Computational fluid dynamics modeling of coal gasification in a pressurized spout-fluid bed

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling, which has recently proven to be an effective means of analysis and optimization of energy-conversion processes, has been extended to coal gasification in this paper. A 3D mathematical model has been developed to simulate the coal gasification process in a pressurized spout-fluid bed. This CFD model is composed of gas-solid hydrodynamics, coal pyrolysis, char gasification, and gas phase reaction submodels. The rates of heterogeneous reactions are determined by combining Arrhenius rate and diffusion rate. The homogeneous reactions of gas phase can be treated as secondary reactions. A comparison of the calculated and experimental data shows that most gasification performance parameters can be predicted accurately. This good agreement indicates that CFD modeling can be used for complex fluidized beds coal gasification processes.