Mass transfer to particle clusters and bubbles in a fluidized bed at low Reynolds numbers

The process of mass transfer to a particle cluster or bubble rising in a developed fluidized bed rapidly enough for a region of closed circulation of the fluidizing agent (cloud) to be formed is investigated in the Stokes approximation on the basis of a model of the steady-state motion of the fluid and solid phases near the cluster or bubble [1]. Within the cloud surroundinga local inhomogeneity of the fluidized bed intense mixing of the fluid phase takes place and the mass transfer between the cloud and the surrounding medium is determined by diffusion. The method of matched asymptotic expansions is used to obtain an analytic solution of the problem of the concentration field and the diffusion mass flux to the surface of the cloud at small and large values of the Péclet number. The latter is determined from the relative velocity of the cluster, the radius of the cloud, and the effective diffusion coefficient. In the limiting case of zero concentration of the solid phase within the cluster the solution obtained describes the mass transfer to a bubble in the fluidized bed. A comparison is made with the corresponding results previously obtained within the framework of a model of the solid phase as an inviscid fluid [2]. It is shown that the effect of viscosity on the mass transfer to the bubble is most important at large Péclet numbers, and that the correction to the total diffusion flux to the surface of the closed circulation zone due to viscosity effects may reach 40%.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 4, pp. 60–67, July–August, 1986.     

Heat transfer and hydrodynamic studies on two- and three-phase fluidized beds of floating bubble breakers

Heat transfer characteristics in three-phase fluidized beds of floating bubble breakers have been studied in a 0.142 m I.D. x 2.0 m high Plexiglas column fitted with an axially mounted cylindrical heater.Effects of the liquid and gas velocities, the particle size, the volume ratio of floating bubble breaker to particles on phase holdup, the vertical bubble length, and the heat transfer coefficient have been determined.In the bubble-coalescing regime, the heat transfer coefficient in three-phase fluidized beds having the volume ratio V_f/V_s of 10–15% produced a maximum increase in heat transfer coefficient of about 20% in comparison to that in the bed without floating bubble breakers. Also, bubble length and gas-phase holdups exhibited their maximum and minimum values at a volume ratio of 10–15%. The heat transfer coefficient in three-phase fluidized beds of floating bubble breakers can be estimated from the surface renewal model with isotropic turbulence theory.Heat transfer coefficients expressed in terms of the Nusselt number have been correlated with the particle Reynolds number and the volume ratio of floating bubble breakers to particles.     

Steady flow patterns in a bubble column with vertical inserts

The effect of vertical inserts and the liquid flow through a horizontal cross section of a bubble column on the liquid circulation is investigated.Translated from Izvestiya Rossiiskoi Akademii Nauk, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No.3, pp. 59–68, May–June, 1992.     

Dynamics of soluble gas bubbles

The problem of the mass, thermal and dynamic interaction between a bubble containing a soluble gas and a liquid is considered. It is shown that this problem can be reduced to the problem of the behavior of a vapor bubble with phase transitions investigated in detail in [1–3]. Expressions are obtained for the rate of decay of the radially symmetric oscillations of the bubbles due to the solubility of the gas in the liquid. The effective coefficients of mass transfer between the radially pulsating bubbles and the liquid are determined. A numerical solution is obtained for the problem of the radial motion of a bubble created by a sudden change of pressure in the liquid which, in particular, corresponds to the behavior of the bubbles behind the shock front when a shock wave enters a bubble screen.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 6, pp. 52–59, November–December, 1985.     

Motion of bubbles in a fluidized bed

The steady-state motion of a bubble (a cavity free from suspended particles and occupied solely by the liquid phase) in a fluidized bed of uniform concentration is considered. The change in the shape of the bubble which takes place as it rises through the fluidized bed is established; the rising velocity is determined for both large and small bubbles. The basic parameter characterizing the shape of a large bubble in either a fluidized bed or a homogeneous liquid is calculated. This, in particular, enables the well-known Taylor problem of a large drop or bubble in an unlimited medium to be solved.     

Numerical simulation of the modulated flow pattern for vertical upflows by the phase separation concept

The multiphase heat transfer could be enhanced by creating thin liquid film on the wall. The phase separation concept is called due to the separated flow paths of liquid and gas over the tube cross section to yield thin liquid film. Our proposed heat transfer tube consists of an annular region close to the wall and a core region, interfaced by a suspending mesh cylinder in the tube. The heat transfer tube is a multiscale system with micron scale of mesh pores, miniature scale of annular region and macroscale of tube diameter and length. Great effort has been made to link from micron scale to macroscale. The Volume of Fluid (VOF) method simulates air/water two-phase flow for vertical upflow. The three-dimensional system was successfully converted to a two-dimensional one by using three equivalent criteria for mesh pores. The non-uniform base grid generation and dynamic grid adaption method capture the bubble interface. The numerical results successfully reproduce our experimental results. The numerical findings identify the following mechanisms for the enhanced heat transfer: (a) counter-current flow exists with upward flow in the annular region and downward flow in the core region; (b) void fractions are exact zero in the core region and higher in the annular region; (c) the liquid film thicknesses are decreased to 1/6–1/3 of those in the bare tube section; (d) the gas–liquid mixture travels much faster in the annular region than in the bare tube; (e) three-levels of liquid circulation exists: meter-scale bulk liquid circulation, moderate-scale liquid circulation around a single-elongated-ring-slug-bubble, and microliquid circulation following the ring-slug-bubble tails. These liquid circulations promote the fluid mixing over the whole tube length and within the radial direction. The modulated parameters of void fractions, velocities and liquid film thicknesses in the annular region and three-levels of liquid circulation are greatly beneficial for the multiphase heat transfer enhancement.     

Gas–liquid mass transfer in the gas–liquid–solid mini fluidized beds

The gas–liquid–solid mini fluidized bed (GLSMFB) combines the advantages of fluidized bed and micro-reactor, and meets the requirements for safety and efficiency of green development of process industry. However, there are few studies on its flow performance and no studies on its mass and heat transfer performance. In this paper, the characteristics of gas–liquid mass transfer in a GLSMFB were studied in order to provide basic guidance for the study of GLSMFB reaction performance and application. Using CO₂ absorption by NaOH as the model process, the gas–liquid mass transfer performance of GLSMFB was investigated. The results show that the liquid volumetric mass transfer coefficient and the gas–liquid interfacial area both increase with the increase of the superficial gas velocity within the experimental parameter range under the same given superficial liquid velocity. At the same ratio of superficial gas to liquid velocity, the liquid volumetric mass transfer coefficient increases with the increase of the superficial liquid velocity. Fluidized solid particles strengthen the liquid mass transfer process, and the liquid volumetric mass transfer coefficient is about 13% higher than that of gas–liquid mini bubble column.     

Pressure Waves in a Gas–Liquid Medium with a Stratified Liquid–Bubbly Mixture Structure

Evolution and decay of pressure waves of moderate amplitude in a vertical shock tube filled by a gas–liquid medium with a nonuniform (stepwise) distribution of bubbles over the tube cross section are studied experimentally. The gas–liquid layer has the form of a ring located near the tube wall or the form of a gas–liquid column located in the center of the tube. It is shown that the nonuniformity of bubble distribution over the tube cross section increases the attenuation rate of pressure waves.     

Mass transfer between bubbles and the continuous phase in a pseudofluidized layer

The problem of mass transfer between an isolated bubble and the continuous phase in a pseudofluidized layer is considered, when the rising velocity of the bubble exceeds the pseudofluidization rate. In this case the bubble with the surrounding region, a so-called two-phase system, is surrounded by a surface current impermeable to the liquid [1–3], and the problem reduces to determining the concentration field and the total flow on the material surface. The problem is solved for large and small Peclet numbers by a boundary layer diffusion method and by asymptotic expansion matching.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 4, pp. 42–49, July–August, 1973.     

The propagation of nonlinear waves in a bidisperse fluidized bed

A study is made of the propagation of nonlinear kinematic waves of concentrations of solid particles in a fluidized bed of particles of two different sizes. A hyperbolic system of quasilinear equations is obtained which describes the propagation of the waves. A dependence of the characteristic velocities on the concentrations of the phases and the ratio of the sizes of the particles is found. The influence of an admixture of fine particles on the propagation of porosity waves in the fluidized bed is analyzed. The nature of the formation of jumps in the porosity depending on the concentration of the admixture is studied, as is the process of the transfer of the admixture of fine particles in the bed. The nature of the propagation of nonlinear waves in a fluidized bed of identical particles is clarified. A characteristic velocity is found and conditions are determined for the formation of discontinuities of concentration of the dispserse phase in rarefaction compression waves.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 1, pp. 49–58, January–February, 1985.     

Euler–Lagrange/DEM simulation of wood gasification in a bubbling fluidized bed reactor

We present an Euler–Lagrange method for the simulation of wood gasification in a bubbling fluidized bed. The gas phase is modeled as a continuum using the 2D Navier–Stokes equations and the solid phase is modeled by a Discrete Element Method (DEM) using a soft-sphere approach for the particle collision dynamic. Turbulence is included via a Large-Eddy approach using the Smagorinsky sub-grid model. The model takes into account detailed gas phase chemistry, zero-dimensional modeling of the pyrolysis and gasification of each individual particle, particle shrinkage, and heat and mass transfer between the gas phase and the particulate phase. We investigate the influence of wood feeding rate and compare exhaust gas compositions and temperature results obtained with the model against experimental data of a laboratory scale bubbling fluidized bed reactor.     

Motion of inhomogeneities of a developed fluidized bed at small reynolds numbers

The instability of a fluidized system in which the particles are uniformly distributed in space [1–3] leads to the development of local inhomogeneities in the internal structure, these taking the form of more or less stable formations of packets of particles [4]. In accordance with the existing ideas based on experimental data [5–8, 13], the particle concentration within a packet may vary in a wide range from very small values (10^–2–10^–3 [8]) for bubbles to the concentration of the unfluidized bed for bunches of particles in a nearly closely packed state. The paper considers the steady disturbed motion of the fluid and solid phases near an ascending or descending packet of particles in a developed fluidized bed. It is assumed that the motion of the solid phase corresponds to a creeping flow of viscous fluid, and the viscosity of the fluidizing agent is taken into account only in the terms that describe the interphase interaction. The velocity fields and pressure distributions of the phases inside and outside a packet are determined. If the particle concentration within a packet tends to zero, the solution describes the slow motion of a bubble in a fluidized bed. The results of the paper are compared with results obtained earlier for the model of ideal fluids [9] and Batchelor's model [10], in which the fluidized bed is treated in a simplified form as a viscous quasihomogeneous continuum.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 4, pp. 57–65, July–August, 1984.     

Effect of density and disperse composition of solid particles on the structure of a developed fluidized bed

A method is described for the experimental study of the characteristics of the bubble phase in a developed fluidized bed in examples of disperse materials belonging to groups A and B in the well-known classification of Geldart [1], which distinguished four groups of fluidizable materials according to the densities and dimensions of the solid particles. The method developed makes it possible to determine the average and local characteristics of the phase of the bubbles in apparatus of arbitrary dimensions. Depending on whether the material belongs to group A or group B of the classification, the distributions are found of the bubbles in respect of their vertical dimensions and their velocities, as are also the relative numbers of occasions when agglomerates coalesce and form, and the relative times of contact between the inhomogeneities and a sensor in a flat fluidized bed.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 5, pp. 71–76, September–October, 1987.     

Interaction of local inhomogeneities of a fluidized bed

In connection with an analysis of transport processes in fluidized beds a study is made of the steady motion of a system of local inhomogeneities of the bed porosity, which are modeled by packets of particles. The interaction of the inhomogeneities is taken into account on the basis of a cell model. The velocity fields and the pressure distributions of the solid and gas phases together with the rising and sinking velocities of the system of packets are determined in the approximation of a double continuum. The flow regimes of the fluidizing agent are investigated. It is shown that with increasing concentration of packets in the bed the velocity of their motion decreases, and the circulation region of the dispersion medium surrounding a packet or trapped within it contracts. The dependence of the rate of flow of the fluidizing agent through the transverse section of the reactor on the concentration of packets in the bed is found.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 1, pp. 42–49, January–February, 1991.     

A three phase model of a batch fluidized bed

A three phase mathematical model of simultaneous heat and mass transfer of a batch operation for a fluidized bed is presented. The three phases are a solid free bubble, emulsion and solid phases. The model employs an elaborate five equations porosity model. Various correlations for the minimum fluidization parameters are surveyed and compared with the adequate one is being adopted in the model. The governing equations together with the boundary and initial conditions are presented for a cyclic operation of the bed. These are numerically solved for a test case where the bed is charged with silica gel particles to dehumidify a process air stream. Thus the bed works in an air dehumidification mode/bed regeneration mode cyclic operation with matching conditions.Results for the bed operation are presented as the temperature and humidity ratio variations for the test case. The results indicate the ability of the developed model to provide the␣required data for the concerned batch operated fluidized bed. Received on 11 May 1998     

Bubble characteristics in a bubbling fluidized bed with a rotating distributor

In this paper, the effect of a novel rotating distributor for fluidized beds on the bubble size is studied. The distributor is a perforated plate that rotates around the vertical axis of the column.The formation of the bubbles on the rotating distributor is theoretically analyzed. The pierced length of the bubbles ascending in the bed were measured using optical probes. The probability distribution of bubble diameter was inferred from these experimental measurements using the maximum entropy method. The radial profile of the bubble diameter is presented for the static and rotating configurations at different gas velocities. The frequency of bubble passage and the distribution of bubbles in the cross section of the bed are also reported. Results were finally shown for different heights above the distributor.A radial decrease in the bubble size when the distributor rotates is found. The bubble growth with the bed height is also lower in the rotating case.     

Propagation of nonlinear waves in a fluidized bed in the presence of interaction between the particles of the dispersed phase

A model of a fluidized bed as a medium consisting of two interacting interpenetrating ideal fluids is used to investigate the propagation of one-dimensional linear and nonlinear perturbations of the particle concentration in a gas-fluidized bed. The interaction of the particles with each other is taken into account by introducing into the momentum conservation equation for the dispersed phase an effective pressure that depends on the local porosity of the bed and the relative velocity of the dispersed and dispersion phases. The conditions of hyperbolicity of the system of equations describing wave propagation are determined. The stability of the uniform state is investigated. Dispersion effects in the fluidized bed are considered. The propagation of a steady dispersed-phase concentration wave is investigated. The conditions of formation of concentration discontinuities at the steady wave front are determined.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 2, pp. 81–89, March–April, 1987.     

The characteristics of gas–solid flow and wall heat transfer in a fluidized bed reactor

Numerical study using computational fluid dynamics has been carried out to investigate the heat transfer characteristics of a laboratory fluidized bed reactor. The fluidized bed reactor of vTI (Johann Heinrich von Thünen-Institute)-Institute of Wood Technology and Wood Biology is modeled. For the simulation of multiphase flow and thermal fields, an Eulerian–Eulerian approach is applied. The flow and thermal characteristics of the reactor are fully investigated for the wide range of superficial gas velocities and two different particle diameters. In particular, the contributions of the gas bubble and emulsion phase flows on the wall heat transfer are scrutinized. From the predicted results, it is fully elucidated that particular near-wall bubble motions mainly govern the wall heat transfer.     

Two-phase natural circulation in a toroidal loop

This is an experimental study of the overall behaviour of two-phase flow and heat transfer in a closed toroidal loop. Heat input and output are at opposite ends of a diameter. The magnitude of the heat input and the inclination of the loop are the two independent parameters whose influence is determined. Three different regions of operation with phase change are observed. Boiling at the evaporator section can be without bubbling, or with bubbling but with or without liquid carry over. The efficiency of the system as a heat transport device is determined and found to be better under liquid carry over conditions. A simple theoretical model of bubble formation and rise is also discussed.