Numerical and experimental investigation of a fluidized bed chamber hydrodynamics with heat transfer

The hydrodynamics and heat transfer of a gas-solid fluidized bed chamber was investigated by computational fluid dynamic (CFD) techniques. A multifluid Eulerian model incorporating the kinetic theory for solid particles was applied to simulate the unsteady state behavior of this chamber. For momentum exchange coefficients, Syamlal-O’Brien drag functions were used. A suitable numerical method that employed finite volume method was applied to discretize the equations. The simulation results also indicated that small bubbles were produced at the bottom of the bed. These bubbles collided with each other as they moved upwards forming larger bubbles. Also, the solid particle temperature effect on heat transfer and hydrodynamics was studied. Simulation results were compared with the experimental data in order to validate the CFD model. Pressure drops and mean gas temperature predicted by the simulations at different positions in the chamber were in good agreement with experimental measurements at gas velocities higher than the minimum fluidization velocity. Furthermore, this comparison showed that the model could predict hydrodynamics and heat transfer behaviors of gas solid fluidized bed reasonably well.