On mathematical models and numerical simulation of the fluidization of polydisperse suspensions

The well-known Masliyah–Lockett–Bassoon (MLB) model for sedimentation of small particles is extended to fluidization of polydisperse suspensions. For N particle species that differ in size and density, this model leads to a first-order system of N conservation laws, which in general is of mixed (in the case N = 2, hyperbolic–elliptic) type. By a simple algebraic steady-state analysis, we derive necessary compatibility conditions on the size and density parameters that admit the formation of stationary fluidized beds. We then proceed to determine the composition of polydisperse fluidized beds of given compatible species by varying the fluidization velocity and the initial composition of the suspensions, and prove that, within the framework of the MLB model combined with the Richardson–Zaki formula, the constructed bidisperse beds always cause the equations to be hyperbolic. This means that these states are always predicted to be stable. The transient behaviour of the MLB model applied to fluidization is illustrated by three numerical examples, in which the system of conservation laws is solved for N = 2, N = 3 and N = 5, respectively. These examples illustrate the effects of bed expansion and layer inversion caused by successively increasing the applied fluidization velocity and show that the predicted fluidized states are indeed attained.