Lattice Boltzmann (LB) simulation has been employed to model spherical particle suspensions in a Couette flow that is encountered in a blade coater. The microstructures of particle configurations produced from the simulations are analyzed by using the pair distribution function and the pair analysis technique of Honeycutt and Anderson [J.D. Honeycutt, H.C. Anderson, J. Chem. Phys. 91 (1987) 4950.]. The hypothesis of the co-existence of icosahedral and crystal order in this suspension is proposed and confirmed by the LB simulation. It is evident that a coating suspension under shear force may be characterized by a blend of icosahedral, face-centered cubic (FCC), body-centered cubic (BCC), and hexagonal closed-packed (HCP) clusters. It is observed that relatively ordered clusters may convert to more disordered clusters under shear forces at a high solid concentration. It seems that short-range lubrication forces are responsible for such structural transition.