In this article, the motion control of ferromagnetic particles through varying a non-invasive magnetic field is addressed. Within an experimental test bench, three experiments are proposed to verify motion control, which consist of control of the distance between electromagnets, retention of particles over the flow, and manipulation of the direction of particle flow at a “Y”-type bifurcation emulating an “OR” gate. At each experimental stage, instrumented test benches were integrated with current, distance, and flow sensors, enabling measurement and feedback of the system’s physical variables. These benches were configured using pulse-width-modulation (PWM) and Proportional–Integral–Derivative (PID) controllers to regulate the current supplied to the electromagnets and, thereby, control the intensity of the induced electromagnetic field according to the requirements of each experiment. Different study cases were defined to analyze the operational limits of the system by varying the current influencing the electromagnetic field and the configuration of the electromagnets. The results describe the response of the magnetic field, the induced force, and the behavior of the suspended particles under each condition, providing elements to characterize the performance of the electromagnetic system in operational scenarios and contributing to the understanding of the phenomena associated with the non-invasive manipulation of ferromagnetic particles by means of controlled magnetic fields.
Muciño et al. (Fri,) studied this question.