STUDIES OF THE EVAPORATION AND SCALING MITIGATION IN A RECIRCULATING THREE-PHASE FLUIDIZED BED

Heat transfer of liquid evaporation was studied in a recirculating three-phase fluidized bedin which an inert gas serving as'carrying gas'was introduced.The gas velocities,particle sizes,par-ticle densities and particle concentrations in the liquid were examined.Heat fluxes were measured aswell.Significant enhancement in heat transfer was resulted when an inert gas and solid particles wereintroduced into the flow boiling liquid.Scaling mitigation was to be expected in the process.

A Sedimentation-Dispersion Model for both Non-attached and Attached Particles in Three-Phase Batchwise Fluidized Beds

The axial concentration distribution of both particles with betterwetting (forming non-attached system) and poorer wetting (formingattached system) was investigated in a vertical gas-liquid-solidfluidized bed of 4.2 cm in diameters and 130 cm in height with thesolids holdup less than 0.05. The one-dimensionalsedimentation-dispersion model could be used satisfactorily todescribe the axial distribution of solids holdup by modifying only amodel parameter, i.e. by means of the terminal settling velocityminus a certain value, which is a functions of gas velocity andconsiders the effect of an additional drag force resulted fromattached rising bubbles.

Photocatalytic oxidation of Rhodamine B in a three-phase internal circulating fluidized bed with TiO_2/SiO_2 as photocatalyst

A novel photoreactor of three-phase internal circulating fluidized bed was applied to the degradation of Rhodamine B with TiO2/SiO2 catalyst and TiO2 powder,respectively.The experimental results showed that the photocatalytic activity of TiO2/SiO2 catalyst was much higher than that of TiO2 powder under the same condition,and the half life of Rhodamine B using TiO2/SiO2 was 9.5 min,much lower than 63 min when using TiO2 powder.Moreover,TiO2/SiO2 had a good adsorption capacity of Rhodamine B,which played an important role on degradation.In addition,it was found that the degradation kinetics of Rodamine B with TiO2/SiO2 catalyst did not follow the first order reaction.The degradation kinetics model in terms of the adsorption process of catalyst and the analytic solution of reactant degradation rate in liquid phase could be deduced,which consisted of two parts.The first part was due to the adsorption,while the second part was due to the photocatalysis.In the beginning of the reaction,the adsorption process was dominant.However,when the adsorption achieved a balance,the degradation of Rhodamine B in liquid phase and solid phase was mainly caused by photocatalysis and the degradation kinetics model conformed to the first order reaction.

Anaerobic tapered fluidized bed reactor for starch wastewater treatment and modeling using multilayer perceptron neural network

treatability of synthetic sago wastewater was investigated in a laboratory anaerobic tapered fluidized bed reactor （ATFBR） with a mesoporous granular activated carbon （GAC） as a support material. The experimental protocol was defined to examine the effect of the maximum organic loading rate （OLR）, hydraulic retention time （HRT）, the efficiency of the reactor and to report on its steady- state performance. The reactor was subjected to a steady-state operation over a range of OLR up to 85.44 kg COD/（m^3·d）. The COD removal efficiency was found to be 92% in the reactor while the biogas produced in the digester reached 25.38 m^3/（m^3·d） of the reactor. With the increase of OLR from 83.7 kg COD/（m^3·d）, the COD removal efficiency decreased. Also an artificial neural network （ANN） model using multilayer perceptron （MLP） has been developed for a system of two input variable and five output dependent variables. For the training of the input-output data, the experimental values obtained have been used. The output parameters predicted have been found to be much closer to the corresponding experimental ones and the model was validated for 30% of the untrained data. The mean square error （MSE） was found to be only 0.0146.

A Review of Techniques for the Process Intensification of Fluidized Bed Reactors

Fluidized beds enable good solids mixing,high rates of heat and mass transfer,and large throughputs,but there remain issues related to fluidization quality and scale-up.In this work I review modification techniques for fluidized beds from the perspective of the principles of process intensification(PI),that is,effective bubbling suppression and elutriation control.These techniques are further refined into(1)design factors,e.g.modifying the bed configuration,or the application of internal and external forces,and(2)operational factors,including altering the particle properties(e.g.size,density,surface area)and fluidizing gas properties(e.g.density,viscosity,or velocity).As far as two proposed PI principles are concerned,our review suggests that it ought to be possible to gain improvements of between 2 and 4 times over conventional fluidized bed designs by the application of these techniques.

Production of single-walled carbon nanotubes from methane over Co-Mo/MgO nanocatalyst:A comparative study of fixed and fluidized bed reactors

In this study,the performances of fixed and fluidized bed reactors in the production of single-walled carbon nanotubes（SWNTs）have been investigated.In both reactors,single-walled carbon nanotubes were grown by catalytic chemical vapor decomposition（CCVD）of methane over Co-Mo/MgO nanocatalyst under two different operating conditions.The synthesized samples were characterized by TEM,TGA and Raman spectroscopy.It is found that the performance of a fluidized bed in the synthesis of carbon nanotubes is much better than that of a fixed bed.The quality of carbon nanotubes obtained from the fluidized bed was significantly higher than that from the fixed bed and the former one with the ID/IG ratio of 0.11 while the latter one with the ID/IG ratio of 0.71.Also,the yield of SWNTs in the fluidized bed was 92 wt%,while it was 78 wt%in the fixed bed.These advantages of fluidized bed reactors for the synthesis of carbon nanotubes can be attributed to more available space for the growth of carbon nanotubes and more uniform temperature and concentration profiles.

Cd^(2+) removal from wastewater by sulfate reducing bacteria with an anaerobic fluidized bed reactor

A process of treatment for containing Cd 2+ wastewater by sulfate reducing bacteria with upflow anaerobic fluidized bed reactor has been studied. When the concentration of COD and Cd 2+ in the influent were 270 5mg/L and 100mg/L respectively and hydraulic retention time was 4 hours, the removal rate of COD and Cd 2+ were higher than 73 8% and 99 8% respectively. The reactor can treat as high as 1000mg/L of concentration of Cd 2+ . The highest removal velocity rate of Cd 2+ reached 2999 1mg/(L·d). And the possible relationship between sulfate reducing bacteria and methanogenic bacteria was discussed.

Hydrogen production by catalytic decomposition of methane using a Fe-based catalyst in a fluidized bed reactor

Catalytic decomposition of methane using a Fe-based catalyst for hydrogen production has been studied in this work. A Fe/Al2O3 catalyst previously developed by our research group has been tested in a fluidized bed reactor （FBR）. A parametric study ot the effects of some process variables, including reaction temperature and space velocity, is undertaken. The operating conditions strongly affect the catalyst performance. Methane conversion was increased by increasing the temperature and lowering the space velocity. Using temperatures between 700 and 900℃ and space velocities between 3 and 6 LN/（gcat·h）, a methane conversion in the range of 25%-40% for the gas exiting the reactor could be obtained during a 6 h run. In addition, carbon was deposited in the form of nanofilaments （chain like nanofibers and multiwall nanotubes） with similar properties to those obtained in a fixed bed reactor.

Dynamics and Predictive Control of Gas Phase Propylene Polymerization in Fluidized Bed Reactors

A two-phase dynamic model, describing gas phase propylene polymerization in a fluidized bed reactor, was used to explore the dynamic behavior and process control of the polypropylene production rate and reactor temperature. The open loop analysis revealed the nonlinear behavior of the polypropylene fluidized bed reactor, jus- tifying the use of an advanced control algorithm for efficient control of the process variables. In this case, a central- ized model predictive control （MPC） technique was implemented to control the polypropylene production rate and reactor temperature by manipulating the catalyst feed rate and cooling water flow rate respectively. The corre- sponding MPC controller was able to track changes in the setpoint smoothly for the reactor temperature and pro- duction rate while the setpoint tracking of the conventional proportional-integral （PI） controller was oscillatory with overshoots and obvious interaction between the reactor temperature and production rate loops. The MPC was able to produce controller moves which not only were well within the specified input constraints for both control vari- ables, but also non-aggressive and sufficiently smooth for practical implementations. Furthermore, the closed loop dynamic simulations indicated that the speed of rejecting the process disturbances for the MPC controller were also acceotable for both controlled variables.

Start-up and Performance of a Novel Reactor----Jet Biogas Inter-loop Anaerobic Fluidized Bed

A novel anaerobic reactor, jet biogas inter-loop anaerobic fluidized bed （JBILAFB）, was designed and constructed. The start-up and performance of the reactor was investigated in the Process. of .artificial glucose wastewater treatment. With the wastewater recycle ratio of 2.5 ： 1, the recycled wastewater with biogas could mix sludge and wastewater in the JBILAFB reactor completely. The start-up of the JBILAFB reactor could be completed in less than 70 d through maintenance of hydraulic retention time （HR^I＂） and stepwise increase of feed total organic carbon （TOC） concentration. After the start-up, with the volumetric TOC loadings of 14.3 kg·m ^-3·d^-1, the TOC removal ratio, the effluent pH, and the volatile fatty acids （VFA）/alkalinity of the JBILAFB reactor were more than 80%, close to 7.0 and less than 0.4, respectively. Moreover, CH4 was produced at more than 70% of the theoretical value, The reactor exhibited high stability under the condition of high volumetric TOC loading. Sludge granules in the JBILAFB reactor were developed during the start-up and their sizes were enlarged with the stepwise increase of volumetric TOC loadings from 0.8 kg.m^-3.d ^-1 to 14.3 kg.m^-3.d^-1. Granules, an offwhite color and a similar spherical shape, were mainly comprised of global-like bacteria. These had good methanogenic activity and settleability, which were formed probably through adhesion of the bacteria. Some inorganic metal compounds such as Fe, Ca, Mg, Al, etc. were advantageous to the formation of the granules.

Numerical simulations and comparative analysis of two- and three-dimensional circulating fluidized bed reactors for CO2 capture

Carbon dioxide(CO2),the main gas emitted from fossil burning,is the primary contributor to global warming.Circulating fluidized bed reactor(CFBR)is proved as an energy-efficient method for post-combustion CO2 capture.The numerical simulation by computational fluid dynamics(CFD)is believed as a promising tool to study CO2 adsorption process in CFBR.Although three-dimensional(3D)simulations were proved to have better predicting performance with the experimental results,two-dimensional(2D)simulations have been widely reported for qualitative and quantitative studies on gas-solid behavior in CFBR for its higher computational efficiency recently.However,the discrepancies between 2D and 3D simulations have rarely been evaluated by detailed study.Considering that the differences between the 2D and 3D simulations will vary substantially with the changes of independent operating conditions,it is beneficial to lower computational costs to clarify the effects of dimensionality on the numerical CO2 adsorption runs under various operating conditions.In this work,the comparative analysis for CO2 adsorption in 2D and 3D simulations was conducted to enlighten the effects of dimensionality on the hydrodynamics and reaction behaviors,in which the separation rate,species distribution and hydrodynamic characteristics were comparatively studied for both model frames.With both accuracy and computational costs considered,the viable suggestions were provided in selecting appropriate model frame for the studies on optimization of operating conditions,which directly affect the capture and energy efficiencies of cyclic CO2 capture process in CFBR.

Simulation of gas-solid fluidized bed reactor for F-T synthesis

Using the lumping method, CH_4, C_3H_8, C_10H_22, and C_22H_44 were chosen as themodel products, and CO as the key component. The mathematical model of a gas-solidfluidized bed reactor was established based on some hypotheses. The consumption kinetic model of CO was investigated, and the parameters were estimated by UniversalGlobal Optimization with the Marquardt method. Residual error distribution and a statisticaltest show that the intrinsic kinetic models are reliable and acceptable. A model of carbonchain growth probability was established in terms of experiments. Coupled with the Ander-son- Schulz-Flory (ASF) distribution, the amount of specific product could be obtained.Large- scale cold model experiments were conducted to investigate the distribution of thegas (solid) phase and determine the function of the voidage with the location of the catalytic bed. The change tendencies of the components in the catalytic bed at different temperatures were computed and figured out. The calculated value computed by the modelestablished for the Fe-based F-T synthesis catalyst fit the experimental value very wellunder the same operating conditions, and all the absolute values of the relative deviationsare less than 5%.

Experimental investigation of fluidized-bed reactor performance for oxidative coupling of methane

Performance of the oxidative coupling of methane in fluidized-bed reactor was experimentally investigated using Mn-Na2WO4/SiO2,La2O3/CaO and La2O3-SrO/CaO catalysts.These catalysts were found to be stable,especially Mn-Na2WO4/SiO2 catalyst.The effect of sodium content of this catalyst was analyzed and the challenge of catalyst agglomeration was addressed using proper catalyst composition of 2%Mn2.2%Na2WO4/SiO2.For other two catalysts,the effect of Lanthanum-Strontium content was analyzed and 10%La2O 3-20%SrO/CaO catalyst was found to provide higher ethylene yield than La2O3/CaO catalyst.Furthermore,the effect of operating parameters such as temperature and methane to oxygen ratio were also reviewed.The highest ethylene and ethane （C2） yield was achieved with the lowest methane to oxygen ratio around 2.40.5% selectivity to ethylene and ethane and 41% methane conversion were achieved over La2O3-SrO/CaO catalyst while over Mn-Na2WO4 /SiO2 catalyst,40% and 48% were recorded,respectively.Moreover,the consecutive effects of nitrogen dilution,ethylene to ethane production ratio and other performance indicators on the down-stream process units were qualitatively discussed and Mn-Na2WO4/SiO2 catalyst showed a better performance in the reactor and process scale analysis.

Evaluation of the Inverse Fluidized Bed Biological Reactor for Treating High-Strength Industrial Wastewaters

The aim of this work was to investigate the aerobic degradation of high-strength industrial (refinery) wastewaters in the inverse fluidized bed biological reactor, in which polypropylene particles of density 910 kg/m3 were fluidized by an upward flow of gas through a bed. Measurements of chemical oxygen demand (COD) versus residence time t were performed for various ratios of settled bed volume to reactor volume (Vb/VR) and air velocities u. The largest COD reduction, namely, from 54,840 to 2,190 mg/l, i.e. a 96% COD decrease, was achieved when the reactor was operated at the ratio (Vb/VR) = 0.55, air velocity u = 0.046 m/s and t = 65 h. Thus, these values of (Vb/VR), u and t can be considered as the optimal operating parameters for a reactor when used in treatment of high-strength refinery wastewaters. In the treatment operation conducted in a reactor optimally controlled at (Vb/VR) = 0.55, u = 0.046 m/s and t = 65 h, the conversions obtained for all phenolic constituents of the wastewater were larger than 95%. The conversions of about 90% were attained for other hydrocarbons.

Cold-modeling study of a circulating fluidized bed reactor for flue gas desulfurization (FGD)

Short residence time of the sorbent in the gas stream and formation of a dense layer of reaction product surrounding its surface influence the sulfur removal efficiency. A practical means of improving the process performance is to employ fluidized bed reaction in replacement of entrained bed reaction on normally used in cool side desulfurizaiton. This paper describes cold modeling study of a circulating fluidized bed reactor. Several aspects of the problem are discussed: fluidization behavior of CaO, attrition of the sorbent and solids entrainment from the fluidized bed. Mechanisms and key controlling parameters are identified, and an integral model based on rate of attrition and mass balance is developed for predicting steady state mass flows and particle size distributions of the system. A process flow scheme is finally presented for conducting desulfurization tests in the second stage of the study.

Enhanced biological wastewater treatment using sodium alginate-immobilized microorganisms in a fluidized bed reactor

In this study,a microbial consortium isolated from an activated sludge tank of a conventional wastewater treatment plant was immobilized using sodium alginate(SA)as a support material for contaminant biodegradation in wastewater.A volume of 500 mL of activated sludge was immobilized in the SA beads(with a mass concentration of 25 g/L).The resulting SA beads were characterized,introduced into a fluidized bed reactor,fed with 1000 mL of the sample,and characterized again after the treatment process.The SA-immobilized microorganisms were tested first for degradation of organic matter(expressed as chemical oxygen demand)and total phosphorous in domestic wastewater,achieving removal efficiencies of 71%and 93%,respectively,after 12 h.Subsequently,the SA-immobilized microorganisms were tested for degradation of a basic blue 9(BB9)textile dye in a condition that simulated textile wastewater.The efficiency of the BB9 degradation was found to be as high as 99.5%after 2 h.According to these results,SA-immobilized microorganisms were found to be an environmentally friendly and cost-effective alternative for treatment of municipal and industrial wastewater effluents.

Bio-Oil Production from Biomass by Flash Pyrolysis in a Three-Stage Fluidized Bed Reactors System

A novel system of fast pyrolysis and vapour quenching was developed at pilot scale to obtain bio-oil from biomass. The system uses three-stage of interconnected fluidized bed reactors that continuously circulate silica sand from an internal pyrolysis reactor to a second external annular reactor for char burning, which generates most of the heat required by the pyrolysis reactor, and a third sand-preheating reactor that burns non-condensable pyrolysis gas. The hot vapours, after high temperature cleaning, are quenched in a flash cooling system. The process generates up to 62% of bio-oil, 25% of char and 13% of non-condensable gas. The heat requirements for the total system are provided by burning part of the char and non-condensable gases generated in the pyrolysis step and by preheating the fluidizing gas for the pyrolysis reactor.

Flow Field of Circulating Fluidized Bed Reactor with Venturi Inlet Configuration

Different two-equation k-ε models were used to simulate the gas flow field generated by a new type of circulating fluidized bed reactor with venturi gas distributor. The numerical results were compared with the experimental data. It has been shown that the simulation results from the standard k-ε model have the best match with the experimental data. Based on this model, the gas flow field in the venturi diffuser and riser was analyzed by the concept of velocity nonuniformity and dead zone percentage. Both the nonuniformity of gas velocity and the dead zone percentage reach the maximum at the venturi outlet due to the effect of the vortex. At the same time, it provides a good platform for the further optimization of the inlet configuration of circulating fluidized bed reactor.

Approximate analytical solution of non-linear reaction diffusion equation in fluidized bed biofilm reactor

A mathematical model for the fluidized bed biofilm reactor (FBBR) is discussed. An approximate analytical solution of concentration of phenol is obtained using modified Adomian decomposition method (MADM). The main objective is to propose an analytical method of solution, which do not require small parameters and avoid linearization and physically unrealistic assumptions. Theoretical results obtained can be used to predict the biofilm density of a single bioparticle. Satisfactory agreement is obtained in the comparison of approximate analytical solution and numerical simulation.