The effect of ash and filter media characteristics on particle filtration efficiency in fluidized bed

The phenomenon of filtering particles by a fluidized bed is complex and the parameters that affect the control efficiency of filtration have not yet been clarified. The major objective of the study focuses on the effect of characteristics of ash and filter media on filtration efficiency in a fluidized bed. The performance of the fluidized bed for removal of particles in flue gas at various fluidized operating conditions, and then the mechanisms of collecting particles were studied. The evaluated parameters included (1) various ashes (coal ash and incinerator ash); (2) bed material size; (3) operating gas velocity; and (4) bed temperature. The results indicate that the removal efficiency of coal ash increases initially with gas velocity, then decreases gradually as velocity exceeds some specific value. Furthermore, the removal of coal ash enhance with silica sand size decreasing. When the fluidized bed is operated at high temperature, diffusion is a more important mechanism than at room temperature especially for small particles. Although the inertial impaction is the main collection mechanism, the "bounce off" effect when the particles collide with the bed material could reduce the removal efficiency significantly. Because of layer inversion in fluidized bed, the removal efficiency of incinerator ash is decreased with increasing of gas velocity.     

Rate of CO2 adsorbent attrition induced by gas jets on perforated plate distributors in bubbling fluidized beds

Particle attrition is a major challenge when handling bulk solid materials with fluidized beds due to its ability to cause particle loss. Herein, the particle attrition induced by the gas jets on a perforated plate distributor in a bubbling fluidized bed was investigated for CO₂ adsorbent particles. An attrition tube, which used air as the fluidizing gas, was used as the fluidized bed. At a constant fluidizing velocity, the initial static bed height and orifice gas velocity were considered as variables. It was confirmed that abrasion dominated the particle attrition. The trend indicating the change in the maximum size of the particles (d_pm,a) formed by attrition followed that of the attrition rate (i.e., the formation rate of fine particles via attrition). A new stirring factor that combined the model developed by Werther and Xi with the original stirring factor adequately explained the effect of the static bed height on both the attrition rate and d_pm,a when the initial static bed height was greater than the length of the orifice gas jet that penetrated the bed. The attrition rate increased linearly with the new stirring factor. However, d_pm,a increased exponentially with the new stirring factor. Relationships were successfully proposed to enable the estimation of the attrition rate and d_pm,a for the CO₂ adsorbent particles. This study provided the evidence indicating the significance of the effect of bed height on particle attrition induced by the gas jet on the distributor. Moreover, proper models for correlating the attrition rate and the maximum size of the fine particles formed by attrition in the bubbling fluidized bed were provided.     

Magnetite particle surface attrition model in dense phase gas–solid fluidized bed for dry coal beneficiation

Dense-phase high-density fluidized bed has received considerable attention worldwide due to the urgent need for an efficient dry separation technology. This study on magnetite particle attrition model and size distribution change rule in a dense-phase gas–solid fluidized bed for dry beneficiation analyzes the complex process of magnetite particle attrition and fine particle generation. A model of magnetite particle attrition rate is established, with the particle attrition rate leveling off gradually with the attrition time in the dense-phase gas–solid fluidized bed. Magnetite particle attrition in the dense-phase gas–solid fluidized bed is consistent with Rittinger’s surface theory, where the change in surface area of magnetite particles is proportional to the total excess kinetic energy consumed and the total attrition time. An attrition experiment of magnetite particles is conducted in a laboratory-scale dense-phase gas–solid fluidized bed for dry beneficiation.     

Simultaneous desulfurization and denitrification by microwave reactor with ammonium bicarbonate and zeolite

Microwave reactor with ammonium bicarbonate (NH(4)HCO(3)) and zeolite was set up to study the simultaneous removal of sulfur dioxide (SO(2)) and nitrogen oxides (NO(x)) from flue gas. The results showed that the microwave reactor filled with NH(4)HCO(3) and zeolite could reduce SO(2) to sulfur with the best desulfurization efficiency of 99.1% and reduce NO(x) to nitrogen with the best NO(x) purifying efficiency of 86.5%. Microwave desulfurization and denitrification effect of the experiment using ammonium bicarbonate and zeolite together is much higher than that using ammonium bicarbonate or zeolite only. NO(x) concentration has little effect on denitrification but has no influence on desulfurization, SO(2) concentration has no effect on denitrification. The optimal microwave power and empty bed residence time (EBRT) on simultaneous desulfurization and dentrification are 211-280 W and 0.315 s, respectively. The mechanism for microwave reduced desulfurization and denitrification can be described as the microwave-induced catalytic reduction reaction between SO(2), NO(x) and ammonium bicarbonate with zeolite being the catalyst and microwave absorbent.     

Kinetic study of the reaction between sulfur dioxide and calcium hydroxide at low temperature in a fixed-bed reactor

A quantitative study of the influence of inlet sulfur dioxide concentration (600-3000 ppm), relative humidity (20-60%), reactor temperature (56-86 degrees C) and different amounts (0-30 wt.%) of inorganic additives (NaCl, CaCl(2) and NaOH) on gas desulfurization has been carried out in a continuous downflow fixed-bed reactor containing calcium hydroxide diluted with silica sand. Results show that the reaction rate does not depend on sulfur dioxide partial pressure (zero-order kinetics) and that the temperature and the relative humidity have a positive influence on reaction rate. An apparent activation energy of 32 kJ/mol Ca(OH)(2) has been estimated for the reaction.An empirical reaction rate equation at 71.5 degrees C and 36.7% relative humidity that includes the type and amount of additive is proposed. It has been found that calcium chloride is the best additive studied because it allows for a higher degree of sulfur dioxide removal.     

Parameter study and optimization on filtration and resistance characteristics of granular bed filter

In this paper, experimental studies were carried out to investigate the filtration and resistance characteristics of a fixed granular bed filter (GBF) during the process of dust particles removal for hot industrial flue gas. The effects of geometric and operating parameters (including filtration superficial velocity, granules size, bed height, dust particles concentration and flue gas temperature) were examined according to the orthogonal array design method. The experimental results show that the filtration superficial velocity has the most significant effect on filtration efficiency, which is followed by granules size, bed height, flue gas temperature and dust particles concentration respectively; for pressure drop, the order of the factors are granules size, filtration superficial velocity, bed height, flue gas temperature and dust particles concentration respectively. Based on the experimental results, correlations of filtration efficiency and pressure drop with these parameters were established, which have good prediction accuracy with most of the deviations within 15%. The optimized parameters combinations of the maximum filtration efficiency and the minimum pressure drop of the GBF were gained which agree well with the experimental results. The correlations are significant for design and evaluation of GBF in practical applications.     

Multi-functional sorbents for the simultaneous removal of sulfur and lead compounds from hot flue gases

A multi-functional sorbent is developed for the simultaneous removal of PbCl(2) vapor and sulfur dioxide from the combustion gases. The sorbent is tested in a bench-scale reactor at the temperature of 700 degrees C, using simulated flue gas (SFG) containing controlled amounts of PbCl(2) and SO(2) compounds. The removal characteristics of PbCl(2) and SO(2), individually and in combination, are investigated. The results show that the mechanism of capture by the sorbent is not a simple physical adsorption process but seems to involve a chemical reaction between the Ca-based sorbent and the contaminants from the simulated flue gas. The porous product layer in the case of individual SO(2) sorption is in a molten state at the reaction temperature. In contrast, the combined sorption of lead and sulfur compounds generates a flower-shaped polycrystalline product layer.     

燃煤烟气中Hg迁移转化特性研究

研究了300 MW煤粉锅炉系统选择性催化还原（selective catalytic reduction,SCR）、低低温电除尘器、海水脱硫、湿式电除尘器等超低排放设施在不同工况、不同煤种情况下的Hg迁移特性和脱除能力。结果表明：各工况下总汞排放浓度为1.16~2.90 μg/m³。最终排入大气中的汞主要以单质汞存在,还有少量氧化态汞,颗粒态汞被全部脱除;汞主要是在海水法烟气脱硫中被去除的,低低温电除尘器、海水脱硫、湿式电除尘器对总汞平均脱除率分别为25%、62%、37%;Hg²⁺占比是影响烟气中汞脱除效率的关键,气相中较高的Hg²⁺份额有利于在电除尘器和海水脱硫装置中获得较高的脱除效率;在该配备SCR脱硝、低低温电除尘器、海水脱硫、湿式电除尘器等超低排放设施的300 MW煤粉锅炉电厂中,总汞平均脱除率约为83%,能够实现较大程度的汞脱除。     

Control of acid gases using a fluidized bed adsorber

During incineration, secondary pollutants such as acid gases, organic compounds, heavy metals and particulates are generated. Among these pollutants, the acid gases, including sulfur oxides (SO(x)) and hydrogen chloride (HCl), can cause corrosion of the incinerator piping and can generate acid rain after being emitted to the atmosphere. To address this problem, the present study used a novel combination of air pollution control devices (APCDs), composed of a fluidized bed adsorber integrated with a fabric filter. The major objective of the work is to demonstrate the performance of a fluidized bed adsorber for removal of acid gases from flue gas of an incinerator. The adsorbents added in the fluidized bed adsorber were mainly granular activated carbon (AC; with or without chemical treatment) and with calcium oxide used as an additive. The advantages of a fluidized bed reactor for high mass transfer and high gas-solid contact can enhance the removal of acid gases when using a dry method.On the other hand, because the fluidized bed can filter particles, fine particles prior to and after passing through the fluidized bed adsorber were investigated. The competing adsorption on activated carbon between different characteristics of pollutants was also given preliminary discussion. The results indicate that the removal efficiencies of the investigated acid gases, SO(2) and HCl, are higher than 94 and 87%, respectively. Thus, a fluidized bed adsorber integrated with a fabric filter has the potential to replace conventional APCDs, even when there are other pollutants at the same time.     

Investigation of hydrodynamics of gas-solid fluidized beds using cross recurrence quantification analysis

Hydrodynamics of gas-solid fluidized bed was investigated by analyzing its pressure fluctuations using cross recurrence quantification analysis (CRQA). Pressure fluctuations were measured in a lab scale fluidized bed of various particle sizes at different gas velocities. First, the CRQA was applied to a number of well-known dynamic systems and the results demonstrated that it is a powerful method to detect similarities between nonlinear signals. Then, it was shown that graphical structures within the cross recurrence plot of pressure fluctuations of a fluidized bed vary with both superficial gas velocity and particle size. It was found that determinism and cross recurrence rate of non-normalized data initially decrease and then increase with increasing the gas velocity. When the signal is initially normalized, determinism and entropy do not change with the superficial gas velocity while cross recurrence rate is sensible to changes in the superficial gas velocity. It was concluded that entropy can be used for detecting changes of particle size and if a proper reference state is chosen, entropy can be a powerful index for detecting changes in the size of particles in a fluidized bed.     

Attrition rate of CO2 adsorbent in bubbling fluidized beds

Particle attrition induced by bubbles in a bubbling fluidized bed was investigated with CO₂ adsorbent particles (0.128 mm in diameter, 1770 kg/m³ in apparent density). The theoretical relationship between the rate of attrition by gas jets on the perforated plate distributor (R_a,j) and the rate of attrition by bubbles (R_a,b) in the bed was revealed that the rate constant of attrition by bubbles (K_a,b) was the product of the rate constant of attrition by gas jets (C_a) and dimensionless particle diameter (d_pbc). An attrition tube (0.035 m-i.d.) using the perforated-plate distributor designed for reducing the attrition by gas jets was employed as the fluidized bed, and the air as the fluidizing gas. The mode of attrition by bubbles was identified as abrasion. The rate of attrition by bubbles (R_a,b) was linearly proportional to the power given to the bed solids by bubbles. The top size of the fine particles formed by attrition (d_pm,ab) increased exponentially with an increase of bed mass and gas velocity. The effects of temperature, pressure, and area of internal surface contacting particle bed on the R_a,b and d_pm,ab were negligible under the tested condition. Empirical relationships on R_a,b and d_pm,ab were proposed based on the experimental data. When both jet and bubble attrition were significant, there existed the static bed heights that gave respectively the minimum attrition rate and the minimum of the top size of fine particles formed by attrition. Each optimal static bed heights increased with an increase of the orifice jet velocity of the perforated plate distributor.     

High temperature removal of hydrogen sulfide using an N-150 sorbent

In this study, an N-150 sorbent was used as a high temperature desulfurization sorbent for the removal of hydrogen sulfide from coal gas in a fixed bed reactor. The results indicate that the N-150 sorbent could be used for H(2)S removal in the tested temperature ranges. Regeneration test also reveals that utilization of the N-150 sorbent maintains up to 85% compared to the fresh sorbent. No significant degeneration occurs on the N-150 sorbent. In addition, various concentrations of H(2)S, H(2) and CO were also considered in the performance test of the N-150 sorbent. Except for H(2)S, H(2) and CO act the important roles in the high temperature desulfurization. By increasing the H(2) concentration, the sulfur capacity of the sorbent decreases and an adverse result is observed in the case of increasing CO concentration. This can be explained via water-shift reaction. On the basis of the instrument analysis, X-ray powder diffraction determination and SEM images with EDS spectrum characterization, residual sulfur is found in the regenerated N-150 sorbent and this sulfur species is sulfate which resulted by incomplete regeneration. The sulfate formation and sintering effect are major reasons to cause activity loss in the sulfidation/regeneration cycles.     

Removal of sulfur dioxide from a continuously operated binary fluidized bed reactor using inert solids and hydrated lime

Sulfur dioxide pollutant was treated in the laboratory with hydrated lime particles having a mean diameter of 9.1 microm in a continuously operating binary fluidized bed reactor also containing inert sand particles with sizes varying from 500 to 590 microm. The influence of temperature (500, 600, 700 and 800 degrees C) on the reaction medium, of the superficial velocity of the gas (0.8, 1.0 and 1.2 m/s), and of the Ca/S molar ratio (1, 2 and 3) on the SO2 removal efficiency were investigated for an inflow gas concentration of 1000 ppm and an initially static bed height of 10.0 cm. The pollutant removal efficiency proved to depend on the temperature and the velocity of the gaseous flow and was strongly influenced by the Ca/S molar ratio. The maximum efficiency of 97.7% was achieved at a temperature of 700 degrees C, a Ca/S ratio of 3 and a velocity of 0.8 m/s. The lime particles' mean residence time was determined by an indirect method, which consisted of integrating the gas concentration curves normalized with respect to time. Based on a calculation of the critical transition velocities, it was concluded that the reactor operated in a bubbling regime under each condition investigated here.     

Fluidization behavior of glass beads under different vibration modules

The expansion of free bubbling gas fluidized beds has been investigated experimentally in a two-dimensional perspex-walled bed. Glass beads were fluidized with dried air at varying gas velocities, while the bed was vibrated at different frequencies, amplitudes and directions to study their effects on the fluidization quality. The experimental results showed that the particle flow pattern depends on the vibration direction, especially at superficial gas velocities less than the minimum fluidization velocity U_mf. The effect of horizontal vibration on fluidization behavior of glass beads exists at superficial gas velocities less than U_mf, while the effect of vertical vibration on fluidization behavior still exists even at higher superficial gas velocities than U_mf.     

Effects of the attrition of bed material on the solid circulation rate in a recirculating fluidized bed

Effects of attrition of bed material on the solid circulation rate in a recirculating fluidized bed (RCFB) were studied in detail. Effects of different operating and design parameters such as operation time, superficial velocity, bed inventory, particle size, and spacing between jet top and draft tube bottom on the solid circulation rate in terms of attrition were studied. A mathematical model was developed on the basis of experimental results to identify the effects of attrition of bed particles on the solid circulation rate incorporating the effects of the various operating and design parameters. To develop the model, dimensional analysis and nonlinear regression were used. The model equation was a nonlinear equation, which implies a relationship between the solid circulation rate and other operating and design parameters. The model equation can estimate the solid circulation rate over a range of operation time and other parameters. Decrease in solid circulation rate can be predicted with increasing operation time, using the model equation.     

Investigating the flow structures in semi-cylindrical bubbling fluidized bed using pressure fluctuation signals

Hydrodynamic characteristics of a gas-solid semi-cylindrical fluidized bed was experimentally investigated and compared with that of a cylindrical bed by analysis of pressure fluctuations. Pressure fluctuations were analyzed in time and frequency domains using standard deviation, power spectral density function and discrete wavelet transform methods. Experiments were carried out in two semi-cylindrical and cylindrical fluidized beds of 14?cm in diameter each, operating in the bubbling fluidization regime at ambient pressure and temperature. Both beds were filled with glass beads of various sizes (120, 290 and 450?µm). The superficial gas velocity was varied in the range of 0.2–0.8?m/s. Results showed that although the minimum fluidization velocity is influenced by the particle size, it is not affected by the geometry of the bed. It was shown that the hydrodynamics of both beds are very similar and the difference is negligible. Number of large bubbles is slightly larger in the semi-cylindrical bed as compared with the cylindrical bed. Also, increase in the particle size and superficial gas velocity result in a greater difference between the number of large bubbles in both beds and the number of large bubbles in the semi-cylindrical bed increases slightly faster than in the cylindrical bed.     

湿法烟气脱硫塔能效特性研究

针对湿法烟气脱硫能效规律欠缺问题,以150 MW超低排放机组湿法脱硫塔为研究对象,基于脱硫设备的主要能耗和脱硫效率构建了脱硫能效指标——脱硫能效值,并采用数值模拟和理论分析相结合的方法,探究了液气比、入口烟气量、烟气流速、入口SO₂质量浓度、烟气温度等参数以及不同喷淋层组合方式对脱硫能效特性的影响规律。结果表明：脱硫能效值为0.22~0.96 kg/（kW·h）,并随入口SO₂质量浓度增加呈正比例变化,随喷淋层组合数、液气比和入口烟气温度增加呈反比例变化,随入口烟气量和塔内烟气流速增加先上升后下降。研究结果可为脱硫技术评价和脱硫系统节能运行提供参考。     

Investigating the hydrodynamics of gas–solid bubbling fluidization using recurrence plot

Hydrodynamics of gas–solid fluidized bed was investigated using time series of pressure fluctuations by evaluation of the corresponding recurrence plot (RP). Patterns within RP of the fluidized bed were classified into two groups of local white areas (LWA), showing macro structures, and local bold areas (LBA), showing meso and micro structures. These patterns showed that the fluidized bed system has three different hydrodynamic behaviors as superficial gas velocity increases; at low gas velocities, macro structures become more dominant, further increase in gas velocity empowers influence of finer structures on the hydrodynamic and finally the fluidization regime changes. Additionally, these results were confirmed by recurrence rate (RR) and average cycle frequency. Comparison of RP of the fluidized bed with Lorenz and complete stochastic systems showed that the fluidized bed is more complex than Lorenz system, however, it’s hydrodynamic has not stochastic nature.     

Using particle trajectory for determining the fluidization regime in gas–solid fluidized beds

Transition from bubbling to turbulent in a conventional gas–solid fluidized bed was evaluated from trajectory of particles in fluidized bed. A series of experiments were carried out in a lab-scale fluidization bed using radioactive particle tracking (RPT) technique for recording the position of a tracer in the bed. Statistical parameters, such as standard deviation and skewness of the time–position data, were utilized to determine the transition velocity from bubbling to turbulent regime. The results showed that the data obtained by the RPT technique can predict transition velocity. It was shown that the standard deviation of position fluctuations reach a maximum with increasing superficial gas velocity corresponding to regime transition. It was shown that transition from bubbling to turbulent can be determined using skewness and kurtosis of time–position data. The velocities obtained in this work are in good agreement with the available correlations.     

Numerical simulation of semi-dry flue gas desulfurization process in the powder-particle spouted bed

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) combined with the two-fluid model (TFM) was used for simulation of water vaporization and semi-dry flue gas desulfurization process in a two dimensional powder-particle spouted bed (PPSB), on the basis of gas-solid two-phase flow, the mathematical and physical models of water vaporization process and flue gas desulfurization reaction process have been established through reasonable hypothesis and simplification of the system. The numerical method was used to simulate the desulfurization reaction process and the heat and mass transfer in the powder-particle spouted bed. Simulation results indicate that water vaporization rate was high in spout and annular regions. The main area where flue gas desulfurization reaction occurs was annular area, as a result, the maximum value of desulfurization product rate appears in the annulus. Under the same condition, the desulfurization efficiency of simulation value is 75.75% when the value of slurry water content equals 40 kg-H₂O/kg-dry_sorbent, which is close to but greater than the experimental value (75.03%). The desulfurization efficiency of spouted bed increases first and then decreases with the increase of water content of desulfurization slurry, and the optimum slurry water content for desulfurization process in powder-particle spouted bed was obtained by numerical simulation, which was 40 kg-H₂O/kg-dry_sorbent.