technology” Vol 2 Eds. Fairweather M, Goddard DT, Lawson S and Young J, Nexia Solutions-Leeds University Research Alliance, Jeremy Mills Publishing UK, ISBN 978-1-905217-23-6, pp 60-65.
- SLATTER P T and LAZARUS J H (1988); Backfill in South African Mines Chapter.The Application of Viscometry to the Hydraulic Transport of Backfill Material; 263-285; ISBN 0-620-117885-5; SAIMM, Johannesburg.
Journals
- MBIYA B M, FESTER V G and SLATTER PT (2009) Evaluating resistance coefficients of control diaphragm valves, Canadian Journal of Chemical Engineering.
- GRAHAM L.J.W., PULLUM L., SLATTER P., SERY G. and RUDMAN M. (2009) Centrifugal pump performance calculation for homogeneous and complex heterogeneous suspensions. CJChE..
- FESTER V. G. and SLATTER P. T. (2009), Dynamic Similarity for Non-Newtonian Fluids in Globe Valves, Trans IChemE, Part A, Chemical Engineering Research and Design, vol.87, pp: 291- 297.
- KOTZÉ R, HALDENWANG R and SLATTER PT (2008), Rheological characterisation of highly concentrated mineral suspensions using an ultrasonic velocity profiling with combined pressure difference method, J. Applied Rheology, vol.18, issue 6, pp: 62114- 62124
- SLATTER P T (2008); Pipe flow of highly concentrated sludge, Journal of Environmental Science and Health Part A (2008) 43: 13, 1–5. ISSN: 1093-4529.
- FESTER V, MBIYA B and SLATTER P (2008), Energy losses of non-Newtonian fluids in sudden pipe contractions, Chemical Engineering Journal, vol.145, no.1, pp:57-63.
- FESTER V. G., KAZADI D. M, MBIYA B. M. and SLATTER P. T. (2007), Loss coefficients for flow of Newtonian and non-Newtonian fluids through diaphragm valves, Trans IChemE, Part A, Chemical Engineering Research and Design, 2007, 85(A9): 1314–1324.
- HALDENWANG R H, SLATTER PT and PEARCE C (2006); Integration of project management skills to manage a fourth year research project, Journal of Engineering, Design and Technology, Vol 4. No. 1. pp 135-144.
- SLATTER PT (2006); Design for Slurry Handling, J S Afr. Inst. Min. Metall Vol 106. No. 10. pp 687-691.
- HALDENWANG R H, and SLATTER P T, (2006), Experimental procedure and database for non-Newtonian open channel flow, Journal of Hydraulic Research, Vol. 44, No. 2, pp. 283-287.
- McMASTER L.D., KOKOTT S.A. and SLATTER P. (2005), Micro-encapsulation of Bifidobacterium lactis for incorporation into soft foods, World Journal of Microbiology & Biotechnology (2005) 21:723–728.
- SLATTER P T (2004); The hydraulic transportation of thickened sludges, Water SA Vol. 30 No. 5, ISSN 0378-4738, pp66-68.
- MALKIN, A. YA., I. MASLOVA, P. SLATTER, and K. WILSON (2004) Effect of droplet sizes on the rheological properties of highly-concentrated w/o emulsions, Rheol. Acta 43, 6, 584–591.
- SLATTER P. (2003) Pipeline transport of thickened sludges. Water 21, pp. 56-57. Oct. 2003.
- MALKIN A.YA., MASALOVA I., PAVLOVSKI D., SLATTER P. (2003) Is the choice of flow curve fitting equation crucial for laminar flow pipeline design?, J. Applied Rheology, 14, 2, pp.89-94.
- MASALOVA I, MALKIN A.YA, SLATTER P, WILSON K, (2003) The rheological characterization and pipeline flow of high concentration water-in-oil emulsions. Journal of Non-Newtonian Fluid Mechanics, Vol. 112, 101-114.
Invited keynote addresses
- SLATTER PT (2007) Rheology : An introduction to the behaviour of non-Newtonian slurries. Hydrotransport 17 Workshop. The 17th International Conference on the Hydraulic Transport of Solids, The Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and the BHR Group; Cape Town, 7-11 May, 2007.
- SLATTER PT (2006) Transitional pipe flow: the high Bingham number frontier, SASOR 2006, 1st Southern African Conference on Rheology, Cape Town, 24 – 27 September 2006.
- SLATTER P T (2005); Tailings Transport – Back to Basics!; Paste 2005, International Seminar on Paste and Thickened Tailings, Santiago, Chile 20-22 April, 2005. ISBN 0-9756756-3-X, pp165-176.
- WASP EJ and SLATTER PT (2004) Deposition velocities for commercial pipelines in homogeneous flow, 9th International Conference on Multiphase Flow In Industrial Plants, Rome, Italy, September 20-21, 2004.
- SLATTER P T (2004); The Measurement And Role Of Rheology In Paste Pipelining; Paste 2004, International Seminar on Paste and Thickened Tailings, Cape Town 31 March-2 April, 2004.
- SLATTER P T (2002); Non-Newtonian Laminar Pipe Flow – A Place In The Sun At Last!; - 11th International Conference on Transport and Sedimentation of Solid Particles - Ghent, September, 2002. ISBN 83-87866-34-2, pp33-40.
- SLATTER P T (1999); The laminar/turbulent transition prediction for non-Newtonian slurries,Proceedings of the International Conference “Problems in Fluid Mechanics and Hydrology”, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Prague, June 23-26, 1999. ISBN 80 238 3824 5 pp 247 - 256
- SLATTER P T (1998), Slurry rheology and pipe flow, Australian Society of Rheology Conference, Adelaide, Australia, 19-22 July, 1998, ISBN 0 86396 625 X, pp35-44.
Peer reviewed conference publications
- FESTER VG, SLATTER PT, BIGGS S and KALE G (2008) Significance of alcohols in the synthesis of iron oxide nanorods. Green Chemistry & Engineering, Process Intensification & Nanotechnology Conference, BHR Group; Albany, New York, USA Cape Town, 15 –18 September 2008. ISBN 978 1 85598 101 0, pp 231-236.
- HALDENWANG R, SLATTER PT and CHHABRA RP (2008), Open Channel Flow: The Other Paradigm; 14th International Conference on Transport and Sedimentation of Solid Particles, St Petersburg, RUSSIA. 23-27 Jun 2008.ISBN 978-5-94211-350-6, pp280-286.
- PULLUM L, CHRYSS A, GRAHAM L, and SLATTER PT (2008), A technique to obtain the underlying carrier fluid rheology from wide size distribution suspensions using a small pipe viscometer; 14th International Conference on Transport and Sedimentation of Solid Particles, St Petersburg, RUSSIA. 23-27 Jun 2008.ISBN 978-5-94211-350-6, pp255-262.
- FESTER V G, CHHIBA M, KOTZE R, HALDENWANG R and SLATTER P T (2008), Measurement of velocity profiles of slurries in complex geometries; 14th International Conference on Transport and Sedimentation of Solid Particles, St Petersburg, RUSSIA. 23-27 Jun 2008.ISBN 978-5-94211-350-6, pp93-103.
- HALDENWANG R, SLATTER P T and CHHABRA R P (2008); Laminar sheet flow of paste material, Paste 2008, International Seminar on Paste and Thickened Tailings, Kasane, Botswana 5-9 May 2008 ISBN 978-0-9804185-4-5, pp237-244.
- FESTER V G, SLATTER P T, KUMAR VADAPALLI VR and PETRIK L (2008); Use of fly ash to treat AMD before use in backfill operations, Paste 2008, International Seminar on Paste and Thickened Tailings, Kasane, Botswana 5-9 May 2008, ISBN 978-0-9804185-4-5, pp285-298.
- KUMAR VADAPALLI VR, PETRIK LF, FESTER VG, SLATTER PT AND SERY GA (2007) Effect of Fly Ash particle size on its capacity to neutralize Acid Mine Drainage and influence on the rheological behaviour of residual solids. World of Coal Ash (WOCA), Northern Kentucky Convention Center, Kentucky, USA, May 7-10, 2007, ISBN 0-9674971-7-5.
- MBIYA B, PIENAAR VG and SLATTER PT (2007) Prediction of pressures losses in straight-through diaphragm valves. Hydrotransport 17. The 17th International Conference on the Hydraulic Transport of Solids, The Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and the BHR Group; Cape Town, 7-11 May, 2007. ISBN 978 1 85598 084 6, pp121-134.
- HALDENWANG R, ERASMUS R, SLATTER PT and CHHABRA RP (2007) Flow rate measurement of non-Newtonian suspensions from a tank using notches. Hydrotransport 17. The 17th International Conference on the Hydraulic Transport of Solids, The Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and the BHR Group; Cape Town, 7-11 May, 2007. ISBN 978 1 85598 084 6, pp301-316.
- SLATTER P T (2007); Pipe flow of highly concentrated sludge, IWA Specialist Conference “Facing Sludge Diversities: Challenges, Risks, And Opportunities”, 28-30 March 2007, Pine Beach Hotel, Belek - Antalya, TURKEY. ISBN 978-975-441-238-3, pp713-720.
- HALDENWANG R, SLATTER P T and MASALOVA I (2007); The “Fifty Cent” Rheometer-Effect of Slip, Speed of Lift and Stability on Measurement of Yield Stress, Paste 2007, International Seminar on Paste and Thickened Tailings, Perth, Australia 13-15 March 2007, ISBN 0-9756756-7-2, pp211-218.
- SLATTER P T (2007); Transition Velocity Estimation For Paste Flow In Large Pipes, Paste 2007, International Seminar on Paste and Thickened Tailings, Perth, Australia 13-15 March 2007, ISBN 0-9756756-7-2, pp141-146.
- SLATTER PT and WASP EJ (2006), Transition Velocity Estimation ForVisco-Plastic Fluids; 13th International Conference on Transport and Sedimentation of Solid Particles, Tbilisi, GEORGIA. 18-20 Sep 2006.ISBN 83-60574-00-6, pp291-299.
- SLATTER PT and FESTER VG (2006), The Effective Length Approach Applied To Fittings Losses In Laminar Flow; 13th International Conference on Transport and Sedimentation of Solid Particles, Tbilisi, GEORGIA. 18-20 Sep 2006. ISBN 83-60574-00-6, pp282-290.
- HALDENWANG R, KOTZE R, FESTER VG, SLATTER PT SERY GA and GEORGE N (2006), Balanced Beam Tube Viscometry Vs Rotary Viscometry: A Comparison; 13th International Conference on Transport and Sedimentation of Solid Particles, Tbilisi, GEORGIA. 18-20 Sep 2006. ISBN 83-60574-00-6, pp145-156.
- HALDENWANG R. and SLATTER P.T (2006), Turbulent Non-Newtonian Open Channel Flow; 13th International Conference on Transport and Sedimentation of Solid Particles, Tbilisi, GEORGIA. 18-20 Sep 2006. ISBN 83-60574-00-6, pp135-144.
- SLATTER P.T. (2006), Modelling The Hydrodynamics Of Minerals Processing Suspensions; Proceedings of XXIII International Mineral Processing Congress, Istanbul, TURKEY. 3-9 Sep 2006, ISBN 975-7946-27-3 (Tk), pp 1753-1758.
- HALDENWANG R, and SLATTER P.T (2006), Laminar Flow Models For Mineral Tailings Transport In Open Channels; Proceedings of XXIII International Mineral Processing Congress, Istanbul, TURKEY, 3-9 Sep 2006, ISBN 975-7946-27-3 (Tk), pp 1759-1764.
- FESTER V.G., SLATTER P. T. and RAMOHLOLA N. S. (2006), Resistance Coefficients Of Mineral Tailings Flowing In Diaphragm Control Valves, Proceedings of XXIII International Mineral Processing Congress, Istanbul, TURKEY, 3-9 Sep 2006, ISBN 975-7946-27-3 (Tk), pp 1806-1812.
- SERY G.A, KABAMBA B. and SLATTER PT (2006); Paste Pumping With Centrifugal Pumps: Evaluation Of The Hydraulic Institute Chart De-Rating Procedures. Paste 2006, International Seminar on Paste and Thickened Tailings, Limerick, Rep. of Ireland. 3-7 April, 2006. ISBN 0-9756756-5-6, pp403-412.
- SUTHERLAND APN, SLATTER PT, WILKINSON AJ, RANDALL EW and LONG T (2005), A Pipe Test Facility to Examine Laminar Shear Settling using Electrical Resistance Tomography (ERT), 4th World Congress on Industrial Process Tomography, Aizu, Japan, 5-8 Sep, 2005.
- WASP EJ and SLATTER PT (2004), Deposition velocities for small particles in large pipes, 12th International Conference on Transport & Sedimentation of Solid Particles, Prague, Czech Republic, 20-24 September, 2004. ISBN 80-239-3465-1, pp671-680.
- SERY GA and SLATTER PT (2004), Centrifugal pump performance Reynolds number for non-Newtonian slurries, 12th International Conference on Transport & Sedimentation of Solid Particles, Prague, Czech Republic, 20-24 September, 2004. ISBN 80-239-3465-1, pp601-609.
- PULLUM L, SLATTER PT and VIETTI A (2004), Transport characteristics of a stabilized co-disposal tailing line, 12th International Conference on Transport & Sedimentation of Solid Particles, Prague, Czech Republic, 20-24 September, 2004. ISBN 80-239-3465-1, pp557-564.
- HALDENWANG R, SLATTER PT and CHHABRA RP (2004), Prediction of transition for non-Newtonian open channel flow, 12th International Conference on Transport & Sedimentation of Solid Particles, Prague, Czech Republic, 20-24 September, 2004. ISBN 80-239-3465-1, pp387-396.
- PIENAAR VG and SLATTER PT (2004), Interpretation of experimental data for fitting losses, 12th International Conference on Transport & Sedimentation of Solid Particles, Prague, Czech Republic, 20-24 September, 2004. ISBN 80-239-3465-1, pp537-546.
- BAUDOUIN MM, PIENAAR VG and SLATTER PT (2004), A kinetic energy correction factor for the laminar pipe flow of viscoplastic fluids, 3rd International Symposium on Two-Phase Flow Modelling and Experimentation, Pisa, Italy, 22-24 September 2004.
- SLATTER P T (2004); The hydraulic transportation of thickened sludges, Proceedings of the 2004 Water Institute of Southern Africa (WISA) Biennial Conference, 2-6 May 2004, Cape Town, South Africa. ISBN: 1-920-01728-3, pp 1311-1315.
- PULLUM L, GRAHAM L J W and SLATTER P T (2004); A non-Newtonian two-layer model and its application to high density hydrotransport, British Hydromechanics Research Group 16th International Conference on Hydrotransport; Santiago, April, 2004. ISBN 1 85598 054 1. pp 579-594.
- HALDENWANG R, SLATTER P T, VANYAZA S and CHHABRA R P (2004); The effect of shape on laminar flow in open channels for non-Newtonian fluids, British Hydromechanics Research Group 16th International Conference on Hydrotransport; Santiago, April, 2004. ISBN 1 85598 054 1. pp311-324.
- SLATTER P T and WASP E J (2004); Yield stress, viscosity and non-Newtonian turbulent pipe flow, British Hydromechanics Research Group 16th International Conference on Hydrotransport; Santiago, April, 2004. ISBN 1 85598 054 1. pp315-328.
- PIENAAR V G, SLATTER P T, ALDERMAN N J and HEYWOOD N I (2004); A Review of Frictional Pressure Losses for Flow of Newtonian and non-Newtonian Slurries Through Valves, British Hydromechanics Research Group 16th International Conference on Hydrotransport; Santiago, April, 2004. ISBN 1 85598 054 1. pp219-230.
- PEARCE B L and SLATTER P T (2004), Comparison of viscosity readings: Brookfield viscometer and Thermoselvs dynamic shear rheometer., IPET and TUT 2004 Research Conference "IMPLEMENTING TECHNOLOGY", 28-29 September 2004., ISBN 0-620-31251-3, pp9-18.
- SLATTER P T, PEARCE C and CLIFF A(2004), How to dig deeper – research and innovation training for the next generation, Proceedings of the 2nd Postgraduate Conference on Construction Industry Development, Cape Town, South Africa, 10-12 October 2004, ISBN 0-621-35380-9, pp95-103. CIDB, Brooklyn Square.
- SLATTER P T (2003), The Role of emerging Universities of Technology in the Development of the Construction Industry, Proceedings of the 1st Postgraduate Conference on Construction Industry Development, Port Elizabeth, South Africa, 12-14 October 2003, ISBN 0-620-31251-3, pp9-18. CIDB, Brooklyn Square.