Characterization of gas-solid fluidization: A comparative study of acoustic and pressure signals

The hydrodynamics of fluidized beds strongly influence their operation, but are complicated and chaotic. There are many measurement techniques, but none fully characterizes gas-solid fluidized beds. Acoustic signals from fluidized beds cover a wide frequency spectrum and can be correlated to bed characteristics. Experiments were conducted to study the acoustic signals from ultrasonic transducers mounted on the outer wall of a two-dimensional fluidization column. The acoustic signals were related to bubble behavior in 550 μm glass beads. Simultaneous acoustic and pressure measurements allowed direct comparison of these signals for single bubbles, pairs and chains of bubbles. The envelope of acoustic signals, generated by particle collisions and particle-wall impacts, provided information on the behavior of bubbles. Significant peaks appeared as the top portions of the bubble wakes approached the acoustic sensor. Pressure waves propagated considerably in the horizontal direction, whereas acoustic signals propagated little in the lateral direction, but transmitted forward in the wall in the direction of bubble motion, maintaining the wave profile invariant during transmission. The strong lateral localization of acoustic signals is promising for determining the lateral bubble position in the bed. Acoustic signals provide a potential means of determining such bubble properties as velocity, frequency and volume, with some advantages relative to pressure signals.     

Monodisperse fine aerosol generation using fluidized bed

Monodisperse, fine aerosols are needed in many applications: filter testing, experiments for testing models, and aerosol instrument calibration, among others. Usually, monodisperse fine aerosols are generated in very low concentrations, or mass flow rates, in the laboratory scale. In this work, we needed to generate aerosols with higher mass flow rate than typically available by the laboratory-scale methods, such as atomizers, nebulizers, ultrasonic generators, vibrating orifice generators, and condensation generators. Therefore, we constructed a fluidized bed aerosol generator to achieve particle mass flow rates in the range of 15-100 g/h. Monodisperse, spherical SiO₂ particles of two sizes with geometrical diameters of 1.0 and 2.6 µm were used in the aerosol generator. The aerosol generator was used at both atmospheric pressure, and at high pressures up to 5 bar (abs).The particle size, mass concentration and the net average particle charge were measured after mixing the aerosol with nitrogen. The particle size distributions with both particle sizes were monodisperse, and no particle agglomerates were entrained from the fluidized bed. The behavior of the fluidized bed generator was found to be markedly different with the two particle sizes in regard to particle concentration, presumably due to different particle charging inside the generator. After determining the net average charge of the particles, an ion source Kr-85 was used to reduce the charge of the particles. This was found to be effective in neutralizing the particles.     

Nonintrusive characterization of fluidized bed hydrodynamics using vibration signature analysis

There are many techniques to characterize the hydrodynamics of fluidized beds, but new techniques are still needed for more reliable measurement. Bed vibrations were measured by an accelerometer in a gas–solid fluidized bed to characterize the hydrodynamics of the fluidized bed in a nonintrusive manner. Measurements were carried out at different superficial gas velocities and particle sizes. Pressure fluctuations were measured simultaneously. Vibration signals were processed using statistical analysis. For the sake of the evaluation, the vibration technique was used to calculate minimum fluidization velocity. It was shown that minimum fluidization velocity can be determined from the variation of standard deviation, skewness, and kurtosis of vibration signals against superficial gas velocity of the bed. Kurtosis was proved to be a new method of analyzing vibration signals. Results indicate that analyzing the vibration signals can be an effective nonintrusive technique to characterize the hydrodynamics of fluidized beds. © 2009 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2010     

连续操作密相流化床颗粒停留时间分布特性模拟放大研究

采用基于GPU（graphics processing unit）大规模并行的粗粒化CFD-DEM（computational fluid dynamics-discrete element method）方法,耦合多分散、非球形颗粒曳力模型,对连续操作的三维流化床进行了长时间颗粒停留时间模拟。通过对不同尺寸（长度）流化床的模拟发现不同粒径颗粒平均停留时间（mean residence time,MRT）与流化床长度呈线性关系,该关系可以用来预测更大尺寸流化床内的颗粒停留时间。随着流化床长度的增加,不同粒径颗粒MRT的差异变大,说明流化床长度的增加对不同尺寸颗粒的停留时间具有一定的调控能力。     

A DEM study of particle motion near the walls of gas fluidized beds

This paper presents an investigation, by discrete element method simulation, of particle motion near the walls of fluidized beds. The simulations were performed in two beds, one of 50 mm × 50 mm cross-section, and the other of 90 mm × 90 mm cross-section. The particles used were 0.5 and 1 mm in diameter and 2650 kg/m³ in density. It was found that the thickness of the down-flowing surface layer is around 15 times the particle diameter. The average downward velocity of particles in the surface layer was found to vary from about 0.01 to 0.2 m/s. Implication of the results in relation to understanding of bed-to-wall heat-transfer in fluidized beds is highlighted.     

Heat transfer within dynamically structured bubbling fluidized beds subject to vibration: A two-fluid modeling study

Bubbling fluidized beds are often used to achieve a uniform particle temperature distribution in industrial processes involving gas and particles. However, the chaotic bubble dynamics pose significant challenges in scale-up. Recent work (Guo et al., 2021, PNAS 118, e2108647118) has shown that using vibration can structure the bubbling pattern to a highly predictable manner with the characteristic bubble properties independent of system width, opening opportunities to address key issues associated with conventional bubbling fluidized beds. Herein, using two-fluid modeling simulations, we studied heat transfer characteristics within the dynamically structured bubbling fluidized bed and compared to unstructured bubbling fluidized beds and packed beds. Simulations show that the structured bubbling fluidized bed can achieve the most uniform particle temperature distribution because it can achieve the best particle mixing while maintaining a global heat transfer coefficient similar to that of a freely bubbling fluidized bed.     

Local shear and skin friction on particles in three-phase fluidized beds

An extension of the electrochemical shear-rate measurement technique is carried out in this work to evaluate the friction force and the shear stress on a particle in two and three phase fluidized beds. Using this technique, the skin friction on a sphere has first been validated for single phase flow. In two- and three-phase fluidized bed, the significance and the direction of the velocity gradient at the wall are discussed.In the case of three phase fluidization, glass spheres (2 mm in diameter, ) and plastic spheres (5 mm in diameter, ) were used. This choice provides very different bubbly flows due to different balances of coalescence and break-up of bubblesThe contribution of the frictional force is more important in “coalescent” fluidized beds than in “break-up” fluidized beds. The effect of gas injection is depending on the fluidized particle effect on bubble coalescence and break-up. Correlations have been developed linking frictional force to gas hold-up.The correlations recommended for frictional force in fluidized beds for both systems, (i.e., coalescence and break-up) are as follows:

•

Glass spheres (2 mm diameter, coalescence regime):

     

Bubble drift velocity from the bed collapse technique in three-phase fluidized beds

Transient behavior of a bed collapsing after cut-off of gas supply into a three-phase fluidized bed was determined in a 0.21 m-diameter half-tube acrylic column having a test section 1.8 m high. The transient behavior of the bed collapse after cut-off of the gas supply to the beds was monitored by a video camera (30 frames/s). A theory was developed to account for the dynamic behavior of the bed collapse after the gas supply shut-off to three-phase fluidized beds. The bubble drift velocity was theoretically calculated by gas and liquid phase holdups at steady state condition. At a liquid velocity of 0.103 m/s and gas velocity of 0–0.023 m/s, bubble size was uniform in the dispersed bubble flow regime. However, as the gas velocity increased above 0.023 m/s, the discrete or coalesced bubble flow regime could be observed. The agreement between the predicted and experimental values is acceptable in the dispersed bubble flow regime, but the agreement becomes poorer with increasing gas velocity.     

Structured bubbling in layered gas-fluidized beds subject to vibration: A CFD-DEM study

Bubble dynamics in gas fluidized beds are mathematically chaotic and difficult to predict. Various ways have been proposed in the past to alter the overall bubble dynamics to improve particular processes. In particular, it has been shown that pulsed gas flow and vibration can be used to transform the chaotic motion of gas bubbles into a dynamically structured pattern. The structured bubbling pattern does not change with the system width, opening opportunities to address key issues in scaling up gas-solids bubbling fluidized beds. However, the pattern can only maintain for a limited particle height, well below the height of most industrial fluidized beds. Herein, we proposed to use a layered configuration with multiple stages of gas distributors to maintain the ordered bubbling structure to a higher particle height. Computational fluid dynamics-discrete element method (CFD-DEM) simulations performed here demonstrate the effectiveness and key parameters for maintaining structure in the proposed design, providing potential for industrial use.     

Bed expansion and bubble wakes in three-phase fluidization

The expansion characteristics of gas-liquid fluidized beds have been measured for beds of glass ballotini and sand with particle sizes ranging from 120 to 775 microns. This data has been used in conjunction with recent measurements of bubble properties to predict the proportion of wake associated with bubbles rising through the bed using a modification of the theory proposed by Ostergaard to explain the contraction observed when gas is introduced into a liquid fluidized bed. Three-pase fluidization has also been observed by photography in a two-dimensional bed and the results are in substantial agreement with the calculations based on expansion behavior and bubble properties. The bubble wakes in a three phase system consist not only of a stable portion carried with the bubbles but also of vortices shed by the bubbles. A simplified model has been used to demonstrate that these vortices may contribute significantly to the observed contraction.     

RADIAL DISPERSION AND BUBBLE CHARACTERISTICS IN THREE-PHASE FLUIDIZED BEDS

The effects of gas and liquid velocities, liquid viscosity and particle size on the radial dispersion coefficient of liquid phase (D_r) and the bubble properties in three-phase fluidized beds have been determined. A new flow regime map based on the drift flux theory in three-phase fluidized beds has been proposed.

In three-phase fluidized beds, D, increases with increasing gas velocity in the bubble coalescing and in the slug flow regimes, but it decreases in the bubble disintegrating regime. The coefficient exhibits a maximum value in the bed of small particles with increasing liquid velocity at lower gas velocities. However, it increases with increasing liquid velocity at higher gas velocities. In two and three-phase fluidized beds of larger particles (6,8 mm), D_r exhibits a maximum value with an increase in liquid viscosity at lower gas velocities, but it increases at higher gas velocities. The mean bubble chord length and its rising velocity increase with increasing gas velocity and liquid viscosity. However, the bubble chord length decreases with an increase in liquid velocity and it exhibits a maximum value with increasing particle size in the bed. The radial dispersion coefficients in the bubble coalescing and disintegrating regimes of three-phase fluidized beds in terms of the Peclet number in the present and previous studies have been well represented by the correlations based on the concept of isotropic turbulence theory.     

气固流化床压力脉动信号的Hilbert-Huang变换与流型识别

采用Hilbert-Huang变换(HHT),提取出气固流化床压力脉动信号的各阶内禀模态函数(IMFs),进一步证明了压力脉动信号是由复杂的不同波间和波内频率调制成分所组成,具有气固两相运动相互调制的非线性特征。分析各阶内禀模态函数的能量分布及其转换,发现不同频段IMF的能量与流型状态之间有着很好的对应关系,能够从整体上反映流化床的流化状态,从而提出了应用IMF中频段能量进行流化床流型识别的新方法。该方法只需一个压力脉动信号,算法简单、实用,没有需要主观决定的参数,具有较好的工业应用前景。HHT分析比现有的分析方法更能深入地揭示流化床内的非线性流体动力学特征。     

Hydrodynamics of gas-solid flow around immersed tubes in bubbling fluidized beds

A numerical study was conducted based on the gas-solid two-fluid model using the body-fitted coordinate system to analyze the behavior of particles and bubbles flow in bubbling fluidized beds without and with immersed tubes. The kinetic theory of granular flow was implemented in the model. The images of simulated instantaneous particle concentration and velocity gave the process of the formation, coalescence and eruption of bubbles. The effects of the tube pitch and superficial gas velocity on the fluidization in a bubbling fluidized bed were investigated. Calculated bubble frequencies without and with immersed tubes were in agreement with previous experimental and simulation findings. The wavelet multi-resolution analysis was used to analyze the simulated data of instantaneous particle concentration. From the random-like particle concentration fluctuations, the fluctuating components due to particle flow and bubble motion can be extracted based on the wavelet multi-resolution analysis over a time-frequency plane.     

Numerical simulation and experimental validation of bubble behavior in 2D gas–solid fluidized beds with immersed horizontal tubes

The two-fluid model based on the kinetic theory of granular flow is considered to be a fundamental tool for modeling gas–solid fluidized beds and has been extensively used for the last couple of decades. However its verification and quantitative validation still remain insufficient for a wide range of reactor geometries and operating conditions. In this study simulations were performed using the two-fluid model for two-dimensional (2D) bubbling gas–solid fluidized beds with and without immersed horizontal tubes. The bubble characteristics – aspect ratio, shape factor, diameter and rise velocity – predicted by the simulation were compared and validated with experimental data obtained from pseudo-2D fluidized beds using digital image analysis technique. The predicted bubble shape and diameter were in good agreement with the experimental data for fluidized beds with and without immersed tubes. The simulation predicted higher bubble rise velocity compared to the experimental results obtained. This was due to the wall effect, which was not taken into consideration during the 2D simulation. In addition the influences of different drag laws, friction packing limits and solid-wall boundary conditions on the different bubble properties were investigated. The results showed that the choice of friction packing limits, drag laws and specularity coefficients have little influence on bubble properties.     

Investigation of bubble behavior in fluidized beds with and without immersed horizontal tubes using a digital image analysis technique

Bubble characteristics such as shape, size, number and motion control the hydrodynamics and therefore heat transfer and chemical conversion in fluidized bed reactors. Thus understanding these characteristics is very important for the design and scale-up of fluidized beds. In this work a digital image analysis technique was developed to study the bubble behavior of two-dimensional bubbling beds with and without immersed horizontal tubes. Digital image analysis is a non-intrusive measurement technique which can simultaneously provide a great quantity of information without interfering with flow dynamics. The technique developed and implemented in this study allowed for the simultaneous measurement of various bubble properties, such as bubble diameter, rise velocity, aspect ratio and shape factor. A robust in-house code was developed to fully automate the image acquisition and data processing procedure. The experimental results obtained were validated and found to be in good agreement with available literature correlations.Moreover, based on the experimental results obtained new correlations for bubble growth and rise velocity as a function of bed height above the distributor were proposed. The models were in good agreement with the experimental data for a wide range of superficial velocities and particle sizes.     

Experimental validation of CFD models for fluidized beds: Influence of particle stress models, gas phase compressibility and air inflow models

This work compares numerical simulations of fluid dynamics in fluidized beds using different closure models and air feed system models. The numerical results are compared to experiments by means of power spectral density distributions of fluctuating pressure signals and bubble statistics obtained from capacitance probe measurements. Two different particle rheology models are tested in combination with two different values of the maximum particle volume fraction. The first particle model predicts the particle pressure by an exponential power law and assumes a constant particle viscosity (CPV), and the second model predicts the stresses using the kinetic theory of granular flow (KTGF). Furthermore, two model approaches for the air inflow are evaluated. The first inflow model includes the coupling between the air-feed system and the fluidized bed in the simulation, and the second model assumes a constant mass flow of gas into the fluidized bed. Finally, the influence of the compressibility of the gas phase on the numerical predictions is investigated. The numerical simulations are made using the CFX-4.4 commercial flow solver.The simulations show that the KTGF model gives a more evenly distributed bubble flow profile over the bed cross-section, while the CPV model gives a more parabolic bubble flow profile, with a higher bubble flow in the central part of the bed. This work shows that the KTGF model results are in significantly better agreement with the experiments. It is furthermore shown that the modelling of the air-feed system is crucial to for predicting the overall bed dynamic behaviour.     

A new model for bubbling fluidized bed reactors

Various mathematical models have been proposed in the past for estimating the conversions of reactant gases in fluidized bed reactors. A new mathematical model is being proposed in this paper that gives relatively better results compared to the prevailing models for bubbling fluidized bed reactors utilizing Geldart B particles. The new model is named as JSR (Jain, Sathiyamoorthy, Rao) model and it is a modified version of bubble assemblage model of Kato and Wen (1969). This paper discusses the development of JSR model and its verification by using data from chemical engineering literature on fluidization and also experimental data from hydrochlorination of silicon in a fluidized bed reactor. The new model is tested for five processes having operating temperatures from 130 °C to 450 °C, operating velocities from 0.019 m s⁻¹ to 0.19 m s⁻¹ and solid particle sizes from 65 to 325 mesh.     

Particle flow behavior in three-phase fluidized beds

Non-uniform flow behavior of fluidized solid particles in three-phase fluidized beds has been analyzed by adopting the stochastic method. More specifically, pressure fluctuation signals from three-phase fluidized beds (0.152 m ID x 2.5 m in height) have been analyzed by resorting to fractal and spectral analysis. Effects of gas flow rate (0.01-0.07 m/s), liquid flow rate (0.06-0.18 m/s) and particle size (0.001-0.006 m) on the characteristics of the Hurst exponent, spectral exponent and Shannon entropy of pressure fluctuations have been investigated. The Hurst exponent and spectral exponent of pressure fluctuations attained their local maxima with the variation of liquid flow rate. The Shannon entropy of pressure fluctuation data, however, attained its local minima with the variation of liquid flow rate. The flow transition of fluidized solid particles was detected conveniently by means of the variations of the Hurst exponent, spectral exponent and Shannon entropy of pressure fluctuations in the beds. The flow behavior resulting from multiphase contact in three-phase fluidized beds appeared to be persistent and can be characterized as a higher order deterministic chaos.     

Modeling,Simulation, and Experimental Evaluation of Particle Size Distribution in Stabilized Fluidized Bed Adsorption System

Fluidized beds containing solid particles of a wide size distribution is of significant practical importance. In such systems, the overall behavior depends on the opposing effect of mixing and classification. In the present work, the mixing and segregation behavior of liquid fluidized beds containing particles of different sizes is described mathematically. Particle size distribution (PSD) is studied in a glass column of 5 cm internal diameter and 250 cm length. Ion exchange resins were used as a solid phase with a particle size range of 50 to 650 µm. The bed was fluidized at constant and low water flow velocity and the particle size measurement was carried out at different locations over the column length by analytical scanning electron microscope. Particle size fractionation data obtained by Malvern Mastersizer-2000, version 5.4, was utilized in the solution of developed model equations to obtain PSD. It is apparent that the mixing model along with the classification model represents better results than any other model given by various researchers in the literature. The proposed model is in good agreement with the PSD data given by Malvern particle size analyzer.     

流化床密相区颗粒扩散系数的CFD数值预测

应用离散颗粒模型直观获得颗粒运动情况,并从单个颗粒和气泡作用的角度分析颗粒运动和混合,证实气泡在床层中上升、在床层表面爆破以及气泡上升引起的乳化相下沉运动对颗粒混合起关键作用。应用基于颗粒动理学的双流体模型系统地对床宽分别为0.2、0.4、0.8 m的二维流化床在鼓泡区和湍动区的气固两相流动行为进行数值模拟。受离散颗粒模型启发,在双流体模型计算结果基础上,引入理想示踪粒子技术计算床内平均颗粒扩散系数。计算结果表明,颗粒横向扩散系数(D_x)总体上随流化风速增大而增大,但受床体尺寸影响较大;颗粒轴向扩散系数随流化风速增大而增大,受床体尺寸影响较弱。文献报道的密相区颗粒横向扩散系数分布在10^-4～10^-1 m²·s^-1数量级。本文提出的计算方法在数量级上与文献实验结果吻合,表明在大尺寸流化床且高流化风速下,颗粒横向扩散系数远大于小尺寸鼓泡流化床,为不同研究者实验结果的分歧提供了理论依据,也为预测大型流化床内颗粒扩散速率提供了放大策略。