Experimental and numerical study of installing a dune model in a 90° bend in the horizontal-vertical pneumatic conveying system

In the pneumatic conveying process,particles move to the bend under the influence of inertia to form a particle rope,which will cause serious wear between the particles and the pipe wall,and then the dune model is designed and installed in the 90° bend to reduce energy consumption and wear in this study.Firstly,the minimum pressure drop velocity of particles transported by different size dune models was obtained through experimental study.Then the energy saving mechanism of the dune model is studied by CFD-DEM coupling.The experimental results show that the installation of the dune model reduces the minimum pressure drop velocity.The numerical simulation results show that the number of collisions between the particles and the tube wall in the vertical tube decreases after the installation of the dune model,which reduces the energy loss.Moreover,the increasing of tail size of the dune model is beneficial to the diffusion and acceleration of the particles in the vertical tube.

Predicting the mode of flow in pneumatic conveying systems—A review

An initial prediction of the particulate mode of flow in pneumatic conveying systems is beneficial as this knowledge can provide clearer direction to the pneumatic conveying design process. There are three general categories of modes of flow, two dense flows： fluidised dense phase and plug flow, and dilute phase oniy. Detailed in this paper is a review of the commonly used and available techniques for predicting mode of flow. Two types of predictive charts were defined： basic particle parameter based （e.g. particle size and density） and air-particle parameter based （e.g. permeability and de-aeration）. The basic particle techniques were found to have strong and weak areas of predictive ability, on the basis of a comparison with data from materials with known mode of flow capability. It was found that there was only slight improvement in predictive ability when the particle density was replaced by loose-poured bulk density in the basic parameter techniques. The air-particle-parameter-based techniques also showed well-defined regions for mode of flow prediction though the data set used was smaller than that for the basic techniques. Also, it was found to be difficult to utilise de-aeration values from different researchers and subsequently, an air-particle-based technique was developed which does not require any de-aeration parameter in its assessment.

Numerical study of coarse coal particle breakage in pneumatic conveying

Pneumatic conveying of coarse coal particles with various pipeline configurations and swirling intensities was investigated using a coupled computational fluid dynamics and discrete element method. A particle cluster agglomerated by the parallel-bond method was modeled to analyze the breakage of coarse coal particles. The numerical parameters, simulation conditions, and simulation results were experimentally validated. On analyzing total energy variation in the agglomerate during the breakage process, the results showed that downward fluctuation of the total particle energy was correlated with particle and wall col- lisions, and particle breakage showed a positive correlation with the energy difference. The correlation between the total energy variation of a particle cluster and particle breakage was also analyzed. Parti- cle integrity presented a fluctuating upward trend with pipe bend radius and increased with swirling number for most bend radii. The degree of particle breakage differed with pipeline bending direction and swirling intensity： in a horizontal bend, the bend radius and swirling intensity dominated the total energy variations： these effects were not observed in a vertical bend. The total energy of the particle cluster exiting a bend was generally positively correlated with the bend radius for all conditions and was independent of bending direction.

Determination of slug permeability factor for pressure drop prediction of slug flow pneumatic conveying

Current models for pressure drop prediction of slug flow pneumatic conveying in a horizontal pipeline system assume some type of steady state conditions for prediction, which limits their capability for increased predictive accuracy relative to experimental data. This is partly because of the nature of slug flow pneumatic conveying system, which, as a dynamic system, never becomes stable. By utilising conservation of mass （airflow）, a dynamic pressure analysis model is proposed on the basis of the derivative of the upstream pressure behaviour. The rate of air permeation through slug, one of the important factors in the conservation model, is expressed as a function of a slug permeability factor. Other factors such as slug velocity, slug length and the fraction of stationary layer were also considered. Several test materials were conveyed in single-slug tests to verify the proposed pressure drop model, showing good agreement between the model and experimental results.

Energy loss at bends in the pneumatic conveying of fly ash

An accurate estimation of the total pressure drop of a pipeline is important to the reliable design of a pneumatic conveying system. The present paper presents results from an investigation into the modelling of the pressure drop at a bend in the pneumatic conveying of fly ash. Seven existing bend models were used （in conjunction with solids friction models for horizontal and vertical straight pipes, and initial acceleration losses） to predict the total pipeline pressure drop in conveying fly ash （median particle diameter： 30 }zm; particle density： 2300 kg/m^3; loose-poured bulk density： 700 kg/m3） in three test rigs （pipelines with dimensions of 69 mm inner diameter （I.D.） × 168 m length; 105 mm I.D. × 168 m length; 69 mm I.D. × 554 m length）. A comparison of the pneumatic conveying characteristics （PCC） predicted using the seven bend models and experimental results shows that the predicted total pipeline PCC and trends depend on the choice of bend model. While some models predict trends that agree with the experimental results, other models predicted greater bend pressure drops for the dense phase of fly ash than for the dilute phase. Models of Pan, R. （1992）. Improving scale-up procedures for the design of pneumatic conveying systems. Doctoral dissertation, University of Wollongong, Australia, Pan, R., ＆ Wypych, P.W. （1998）. Dilute and dense phase pneumatic conveying of fly ash. In Proceedings of the sixth International Conference on Bulk Materials Storage and Transportation （pp. 183-189）, Wollongong, NSW, Australia and Chambers, A.J., ＆ Marcus, R.D. （1986）. Pneumatic conveying calculations. In Proceedings of the second International Conference on Bulk Materials Storage and Transportation （pp. 49-52）, Wollongong, Australia reliably predicted the bend losses for systems conveying fly ash over a large range of air flows.

Characterization of the gas pulse frequency,amplitude and velocity in non-steady dense phase pneumatic conveying of powders

Current modelling techniques for the prediction of conveying line pressure drop in low velocity dense phase pneumatic conveying are largely based on steady state analyses. Work in this area has been on-going for many years with only marginal improvements in the accuracy of prediction being achieved. Experimental and theoretical investigations undertaken by the authors suggest that the flow mechanisms involved in dense phase conveying are dominated by transient effects rather than those of steady state and are possibly the principal reasons for the limited improvement in accuracy. This paper reports on investigations on the pressure fluctuation behaviour in dense phase pneumatic conveying of powders. The pressure behaviour of the gas flow in the top section of the pipeline was found to exhibit pulsatile oscillations. In particular, the pulse velocity showed variation in magnitude while the frequency of the oscillations rarely exceeded 5 Hz. A wavelet analysis using the Daubechie 4 wavelet found that the amplitude of the oscillations increased along the pipeline. Furthermore, there was significant variation in gas pulse amplitude for different types of particulate material.

Flow characterization of high-pressure dense-phase pneumatic conveying of coal powder using multi-scale signal analysis

Flow characterization of high-pressure dense-phase pneumatic conveying of coal powder is not fully understood. To further reveal the dynamic behavior of coal particles in dense-phase pneumatic conveying pipelines, a method for the scale decomposition of particle motion based on empirical mode decompo- sition and Hurst analysis of experimental electrostatic signals is reported. This allows the multi-scale motion characteristics of single coal particles and particle clusters to be determined. Micro-, meso-, and macro-scale subsets were reconstructed, which reflected the different behaviors of the coal particles： specifically, dynamic features of the micro-scale subset represented features of single particle collisions and frictional interactions; dual ffactal characteristics of the meso-scale subset described the motion of coal particle clusters; and features of the macro-scale subset reflected persistent dynamic behavior of the entire pneumatic conveying system. Motion behavior of single particles and particle clusters could be respectively investigated by considering the relative energies of the micro- and meso-scale contributions to the electrostatic signal. This was verified both by theoretical analysis and experiment.

An investigation into flow mode transition and pressure fluctuations for fluidized dense-phase pneumatic conveying of fine powders

This paper presents the results of an ongoing investigation into the fluctuations of pressure signals due to solids-gas flows for dense-phase pneumatic conveying of fine powders. Pressure signals were obtained from pressure transducers installed along different locations of a pipeline for the fluidized dense-phase pneumatic conveying of fly ash （median particle diameter 30μm; particle density 2300 kg/m^3; loose- poured bulk density 700 kg/m^3） and white powder （median particle diameter 55 p.m; particle density 1600 kg/m^3 ; loose-poured bulk density 620 kg/m^3） from dilute to fluidized dense-phase. Standard deviation and Shannon entropy were employed to investigate the pressure signal fluctuations. It was found that there is an increase in the values of Shannon entropy and standard deviation for both of the prod- ucts along the flow direction through the straight pipe sections. However, both the Shannon entropy and standard deviation values tend to decrease after the flow through bend（s）, This result could be attributed to the deceleration of particles while flowing through the bends, resulting in dampened particle fluctua- tion and turbulence. Lower values of Shannon entropy in the early parts of the pipeline could be due to the non-suspension nature of flow （dense-phase）, i.e., there is a higher probability that the particles are concentrated toward the bottom of pipe, compared with dilute-phase or suspension flow （high velocity）, where the particles could be expected to be distributed homogenously throughout the pipe bore （as the flow is in suspension）. Changes in straight-pipe pneumatic conveying characteristics along the flow direction also indicate a change in the flow regime along the flow.

CFD-DEM simulation of the pneumatic conveying of fine particles through a horizontal slit

Fine particles play a significant role in many industrial processes. To study the dynamic behavior of fine particle and their deposition in rock fractures, the pneumatic conveying of fine particles （approximately 100 μm in diameter） through a small-scale horizontal slit （0.41 m × 0.025 m） was studied, which is useful for the sealing technology of underground gas drainage in coal mining production. The CFD-DEM method was adopted to model the gas-particle two-phase flow; the gas phase was treated as a continuum and modeled using computational fluid dynamics （CFD）, particle motion and collisions were simulated using the DEM code.Then, the bulk movement of fine particles through a small-scale horizontal slit was explored numerically, and the flow patterns were further investigated by visual inspection. The simulation results indicated that stratified flow or dune flow can be observed at low gas velocities. For intermediate gas velocities, the flow patterns showed pulsation phenomena, and dune flow reappeared in the tail section. Moreover, periodic flow regimes with alternating thick and sparse stream structures were observed at a high gas velocity. The simulation results of the bulk movement of fine particles were in good agreement with the experimental findings, which were obtained by video-imaging experiments. Furthermore, the calculated pressure drop versus gas velocity profile was investigated and compared with relative experi- mental findings, and the results showed good agreement. Furthermore, the particle velocity vectors and voidage distribution were numerically simulated. Selected stimulation results are presented and provide a reference for the further study of fine particles.

CFD-DEM simulation of turbulence modulation in horizontal pneumatic conveying

A study is presented to evaluate the capabilities of the standard k–ε turbulence model and the k–ε turbulence model with added source terms in predicting the experimentally measured turbulence modulation due to the presence of particles in horizontal pneumatic conveying, in the context of a CFD–DEM Eulerian–Lagrangian simulation. Experiments were performed using a 6.5-m long, 0.075-m diameter horizontal pipe in conjunction with a laser Doppler anemometry （LDA） system. Spherical glass beads with two sizes, 1.5 and 2 mm, were used. Simulations were performed using the commercial discrete element method software EDEM, coupled with the computational fluid dynamics package FLUENT. Hybrid source terms were added to the conventional k–ε turbulence model to take into account the influence of the dispersed phase on the carrier phase turbulence intensity. The simulation results showed that the turbulence modulation depends strongly on the model parameter Cε3. Both the standard k–ε turbulence model and the k–ε turbulence model with the hybrid source terms could predict the gas phase turbulence intensity trend only generally. A noticeable discrepancy in all cases between simulation and experimental results was observed, particularly for the regions close to the pipe wall. It was also observed that in some cases the addition of the source terms to the k–ε turbulence model did not improve the simulation results when compared with those of the standard k–ε turbulence model. Nonetheless, in the lower part of the pipe where particle loading was greater due to gravitational effects, the model with added source terms performed somewhat better.

Experimental study on dense-phase pneumatic conveying of coal powder at high pressures

Clean utilization and conversion of coal resources is significant to China’s energy sustainable development.Entrained-flow coal gasification technology is an important method used for clean and efficient conversion of coal.The characteristics and stability of high-pressure dense-phase pneumatic conveying of pulverized coal is crucial to the safe and stable operation of dry-feed entrained-flow coal gasifiers.Dense-phase pneumatic conveying experiments were carried out using a high-volatile bituminous coal in pipes with diameters of 25,15 and 10 mm,respectively,and at back pressures of 1.0-4.0 MPag.The conveying characteristics and effects of operating and structure parameters were studied.Pressure drop models were established for horizontal and vertical upward conveying.The prediction uncertainty was within±30%for the horizontal conveying and±20%for the vertical upward conveying.The relative standard deviation of solid flow rate was proposed to explain conveying stability.The effect of operating parameters on conveying stability was systematically analyzed.The gas velocity-related criterion was proposed for stable conveying.

PNEUMATIC CONVEYING OF BIOMASS PARTICLES:A REVIEW

Processes involving biomass are of growing interest, but handling and conveying biomass particles are challenging due to the unusual physical properties of biomass particles. This paper reviews recent work on pneumatic conveying of biomass particles, especially agricultural particles and pulp fibres. Experimental work has been mainly carried out to determine a range of parameters, such as pressure drop, particle velocity, flow regime and electrostatic charging for both horizontal and vertical conveying. Models ranging from empirical to CFD models are also being developed. Difficulties in representing turbulence and interactions among biomass particles and between the particles and fluid have so far limited the success of advanced modeling. Further work is needed to improve understanding of multiphase biomass pneumatic conveying and to assist in the development of biomass energy and conversion processes.

Dense-phase pneumatic conveying under pressure in horizontal pipeline

The gas/solid flow regime of dense-phase pneumatic conveying of pulverized coal under a pressure of 4.0 MPa in horizontal pipeline 10 mm in diameter, is monitored by electrical capacitance tomography （ECT） using 8 electrodes. To improve the accuracy of the capacitance measurement, an AC-based singlechannel capacitance measuring circuit was developed, and a modified iterative Landweber algorithm was used to reconstruct the image. A two-fluid model based on the kinetic theory of granular flow was used to study the three-dimensional steady-state flow behavior of dense-phase pneumatic conveying of pulverized coal.

Multi-scale analysis on the pulverized coal flow behaviors under high,pressure dense-phase pneumatic conveying

To deeply knowledge of the flow behaviors of pulverized coal particles in dense gas-solid two-phase flow,a multi-scale analysis method based on electrostatic sensor array is applied for the multi-scale characterization of flow behaviors of dense gas-solid flow.The experimental results indicate that:for steady flow,with the increment of conveying pressure difference,the individual particles increase and the particle clusters decrease,the individual particle distribution is always inhomogeneous but the particle cluster distribution tends to be more homogeneous over the cross-section of pipe,while the average flow behavior of pulverized coal particles is always in the relatively static state.For unsteady flow,the average flow behavior of pulverized coal particles is dynamic,and the flow behaviors of the multi-scale flow structures over the cross-section of pipe are all significantly inhomogeneous.Moreover,the effect of particle size on flow behavior of pulverized coal is also investigated and validated.

Validated scale-up procedure to predict blockage condition for fluidized dense-phase pneumatic conveying systems

This paper presents results of an ongoing investigation into modelling fluidized dense-phase pneumatic conveying of powders. For the reliable design of dense-phase pneumatic conveying systems, an accurate estimation of the blockage boundary condition or the minimum transport velocity requirement is of sig- nificant importance. The existing empirical models for fine powder conveying in fluidized dense-phase mode are either based on only a particular pipeline and product or have not been tested for their accuracy under a wide range of scale-up conditions. In this paper, a validated test design procedure has been devel- oped to accurately scale-up the blockage boundary with the help of a modelling format that employs solids loading ratio and Froude number at pipe inlet conditions using conveying data of two different samples of fly ash, electro-static precipitation （ESP） dust and cement （particle densities： 2197-3637 kgJm3; loose poured bulk densities： 634-1070kg/m3; median size： 7-30 l^m）. The developed models （in power func- tion format） have been used to predict the blockage boundary for larger diameter and longer pipelines （e.g. models based on 69 mm I.D. ~ 168 m long pipe have been scaled up to 105 mm I.D. and 554 m length）. The predicted blockage boundaries for the scale-up conditions were found to provide better accuracy compared to the existing models.

Effect of particle degradation on electrostatic sensor measurements and flow characteristics in dilute pneumatic conveying

Vigorous particle collisions and mechanical processes occurring during high-velocity pneumatic con- veying often lead to particle degradation. The resulting particle size reduction and particle number increase will impact on the flow characteristics, and subsequently affect the electrostatic type of flow measurements. This study investigates this phenomenon using both experimental and numerical meth- ods. Particle degradation was induced experimentally by recursively conveying the fillite material within a pneumatic pipeline. The associated particle size reduction was monitored. Three electrostatic sensors were embedded along the pipeline to monitor the flow. The results indicated a decreasing trend in the electrostatic sensor outputs with decreasing particle size, which suggested the attenuation of the flow velocity fluctuation. This trend was more apparent at higher conveying velocities, which suggested that more severe particle degradation occurred under these conditions. Coupled computational fluid dynamics and discrete element methods （CFD-DEM） analysis was used to qualitatively validate these experimental results. The numerical results suggested that smaller particles exhibited lower flow velocity fluctua- tions, which was consistent with the observed experimental results. These findings provide important information for the accurate aoolication of electrostatic measurement devices in oneumatic conveyors.

Numerical simulation of fluidized dense-phase pneumatic conveying of powders to develop improved model for solids friction factor

Accurate prediction of the solids friction factor through horizontal straight pipes is important for the reliable design of a pneumatic conveying system, but it is a challenging assignment to date because of the highly concentrated, turbulent, and complex nature of the gas-solids mixture. Power-station fly ash was transported through different pipeline configurations. Numerical simulation of the dense-phase pneumatic conveying systems for three different solids and two different air flow rates have shown that particle and actual gas velocities and the ratio of the two velocities increases in the flow direction, whereas the reverse trend was found to occur for the solids volumetric concentration. To develop a solids friction-factor model suitable for dense-phase flow, we modified an existing pure dilute-phase model by incorporating sub-models for particle and actual gas velocities and impact and solids friction factor. The solids friction-factor model was validated by using it for scale-up predictions for total pipeline pressure drops in longer and larger pipes and by comparing experimental and predicted pneumatic conveying characteristics for different solids flow rates. The accuracy of the prediction was compared with a recently developed two-layer-based model. We discussed the effect of incorporating the particle and actual gas velocity terms in the solids friction-factor model instead of superficial air velocity.

Experimental study of the blockage boundary for dense-phase pneumatic conveying of powders through a horizontal slit

The estimation of the blockage boundary for pneumatic conveying through a slit is of significant importance. In this paper, we investigate the characteristics for blockage of powder （48 gLm average diameter） through a horizontal slit （1.6 m × 0.05 m × 0.002 m）. The results show that the required critical solid mass flow rate increases as the superficial air velocity increases superficial air velocity. The solid loading ratio and superficial air velocity displayed a decreasing power law relationship. This finding agrees with existing theory and experimental results. However, a minimum inlet solid loading ratio exists. When the air velocity is greater than the corresponding air velocity of the minimum solid loading ratio, the solid loading ratio exhibits an increasing trend in power law. We also found that when the inlet conveying pressure increased, the critical solid mass flow rate required for blockage, the inlet solid loading ratio, and the minimum inlet solid loading ratio increased.

An assessment of steady-state conditions in single slug horizontal pneumatic conveying

This study used a 3D coupled CFD–DEM model to assess how slugs tend towards steady state in single slug horizontal pneumatic conveying.Initial slug length,inlet velocity and initial stationary layer fractions were systematically varied for a total of 72 simulations.Previously made observation that slugs tend towards a steady state was confirmed via a theoretical derivation.The derivation shows that slugs move towards their steady state lengths exponentially.This allowed for a calculation of a characteristic time scale which is a measure of how quickly a slug tends towards the steady state.The theoretical estimate which is a function of slug porosity,steady length,velocity and stationary layer fraction has good agreement with simulated results.A link between steady slug length and solids loading ratio was also shown.

Depicting the role of gas–solid interactions on the hydrodynamics of converging pneumatic riser

The understanding of the flow characteristics and effect of gas–solid interactions in pneumatic risers is fundamental to investigate to ensure effective design cost-effective operation.Thus,to understand the effect of gas–solid interactions on the hydrodynamics of newly proposed conversing risers,this study mainly focused on predicting pressure drop in the dilute phase pneumatic conveying system.The experiments were conducted in a converging riser having a convergence angle of 0.2693°.Various solid particles such as sago,black mustard,and alumina have been considered to study the effect of particle sizes and density on the pressure drop.The experimental outcomes indicate that the total pressure drop increases with an increase in the solid density and gas mass flow rate.Moreover,smaller particle sizes are also increased the pressure drop.An empirical correlation is developed for the prediction of total pressure dropΔPTin converging pneumatic riser via dimensional analysis.All dependent variables such as particle and air density,drag force,acceleration due to gravity,the mass flow rate of air and particle,the diameter of particle and converging riser,the height of converging riser were considered to develop the empirical correlation.The established relationship is tested,and experimental data have been fitted for its validation.The estimated relative error of less than 0.05 proved the significance of the developed correlation.Hence,it can be stated that the established relationship is useful in studying the effects of various parameters on the pressure drop across the length of the conversing riser.