On the dynamics of a sinking object in a bubbling gas-solid fluidized bed by a ball-type inertial measurement unit and electrical capacitance tomography

The motion and dynamics of large objects in bubbling gas-solid fluidized beds are complex, especially for objects with densities similar to those of the bed. In this study, a method combining a ball-type inertial measurement unit and electrical capacitance tomography was used to investigate the motion and dynamics of objects with different densities sinking in a bubbling fluidized bed. The results show that the object dynamics are highly correlated with the object density, gas velocity, bed density, and bubble size. In the vertical direction, the significance of the bubble effect was determined by the size ratio of the object to the bubbles. In the horizontal direction, subject to the combined action of the bubble region in the center and the high-density region near the wall. The proposed ball-type inertial measurement unit can serve as a low-cost, non-invasive tool to monitor the dynamics of objects immersed in bubbling fluidized bed.