A New Method for Measurement of Local Solid Flux in Gas-Solid Two-phase Flow

Previous works have shown that the suction probe cannot be used to accurately measure the upward and downward particle fluxes independently. A new method using a single optical probe to measure the local solid flux is presented. The measurement of upward, downward and net solid fluxes was carried out in a cold model circulating fluidized bed (CFB) unit. The result shows that the profile of the net solid flux is in good agreement with the previous experimental data measured with a suction probe. The comparison between the average solid flux determined with the optical measuring system and the external solid flux was made, and the maximum deviationturned out to be 22%, with the average error being about 6.9%. These confirm that the optical fiber system can be successfully used to measure the upward, downward and net solid fluxes simultaneously by correctly processing the sampling signals obtained from the optical measuring system.

GAS-SOLIDS FLOW BEHAVIOR WITH A GAS VELOCITY CLOSE TO ZERO

In a 9.3 m high and 0.10 m i.d. gas-solids downflow fluidized bed （downer）, the radial and axial distributions of the local solids holdups and particle velocities along the downer column were measured with the superficial gas velocity set to zero. A unique gas-solids flow structure was found in the downer system with zero gas velocity, which is completely different from that under conditions with higher gas velocities, in terms of its radial and axial flow structures as well as its micro flow structure. The gas-solids flow pattern under zero gas velocity conditions, together with that under low gas velocity conditions, can be considered as a special regime which differs from that under higher gas velocity conditions. According to the hydrodynamic properties of the two regimes, they can be named the ＂dense annulus＂ regime for the flow pattern under zero or low gas velocity conditions and the ＂dense core＂ regime for that under higher gas velocity conditions.

Influence of the pressure drop and the air lock on the solid flux in a cross-flow moving bed

The gas-solid flow pattern in a rectangular cross-flow moving bed is simulated by the multiphase particle-in-cell(MP-PIC)model with the Barracuda software.The computed results are verified by the experimental data.In the bed,the actual solid flux generally equals the solid flow rates in the solid feed and discharge tubes.However,these two flow rates are greatly influenced by the air lock and the pressure drop in the solid feed and discharge tubes,namely,the negative and positive pressure gradients,respectively,rather than the traditional opinion that they are merely controlled by the valve openings.The pressure drops in these tubes are calculated by the proposed“common pressure pool with multiple outlets”(CPPMO)and the“common pressure pool”(CPP)methods.It is found that the local gas resistance dominates the pressure drop in the solid discharge tubes,while the gas frictional resistance determines the pressure drop in the solid feed tube.In addition,when the solid flow rate nearly tends to zero in the solid feed tube,the air lock forms.A solid flux equation is then given by considering both the air lock and the pressure drop factors in the cross-flow moving bed.

Computer Simulations and Measurements of RadialSolid Flow Distribution in a Riser

Comparisons between the numerical predictions from a two-phase model and the experimental hydrodynamic data have been performed in fully developed gas-solid flows for FCC catalysts. The resultssuggested the existence of self-similar solid flux profiles at low solid fluxes. Non-uniformity in theradial solids fluxes was found with a high solid flowing mainly downward near the wall. The modelpredictions were reasonably caught up the experimental trends.

Two and three dimensional modeling of fluidized bed with multiple jets in a DEM-CFD framework

Fluidized beds with multiple jets have widespread industrial applications. The objective of this paper is to investigate the jet interactions and hydrodynamics of a fluidized bed with multiple jets. Discrete element modeling coupled with in-house CFD code GenlDLEST has been used to simulate a bed with nine jets. The results are compared with published experiments. Mono dispersed particles of size 550 ~m are used with 1.4 times the minimum fluidization velocity of the particles. Both two and three dimensional computations have been performed. To the best of our knowledge, the results presented in this paper are the first full 3D simulations of a fluidized bed performed with multiple jets. Discrepancies between the experiment and simulations are discussed in the context of the dimensionality of the simulations. The 2D solid fraction profile compares well with the experiment close to the distributor plate. At higher heights, the 2D simulation over-predicts the solid fraction profiles near the walls. The 3D simulation on the other hand is better able to capture the solid fraction profile higher up in the bed compared to that near the distributor plate. Similarly, the normalized particle velocities and the particle fluxes compare well with the experiment closer to the distributor plate for the 2D simulation and the freeboard for the 3D simulation, respectively. A lower expanded bed height is predicted in the 2D simulation compared to the 3D simulation and the experiment. The results obtained from DEM computations show that a 2D simulation can be used to capture essential jetting trends near the distributor plate regions, whereas a full scale 3D simulation is needed to capture the bubbles near the freeboard regions. These serve as validations for the experiment and help us understand the complex jet interaction and solid circulation patterns in a multiple jet fluidized bed system.