Modelling of the behaviour of gas-solid two-phase mixtures flowing through packed beds

This work is concerned about gas-solid two-phase mixtures flowing upwards through packed beds. An Eulerian-based two-fluid model coupled with a newly proposed porosity distribution model is used to simulate the flow behaviour. The results are compared with recently published experimental results in terms of both hydrodynamics and solids motion. It is found that the use of the newly proposed porosity model not only gives better agreement with experimental porosity data, but also provides a much better prediction of the pressure drop than other porosity models could do. The results also show that the model predicts very well the dynamic hold-up of suspended particles, and captures the main features of the radial distributions of the suspended solids concentration and the axial solids velocity. A discrepancy occurs, however, at the wall region where the predicted axial solids velocity peak is sharper and higher than the measurements. The work also leads to a new relationship for the pressure drop of dilute gas-solid two-phase mixtures flowing through packed beds, which agrees very well with experiments.     

Measuring the voidage of a CFB through image analysis

The error associated with estimating the local concentration of particles observed in digital videos of the inner wall of a circulating fluidized bed (CFB) riser is evaluated. Understanding the dynamics of these rapidly moving particles will allow researchers to design cleaner and more efficient CFB facilities. However, the seemingly random motion exhibited by the particles in three dimensions, coupled with the varying image quality, make it difficult to extract the required information from the images. A method has been developed for automatically detecting particles from a video sequence. By exploiting the presence of specular reflections, individual particles are identified along the focal plane by an image filter specifically designed for this purpose. An evaluation of the proposed method indicates its potential to estimate particle count, location, and concentration in an efficient and reliable manner.     

基于ECT传感器和模式识别的气液两相流空隙率测量新方法研究

基于电容层析成像(ECT)传感器和模式识别理论,提出了一种新型的气液两相流空隙率测量方法。根据流型几何特征分别建立了空隙率的三个模板库。测量时先对流型进行分类,再调用对应的模板库利用距离测度进行模板匹配,从而得到空隙率。实验结果表明该方法是可行的,有助于克服测量结果易受流型影响的问题,同时速度优于传统ECT技术方法,获得一个管截面空隙率值所花费的测量时间小于50ms,最大测量误差可小于5%,满足工业在线运行需要。     

Characterisation of porous solids using integrated nitrogen sorption and mercury porosimetry

The two different techniques of nitrogen sorption and mercury porosimetry, which are generally utilised completely separately, have been integrated into the same experiment to improve upon the information obtained from both methods. Nitrogen sorption isotherms have been run both before and after a mercury porosimetry experiment on the same sample. This experiment has revealed that for a particular type of sol-gel silica catalyst support the entrapped mercury is confined to only the very largest pores in the material. Light micrograph studies have shown that the spatial distribution of entrapped mercury is highly heterogeneous. These results suggest that mercury entrapment within the material is caused by a mechanism involving macroscopic () heterogeneities in the pore structure. These findings conflict with the usual assumptions generally made in simulations of porosimetry based on random pore bond network models. The new work has shown that, in conjunction with computer simulations involving the correct mercury retraction mechanism, mercury porosimetry and nitrogen sorption can be used to study the spatial distribution of all pore sizes within a mesoporous material. A percolation analysis of the nitrogen sorption data, obtained both before and after mercury entrapment, allowed broad features of the spatial disposition of variously sized pores to be determined. The results reported here also support the use of new, semi-empirical alternatives to the Washburn Equation to analyse raw mercury porosimetry data, rather than the traditional approach.     

Voidage of bulk solution in a tall vertical gasevolving cell

Vertical electrolysers with parallel-plate electrodes and with a narrow interelectrode gap or with narrow gaps between the membrane and each of the electrodes are used industrially to produce gases. Conductivity measurements were carried out with a small conductivity cell built within one compartment of the cell and just above the top of the working electrode. KOH solutions were used as electrolytes and gas bubbles were evolved at a 20-segment electrode. The effect of various parameters, including current passed through the 20-segments electrode, flow rate of liquid, temperature and nature of gas evolved, was studied. From the normalized conductivity measured, the gas voidage was obtained. It was found that for a bubbly flow the gas voidage just above the gas-evolving electrode is given by the relation:/(max – ) = 1.4 Qg/Qlwhere max is the maximum voidage for gas bubbles in a solution; max=0.69 for oxygen as well as hydrogen in a concentrated and a dilute KOH solution at different liquid flow rates. Qg is the volumetric flow rate of gas saturated with water vapour and Ql is the volumetric flow rate of liquid. This relation can be used to calculate the voidage distribution in the bulk solution of the cell compartment with a gas-evolving electrode.     

循环流化床内颗粒的加速作用及气固两相间的动量交换

根据对气固两相流动特性的分析,表明在循环流化床提升管内,颗粒的加速运动及气固两相间的动量交换对床层各项参数具有明显的影响。由于颗粒聚集,减小了气固两相间的相互作用,使曳力系数小于单颗粒标准曳力系数(C_D/C_(DS)<1.0)。从而使颗粒具有较长的加速段,其加速压降在总压降中所占的分率不可忽略。考虑颗粒加速作用及由于颗粒聚集使气固两相相互作用力减小的事实后,用一维轴向稳态流动的模型可以获得截面平均空隙率、平均颗粒速度以及曳力系数等参数及其轴向分布规律,并与实验直接测定结果吻合很好。通过对大量数据的分析,表明C_D/C_(DS)可用下述经验关联式表示:C_D/C_(DS)=1.68(ε)~(0.253)(Re_(?)/Re_t)~(-1.213)(d_P/D)~(0.105)     

Experimental investigation of bubble behavior in gas-solid fluidized bed

In this work, to investigate the source of pressure fluctuations, behavior of a single bubble in a two-dimensional gas–solid fluidized bed was studied. Pressure sensors located at different heights of the bed measured presure fluctuations, and simultaneously a high speed camera was used to pursue all steps from formation to eruption of bubbles. Two types of particles were applied with different sizes and densities. Experiments showed that the maximum amplitude of formation was independent of the bubble diameter. But, it depended on density of particles, velocity of injection and the distance from bed surface. When injection stopped, there was a minimum in pressure profile related to the higher dense phase voidage for a higher superficial gas velocity after injection. Also, the maximum pressure fluctuation of bubble eruptions was related to the bubble diameter, density and size of particles. It was concluded that pressure fluctuations of formation, passing and eruption of bubbles in fluidized beds are originated due to changes in dense phase voidage, bed voidage and movement of particles during bubble eruption.     

EFFECT OF PARTICLE SIZE DISTRIBUTION ON LOCAL VOIDAGE IN A BENCH-SCALE CONICAL FLUIDIZED BED DRYER

ABSTRACT

The effect of particle size distribution (PSD) on local voidage has been investigated in a conical fluidized bed containing dried placebo pharmaceutical granule. For each of the five PSDs examined, the static bed height was varied between 0.12 and 0.17 m and the superficial gas velocity was varied between 0.05 and 0.75 m/s. The local voidage was measured using a twin-plane electrical capacitance tomography (ECT) system. A wide PSD containing 12 wt% solids with a diameter of 2 mm or larger resulted in two different types of gas flow: an annular gas flow up to a gas velocity of 0.50 m/s and a centrally concentrated gas flow above 0.50 m/s. The mixtures containing less coarse material exhibited a centrally concentrated gas flow surrounded by a dense phase at the walls of the bed over the entire range of gas velocities and bed heights examined. Consideration of previous work by other researchers suggests that the behavior of the wide PSD mixture is due to segregation at the lower velocities. The local voidage was sensitive to small changes in static bed height. For the wide PSD mixture at a fixed gas velocity, the gas tended to spread more uniformly over the bed cross-section as static bed height increased. The opposite was true of the other mixtures, i.e., the gas flow became more centralized with increasing bed height.     

Distributor effects near the bottom region of turbulent fluidized beds

The distributor plate effects on the hydrodynamic characteristics of turbulent fluidized beds are investigated by obtaining measurements of pressure and radial voidage profiles in a column diameter of 0.29 m with Group A particles using bubble bubble-cap or perforated plate distributors. Distributor pressure drop measurements between the two distributors are compared with the theoretical estimations while the influence of the mass inventory is studied. Comparison is established for the transition velocity from bubbling to turbulent regime, U_c, deduced from the pressure fluctuations in the bed using gauge pressure measurements. The effect of the distributor on the flow structure near the bottom region of the bed is studied using differential and gauge pressure transducers located at different axial positions along the bed. The radial voidage profile in the bed is also measured using optical fiber probes, which provide local measurements of the voidage at different heights above the distributor. The distributor plate has a significant effect on the bed hydrodynamics. Owing to the jetting caused by the perforated plate distributor, earlier onset of the transition to the turbulent fluidization flow regime was observed. Moreover, increased carry over for the perforated plate compared with the bubble caps has been confirmed. The results have highlighted the influence of the distributor plate on the fluidized bed hydrodynamics which has consequences in terms of comparing experimental and simulation results between different distributor plates.