Technology which can monitor states of granular systems will become a key to optimize manufacturing systems for developing functional materials such as for battery and medicine. Several methods are already available including process tomography and PIV. This paper focuses and discusses mixing index by Shannon Entropy, Shannon mixing index termed in the paper, by comparing the Lacey mixing known as standard mixing index based on statistics and experimental data. The following results are obtained: 1) Shannon mixing index can handle multi-component systems, instead of Lacey mixing index being limited to binary systems. 2) Shannon mixing index can evaluate really small amount of component quantitatively as well as qualitatively, which is not available by statistically based methods. 3) Shannon mixing index can be calculated experimentally by material sampling method, which is comparable to predictions by DEM (Discrete Element Method) simulation. The results obtained through the research indicates that Shannon Entropy can be qualified to the standard mixing index.

In order to control the interaction between the artificial mucin layer and pH-responsive shells of the core-shell drug delivery vehicles, two types of cross-linking agents with different molecular weights were added to the shells. The surface interaction between each vehicle and mucin was measured by colloid probe atomic force microscopy under different pH conditions. By adding 0.08 mol% cross-linking agents, the shell swelling phenomena at pH > 6 were maintained. Addition of a low molecular weight cross-linking agent (TEGDMA) reduces the interaction distance of repulsive force during approaching process. Addition of a high molecular weight cross-linking agent (PEGDMA) increased the interaction distance of repulsive force. A long interaction distance of attractive force during the separating process disappeared at pH = 6 after the addition of PEGDMA. However, TEGDMA addition maintained the long interaction distance of attractive force at pH = 8, which suggested that the vehicle might remain for an extended duration in the small intestine.

A fluidized bed dryer is used in various fields since it has high drying rate. For the drying of heat sensitive materials, the drying should be performed at low temperature. The fluidized bed drying under reduced pressure is one of the methods to dry the heat sensitive materials at low temperature with high drying rate. In this paper, fundamental of the fluidized bed drying under reduced pressure is explained. The drying in the fluidized bed of medium particles is also treated in this paper.

Lignocellulose nanofibers synthesized by the wet milling is expected to be used for the filler. However, it is problem that the surface property of cellulose nanofiber is hydrophilic. Therefore, we investigated the effect of surface treatment agent. Cellulose nanofibers were coated with surface-treated precipitated calcium carbonate particles prepared by wet process for disk mill. A suspension of lignocellulose nanofibers was dried and crushed to prepare surface-treated cellulose nanofibers powder. In general, the surface property of cellulose nanofiber is hydrophilic, but it was changed to hydrophobic by coating with surface-treated precipitated calcium carbonate particle.