Simulating simultaneous fines deposition under catalytic hydrodesulfurization in hydrotreating trickle beds—does bed plugging affect HDS performance?

The deposition of fine particles under chemical reaction conditions in a high pressure/temperature trickle bed reactor was analyzed theoretically using a dynamic multiphase flow deep-bed filtration model coupled with heat and species balance equations in the liquid, gas and solid (catalyst+deposit) phases. The hydrodesulfurization process in the presence of sulfided Co-Mo/γ-Al₂O₃ catalyst was considered as a case study. The deep-bed filtration model incorporates the physical effects of porosity and effective specific surface area changes due to fines deposition/detachment, gas and suspension inertial effects, and coupling effects between the filtration parameters and the interfacial momentum exchange force terms. The detachment of the fine particles from the collector surface was assumed to be induced by the colloidal forces in the case of Brownian particles or by the hydrodynamic forces in the case of non-Brownian particles. The three-phase heterogeneous model developed to simulate the trickle bed performance incorporates the concentration gradients inside the catalyst particle and solid deposit. An important finding of the work is that fine particles deposition does not influence appreciably trickle bed reactor performance. Thus, the only undesirable effect of the fine particles deposition process is the bed plugging and the increase of the resistance to two-phase flow.     

Analysis of gas-particle flow characteristics in impinging streams

A three dimensional Euler–Lagrange model for the gas-particle two-phase impinging streams (GPIS) is developed based on the direct simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) method with consideration of particle rotation and collision. The gas-particle flow characteristics involved in GPIS as well as the effects of inlet gas velocity and particle rotation are analyzed. The results indicate that two pairs of counter-rotating gas vortices are developed at two sides of the opposite jet flows, which is able to entrain the particles and thus greatly weaken the deposition of particles. Interparticle collisions in the impingement zone produce two effects on the particle behaviors: the direct escaping of particles from impingement zone and the progressive accumulation of particles in impingement zone. Under the same inlet particle mass flow rate, the particle concentration in the impingement zone decreases with increasing inlet velocity of gas due to the increasing impinging reaction of interparticle collisions and growing entrainment of gas vortices. In addition, the rotation of particle provides an additional driving force to push the particles away from the impingement zone, leading to the higher speed of escaping particles and smaller maximum particle concentration at the center of impingement zone than those without particle rotation.     

Dispersion and Deposition of Spherical Particles from Point Sources in a Turbulent Channel Flow

The dispersion and deposition of particles from a point source in a turbulent channel flow are studied. An empirical mean velocity profile and the experimental data for turbulent intensities are used in the analysis. The instantaneous turbulence fluctuation is simulated as a continuous Gaussian random field, and an ensemble of particle trajectories is generated and statistically analyzed. A series of digital simulations for dispersion and deposition of aerosol particles of various sizes from point sources at different positions from the wall is performed. Effects of Brownian diffusion on particle dispersion are studied. The effects of variation in particle density and particle-surface interaction are also discussed.     

Particle Transport and Deposition in a Hot-Gas Cleanup Pilot Plant

ABSTRACT

Development of hot-gas filtration systems for advanced clean coal technologies has attracted considerable attention in recent years. The Integrated Gasification and Cleanup Facility (IGCF), which is an experimental pilot plant for testing performance of ceramic candle filters for hot-gas cleaning, has been operational at the Federal Energy Technology Center (FETC) in Morgantown, West Virginia, for several years. The present work describes a computer simulation study of gas flow and particle transport and deposition in the IGCF filter vessel with four filters. The stress transport model of FLUENT? code is used for evaluating the gas mean velocity and the root mean-square fluctuation velocity fields in the IGCF filter vessel. The instantaneous fluctuation velocity vector field is simulated by a filtered Gaussian white-noise model. Ensembles of particle trajectories are evaluated using the recently developed PARTICLE code. The model equations of the code include the effects of lift and Brownian motion in addition to gravity. The particle deposition patterns on the ceramic filters are evaluated, and the effect of particle size is studied. The results show that, for a clean filter (just after the backpulse), the initial deposition rate of particles on the candle filters is highly nonuniform. Furthermore, particles of different sizes have somewhat different deposition patterns, which could lead to nonuniform cake compositions and thicknesses along the candle filters. The effects of variations in the filter permeability on the vessel gas flow patterns and the pressure drop, as well as on particle transport patterns, are also studied.     

基于MP-PIC方法改进EMMS/DP曳力模型

改进了面向离散粒子法的能量最小多尺度曳力模型(EMMS/DP)的颗粒参数生成方式,并将非均匀因子(HD)与固相浓度和滑移速度关联以考虑介尺度结构动态效应的影响,用改进的EMMS/DP模型与多相流质点网格模型(MP-PIC)耦合模拟气固两相流提升管系统,模拟结果与实验值吻合很好,考察了MP-PIC方法的网格无关性和粗粒化模型参数.     

Effect of temperature on reduction reactivity of oxygen carrier particles in a fixed bed chemical-looping combustor

In a chemical-looping combustor (CLC), gaseous fuel is oxidized by metal oxide particle, e.g. oxygen carrier, in a reduction reactor (combustor), and the greenhouse gas CO₂ is separated from the exhaust gases during the combustion. In this study, NiO/bentonite particle was examined on the basis of reduction reactivity, carbon deposition during reduction, and NO_x formation during oxidation. Reactivity data for NiO/bentonite particle with methane and air were presented and discussed. During the reduction period, most of the CH₄ are converted to CO₂ with small formation of CO. Reduction reactivity (duration of reduction) of the NiO/bentonite particle increased with temperature, but at higher temperature, it is somewhat decreased. The NiO/bentonite particle tested showed no agglomeration or breakage up to 900 ‡C, but at 1,000 ‡C, sintering took place and lumps of particles were formed. Solid carbon was deposited on the oxygen carrier during high conversion region of reduction, i.e., during the end of reduction. It was found that the appropriate temperature for the NiO/bentonite particle is 900 ‡C for carbon deposition, reaction rate, and duration of reduction. We observed experimentally that NO, NO₂, and N₂O gases are not generated during oxidation.     

Direct numerical simulation of a three-dimensional particle laden plane mixing layer considering inter-particle collisions

To investigate the behavior of inter-particle collision and its effects on multiphase flow, the direct numerical simulation of a three-dimensional gas–solid two-phase plane mixing layer is conducted. The flow is assumed to be temporally evolving and incompressible. The particle trajectories are traced by the one-way or two-way coupled Lagrangian method separately. The deterministic hard-sphere model is used to describe the inter-particle collision. Calculations are performed for a particle Stokes numbers of 3. The results show that the preferential concentration phenomenon of particles is found after the beginning of the rolling up of the large-scale vortex structures due to the influence of the vortex. It is also found that the inter-particle collision occurs frequently in the local regions with higher particle concentration of the flow field. The evolution of inter-particle collision can be divided into 3 stages under the influence of the growth of the vortex and the particle dispersion. The results under the two-way coupling show that the particle distribution is more uniform. The modifications of the mixed fluid thickness, the Reynolds stresses, and the mean stream-wise velocity of two phases due to inter-particle collision are quantitatively investigated.     

Computational study on the deposition of ultrafine particles from Diesel exhaust aerosol

Short-term in vitro assays are arising in order to determine the toxicity of native Diesel aerosol particles, due to its association with adverse health effects. Estimation of the real quantity and characteristics of the particles deposition on the cells cultures in these assays becomes necessary to establish correlations between the particle deposition conditions and the biological indicators of toxicity of the exposed cells.

On that basis, it is the aim of this paper to analyze the deposition of sub-micron particles in an air/liquid interface cells exposure system by means of a CFD (computational fluid dynamics) code. Some comparisons with experimental and modelled results are shown to probe the validity of the method and a detailed analysis on the deposition of particles and efficiency of exposure-cells systems, with perpendicular contact, is carried out.

Furthermore, a parametric study on the effect of particle diameter, particle density and flow inlet velocity revealed the importance of such parameters in the efficiency and pattern of particle deposition.     

IN-SITU FUME PARTICLE SIZE AND NUMBER DENSITY MEASUREMENTS FROM A SYNTHETIC SMELT

In Kraft recovery boilers, significant fuming of sodium and potassium takes place. It is essential to quantify the fume generation rate because fume particles coat heat transfer tubes and plug flue gas passages. To address this problem an ensemble light scattering technique, based on measurement of the polarization ratio, was used to measure fume particle size and number density from a synthetic smelt. This in-situ nonintrusive technique is used because of its application to high density particle-laden flows. Measurements were also carried out at different scattering angles in order to determine the imaginary part of the particle complex refractive index. In addition, fume particle size distributions obtained from scanning-electron-microscope ( SEM) images were correlated with the log-normal distribution function. Results indicated that an increase in nitrogen flow rate generated smaller fume particles, while a higher air flow rate produced larger fume particles. In addition, increased nitrogen flow rate increased fume mass density, but the air flow rate had a negligible effect. The fume particle geometric mean diameter (D_G) was found to vary with gas flow rate between values of 0.2 and 0.3 µ, and number density varied between 3 x 10⁷ and 2 x 10⁸ particles/cc. The particle mean size obtained from polarization ratio measurements compared well with those obtained from SEM images ( i.e., D_g = 0.3 µ) Increased nitrogen and air flow rates also resulted in increased fume generation rates. The results indicate that gas flow past a smelt surface is an important control parameter for fume particle formation in Kraft recovery boilers.     

Simulation of gas-particle turbulent combustion in a pulverized coal-fired swirl combustor

A particle stochastic trajectory model for turbulence-particle reaction interactions is proposed and formulated in the present paper. This model provides the basis for a comprehensive model of pulverized coal combustion. It is applied to the simulation of gas-particle turbulent flow and combustion in a pulverized coal-fired swirl combustor. The results are compared with the measured test data and those obtained by the particle stochastic trajectory model without considering turbulence-particle reaction interactions. The predicted gas temperature and species concentrations in the upstream region of the combustor are improved by utilizing the model with turbulence-particle reaction interactions.     

Numerical studies of pulverized coal combustion in a tubular coal combustor with slanted oxygen jet

A pure two-fluid model for turbulent reacting gas-particle flow of coal particles is developed using a unified Eulerian treatment of both the gas and particle phases. The particles' history caused by mass transfer due to moisture evaporation, devolatilization and char reaction is described. Both velocity and temperature of the coal particles and the gas phase are predicted by solving the momentum and energy equations of the gas and particle phases, respectively. A k-ε-k_k two-phase turbulence model, EBU-Arrhenius turbulent combustion model and four-flux radiation heat transfer model are incorporated into a comprehensive model. The above comprehensive mathematical model is used to simulate two-dimensional gas-particle flows and pulverized coal combustion in a newly designed tubular oxygen-coal combustor of blast furnace. Predicted results of isothermal gas-particle flows are in good agreement with those obtained by measurements. The results also show that the proposed tubular oxygen-coal combustor prolongs the coal particle residence time and enhances the mixing of coal and oxygen. Results indicate that smaller coal particles of 10 μm diameter are heated and devolatilized rapidly and have volatile combustion in the combustor, while larger coal particles of 40 and 70 μm in diameter are heated but not devolatilized, and combustion of such particles does not occur in the tubular combustor.     

Modelling the Effect of Particle Size in Microfiltration

Abstract

Particle deposition at the filter surface in microfiltration is studied to better understand the effect of particle size on cake morphology and permeability reduction. Numerical simulations are carried out on a Hele Shaw cell which consists of a representative unit element of a two dimensional spatially periodic flat plate with pores. The particle concentration in the fluid is assumed to be low so that particles enter one by one into the computation domain. Particles follow the flow streamlines under creeping flow conditions from a random initial location until they are subjected to physico‐chemical interactions near the filter surface or a particle already deposited. The computational domain consists of two regions: a fluid region and a porous medium region, i.e. the particle cake. The flow over the two regions of the Hele Shaw cell is computed using the Darcy model, including the variations of the permeability field due to the cake formation. Results show that both the permeability and the filtration efficiency are affected significantly by particle size.     

Modeling of particle deposition in a vertical turbulent pipe flow at a reduced probability of particle sticking to the wall

Particle deposition on the wall in a dilute turbulent vertical pipe flow is modeled. The different mechanisms of particle transport to the wall are considered, i.e., Brownian motion, turbulent diffusion and turbophoresis. The Saffman lift force, the electrostatic force, the virtual mass effect and wall surface roughness are taken into account in the model developed. A boundary condition that accounts for the probability of particle sticking to the wall is suggested. An analytical solution for deposition of small Brownian particles is obtained. A particle relaxation time range, where the model developed is reliably applicable, is evaluated. Computational results obtained at different particle-wall sticking probabilities in the wide particle relaxation time range are presented and discussed.     

PARTICLE CONCENTRATION AND SIZE MEASUREMENTS IN TWO-PHASE TURBULENT COAXIAL JETS

Particle concentration and particle size distributions have been measured for two-phase (solid/air) turbulent coaxial jets using the Laser Diffraction Method (LDM) and a tomography data transform technique. Effects of velocity ratio, particle loading ratio, and particle size on the dispersions of gas and particles were determined. Experimental results show that the gas disperses much more rapidly than the particles and particle dispersion decreases with increasing in particle size. Increasing velocity ratio significantly increases gas dispersion, while effects of other variables are less significant. The mean particle size at the jet edge is about 15-20% smaller than that at the jet centerline. The turbulent Schmidt number Sc_p for two-phase turbulent coaxial jets ranges from 1.4 to 1.5.     

PARTICLE DEPOSITION IN A NEARLY DEVELOPED TURBULENT DUCT FLOW WITH ELECTROPHORESIS

This study is concerned with deposition of neutral and charged particles in nearly developed turbulent duct flows. The cases that the duct is vertical or horizontal and when the particles carry Boltzmann, static electrification, as well as saturation charge distributions are analyzed. The mean turbulent flow field is evaluated with the aid of the FLUENT code, using the Reynolds stress transport model. Deposition rate of particles in the size range of 0.01–100 μm are studied and the effects of electric field intensity on particle deposition velocity are evaluated. The simulation results are compared with the available experimental data, the earlier numerical results and those obtained from empirical equations for fully developed duct flows. It is shown that the electrostatic effect significantly increases the particle deposition rate.     

Design and simulation of a solar chemical reactor for the thermal reduction of metal oxides: Case study of zinc oxide dissociation

A laboratory-scale solar reactor was designed and simulated for the thermal reduction of metal oxides involved in water-splitting thermochemical cycles for hydrogen production. This reactor features a cavity-receiver directly heated by concentrated solar energy, in which solid particles are continuously injected. A computational model was developed by coupling the fluid flow, heat and mass transfer, and the chemical reaction. The reactive particle-laden flow was simulated, accounting for a multiphase model (solid-gas flow). A discrete phase model based on a Lagrangian approach was developed. The kinetics of the chemical reaction was considered in the specific case of zinc oxide dissociation for which reliable data are available. The complete model predicts temperature and gas velocity distributions, species concentration profiles inside the reactor, particle trajectories and fates, and conversion rate assessing the reaction degree of completion. The reaction extent is highly dependent on temperature of the radiation-absorbing particles. Initial diameter of injected particles is also a key parameter because it determines the available surface area for a given particle mass feed rate. The higher the particle surface area, the higher the conversion rate. As a result, reaction completion can be achieved when particle temperature exceeds 2200 K for a initial particle diameter.     

Particle Deposition in Laminar Crossflow Filtration of Power Law Slurry

Abstract

A theoretical model for predicting the probability of particle deposition in crossflow filtration of power law slurry is developed. The model is based on the critical angle of friction between depositing particles, which can be estimated by analyzing the forces exerted on the particles. The binding force between the particles due to polymer adsorption plays an important role in the particle deposition. The smaller the flow behavior index of the slurry is, the larger the binding force and the higher the probability of particle deposition will be. The effects of operating conditions such as the crossflow velocity of the slurry and the filtration rate on the probability of particle deposition are also discussed in depth. The calculated values of the probability of particle deposition agree fairly well with the experimental data. A program is designed to simulate the packing structure and the porosity at the cake surface. The porosity increases not only with the increase of the crossflow velocity, but also with the increase of the flow behavior index of the power law slurry.     

Mean and fluctuating gas phase velocities inside a circulating fluidized bed

Gas phase velocities is an area in circulating fluidized beds (CFB) that has traditionally received little attention. The dynamics and motion of particles or clusters inside the bed has been the main focus of research. This is because particles dominate the fluid mechanics and heat transfer inside a CFB. However, gas phase motions also effect particle motion. Gas eddies or fluctuations can play an important role in transporting particles to and from the wall. They also help in providing a uniform temperature throughout the bed by promoting mixing. This paper deals with how particles effect the mean and fluctuating gas velocities throughout the cross-section of a riser.Gas velocities were measured inside a cold scale model CFB using a shielded hot wire anemometer. At the centerline, typical mean gas velocities were measured which were approximately twice the superficial gas velocity. These high velocities are likely caused by the negligible net gas upflow in the annulus region. The presence of many dense, downward flowing clusters in the annulus makes this a reasonable assumption.Previous work on gas phase turbulence in two phase flows has typically used either laser measurement techniques in very small diameter risers or in larger risers with very low particle concentration. The general results have shown that smaller particles, on the same order of magnitude as those typically used in CFB and FCC reactors, tend to damp out the gas phase fluctuations. This implies that gas phase motion behaves close to a laminar fashion. This present research measures gas phase fluctuations with typical particle concentrations inside a CFB (∼1-5%). The results indicate that at larger particle concentrations where clusters are formed, the gas phase fluctuations increase dramatically. This suggests that length scales based on cluster size, as opposed to particle size, should be used in estimating the increased levels of gas fluctuations caused by the solid phase. Hence, models which ignore the effect of clusters on the gas or which treat the gas phase as laminar like flow, yield a misleading picture of the flow dynamics inside a CFB riser.     

Numerical study of particle dispersion in the wake of gas-particle flows past a circular cylinder using discrete vortex method

A numerical investigation on the particle dispersion in the wake of particle-laden gas flows past a circular cylinder at Reynolds number of 10⁵ is presented. In the numerical method, the Discrete Vortex Method with the diffusion velocity model is employed to calculate the unsteady gas flow fields and a Lagrangian approach is applied to track individual particles. A dispersion function is defined to represent the dispersion scale of the particle. The distributions of gas velocities and vortex blobs, the trajectories and dispersion functions as well as distributions for particles with various Stokes numbers ranging from 0.01 to 1000 are obtained. The numerical results show that: (1) very small sized particles with St = 0.01 can distribute both in the vortex core and around the vortex periphery, whereas intermediate sized particles with St = 1.0, 10 are distributed around the vortex periphery, and very large sized particles with St = 1000 do not feel the gas flow; (2) only at small Stokes number (St = 0.01, 0.1) the particles do not impact with the cylinder; (3) the particle's dispersion intensity decreases precipitously as St is increased from 0.01 to 10.     

Effect of pulse modulation on particle growth during SiH<Subscript>4</Subscript> plasma process

The effects of pulse modulation on particle growth by coagulation between particles in a pulsed SiH₄ plasma reactor were analyzed by using a discrete-sectional method. At the start of the plasma discharge, there is high concentration of small-sized particles, and, later, the large-sized particles appear and grow by coagulation between small-sized particles. During plasma-off, the monomer generation stops and the particle concentration decreases with time by the effects of particle coagulation and fluid flow. As the pulse frequency decreases or as the duty ratio increases, the large-sized particles grow faster because more monomer particles are generated during longer plasma-on time. These results show that the pulse modulation, the changes of pulse frequency and duty ratio, can play a key role in suppressing the particle growth in the pulsed plasma process efficiently. This study proves that the pulsed plasma process can be applied to reduce the particle contamination in the plasma process for preparation of high quality thin films.