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Bed Expansion (bed + expansion)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Chemistry	100%

Selected Abstracts

Performance of Dual-Media Expanded Bed Bioreactor

ASIA-PACIFIC JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL ENGINEERING, Issue 5-6 2005
R. Abdul-Rahman
Abstract Adsorption and biological treatment are two possible approaches to remove chloro-organic and organic compounds. Granular activated carbon (GAC) biofilm reactors combine these two features, the adsorptive capacity and irregular shape of GAC particles providing niches for bacterial colonisation protected from high fluid forces, while the variety of functional groups on the surface enhance the attachment of microorganisms. The biofilm process is compact and offers reactions in both aerobic and anoxic states. Studies on removal of nitrogen constituents by a biofilm process were carried out using a dual-media expanded bed bioreactor, with GAC and plastic media as support media. The plastic media also acts as a filter for the effluent. Experiments were carried out at F:M of about 0.45 and hydraulic residence times (HRT) of 48, 24 and 12 hours. Bed expansion was maintained at 20,30% by recirculation flow. Aerobic condition was maintained at dissolved oxygen (DO) of about 2 mg/l throughout the bed. Chemical oxygen in demand (COD) in feed was 1000 mg/L while the total-N was 100 mg/L. Analysis showed that the process is able to maintain very stable conditions, achieving substantial COD removal of about 85% and total-N removal of about 80%. Biofilm biomass measurements showed an increase from 400 mg/l at HRT of 48 hours to 10,100 mg/l at HRT 12 hours, showing that much higher biomass concentrations may be contained in a biofilm process as compared to a conventional suspended biomass process. Bioreactors contain their own ecosystems, the nature of the community and the state of microorganisms define the kinetics and determine reactor performance. Growth kinetic parameters obtained are YH = 0.3421 mg/mg, m,H = 0.2252 day,1, KH = 319.364 mg/l and bH = 0.046 day,1. The denitrification kinetic parameters obtained are YHD = 0.9409 mg/mg, m,HD = 0.1612 day,1, KHD = 24.6253 mg/l and bHD = 0.0248 day,1. These parameters enable prediction of required reactor sizes and operational parameters. The plastic media has greatly improved effluent clarification by 98% as compared to single-media (GAC) only reactor. [source]

Experimental and computational study of the bed dynamics of semi-cylindrical gas,solid fluidized bed

THE CANADIAN JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL ENGINEERING, Issue 1 2009
A. Sahoo
Abstract With computational fluid dynamics (CFD) it is possible to get a detailed view of the flow behaviour of the fluidized beds. A profound and fundamental understanding of bed dynamics such as bed pressure drop, bed expansion ratio, bed fluctuation ratio, and minimum fluidization velocity of homogeneous binary mixtures has been made in a semi-cylindrical fluidized column for gas,solid systems, resulting in a predictive model for fluidized beds. In the present work attempt has been made to study the effect of different system parameters (viz., size and density of the bed materials and initial static bed height) on the bed dynamics. The correlations for the bed expansion and bed fluctuations have been developed on the basis of dimensional analysis using these system parameters. Computational study has also been carried out using a commercial CFD package Fluent (Fluent, Inc.). A multifluid Eulerian model incorporating the kinetic theory for solid particles was applied in order to simulate the gas,solid flow. CFD simulated bed pressure drop has been compared with the experimental bed pressure drops under different conditions for which the results show good agreements. La simulation par ordinateur de la dynamique des fluides (CFD) permet de décrire le comportement des écoulements dans les lits fluidisés. Une étude fondamentale et approfondie de la dynamique de lit, tels la perte de charge de lit, le taux d'expansion de lit, le taux de fluctuation de lit et la vitesse de fluidisation minimale de mélanges binaires homogènes, a été réalisée dans une colonne fluidisée semi-cylindrique pour des systèmes solides de gaz, permettant d'obtenir un modèle prédictif pour les lits fluidisés. Dans le présent travail, on a tenté d'étudier l'effet de différents paramètres de système (à savoir, la taille et la masse volumique des matériaux de lit et la hauteur statique initiale de lit) sur la dynamique de lit. Des corrélations ont été établies pour l'expansion de lit et les fluctuations de lit en s'appuyant sur l'analyse dimensionnelle de ces paramètres de système. Une étude par ordinateur a également été menée à l'aide du logiciel commercial de CFD Fluent (Fluent, Inc.). Un modèle eulérien multifluide faisant appel à la théorie cinétique pour les particules solides a été utilisé afin de simuler l'écoulement gaz-solides. La perte de charge de lit simulée par la CFD a été comparée à la perte de charge de lit expérimentale dans différentes conditions et les résultats montrent un bon accord. [source]

CFD simulation of gas,solid bubbling fluidized bed: A new method for adjusting drag law

THE CANADIAN JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL ENGINEERING, Issue 1 2009
Farshid Vejahati
Abstract In computational fluid dynamics modelling of gas,solid two phase flow, drag force is one of the dominant mechanisms for interphase momentum transfer. Despite the profusion of drag models, none of the available drag functions gives accurate results in their own original form. In this work the drag correlations of Syamlal and O'Brien (Syamlal and O'Brien, Int. J. Multiphase Flow. 1988; 14(4):473,481), Gidaspow (Gidaspow, Appl. Mech. Rev. 1986; 39:1,23), Wen and Yu (Wen and Yu, Chem. Eng. Prog. Symp. Ser. 1966; 62(2):100,111), Arastoopour et al. (Arastoopour et al., Powder Technol. 1990; 62(2): 163,170), Gibilaro et al. (Gibilaro et al., Chem. Eng. Sci. 1985; 40:1817,1823), Di Felice (Di Felice, Int. J. Multiphase Flow. 1994; 20(1):153,159), Zhang-Reese (Zhang and Reese, Chem. Eng. Sci. 2003; 58(8):1641,1644) and Hill et al. (Hill et al., J. Fluid Mech. 2001; 448:243,278) are reviewed using a multi-fluid model of FLUENT V6.3.26 (FLUENT, 2007. Fluent 6.3 User's Guide, 23.5 Eulerian Model, Fluent, Inc.) software with the resulting hydrodynamics parameters being compared with experimental data. The main contribution of this work is to propose an easy to implement and efficient method for adjustment of Di Felice drag law which is more efficient compared to the one proposed by Syamlal-O'Brien. The new method adopted in this work showed a quantitative improvement compared to the adjusted drag model of Syamlal-O'Brien. Prediction of bed expansion and pressure drop showed excellent agreement with results of experiments conducted in a Plexiglas fluidized bed. A mesh size sensitivity analysis with varied interval spacing showed that mesh interval spacing with 18 times the particle diameter and using higher order discretization methods produces acceptable results. Dans la modélisation par la dynamique des fluides par ordinateur de l'écoulement diphasique gaz-solide, la force de traînée est l'un des mécanismes dominants dans le transfert de quantité de mouvement interphase. Malgré la profusion des modèles de traînée, aucune des fonctions de traînée disponibles ne donnent de résultats précis dans leur forme originale. Dans cet article, les corrélations de traînée de Syamlal and O'Brien (Syamlal and O'Brien, Int. J. Multiphase Flow. 1988; 14(4):473,481), Gidaspow (Gidaspow, Appl. Mech. Rev. 1986; 39:1,23), Wen and Yu (Wen and Yu, Chem. Eng. Prog. Symp. Ser. 1966; 62(2):100,111), Arastoopour et al. (Arastoopour et al., Powder Technol. 1990; 62(2):163,170), Gibilaro et al. (Gibilaro et al., Chem. Eng. Sci. 1985; 40:1817,1823), Di Felice (Di Felice, Int. J. Multiphase Flow. 1994; 20(1):153,159), Zhang-Reese (Zhang and Reese, Chem. Eng. Sci. 2003; 58(8):1641,1644) et Hill et al. (Hill et al., J. Fluid Mech. 2001; 448:243,278) sont examinées à l'aide du modèle multi-fluides du logiciel FLUENT V6.3.26 (FLUENT, 2007. Fluent 6.3 User's Guide, 23.5 Eulerian Model, Fluent, Inc.), les paramètres hydrodynamiques résultants étant comparés aux données expérimentales. La principale contribution de ce travail est de proposer une méthode efficace et facile à mettre en ,uvre pour l'ajustement de la loi de traînée de Di Felice qui est plus efficace comparativement à celle proposée par Syamlal-O'Brien. La nouvelle méthode adoptée dans ce travail montre une amélioration quantitative par rapport au modèle de traînée ajusté de Syamlal-O'Brien. La prédiction de l'expansion de lit et de la perte de charge montre un excellent accord avec les résultats des expériences menées dans un lit fluidisé en plexiglass. Une analyse de sensibilité de la taille des mailles avec des mailles de taille variable variés montre qu'une taille de maille égale à 18 fois le diamètre des particules et l'utilisation de méthodes de discrétisation d'ordre supérieur donnent des résultats acceptables. [source]

An evaluation of the solid hold-up distribution in a fluidized bed of nanoparticles using radioactive densitometry and fibre optics

THE CANADIAN JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL ENGINEERING, Issue 3 2008
Babak Esmaeili
Abstract An experimental study was conducted to assess the solid hold-up distribution in a fluidized bed of zirconia and aluminum nanoparticles. For this purpose, two different techniques, radioactive densitometry and fibre optic measurement, were used. The results showed that while the fluidization of these nanoparticles occurs in the agglomeration state, it performs homogeneously in terms of phase concentration. This matter is important especially when a polymerization reaction should take place uniformly on the surface of nanoparticles, where the monomer is the fluidizing gas. Both techniques presented uniform solid hold-up distribution over the cross-section, although the fibre optic method overestimated the overall solid concentration, which was obtained based on bed expansion results. The radioactive densitometry was, however, capable of properly predicting the phase concentration within the bed according to the bed expansion observation. Finally, the effect of bulk density on the fluidization of nanoparticles was discussed by comparing the fluidization of different types of particulate materials. On a mené une étude expérimentale pour évaluer la distribution de rétention de solide dans un lit fluidisé de nano particules de zircon et d'aluminium. À cette fin, deux techniques différentes, la densimétrie radioactive et la mesure par fibres optiques, ont été utilisées. Les résultats montrent qu'alors que la fluidisation de ces nano particules survient à l'état d'agglomération, elle est relativement performante en termes de concentration de phase. Cet aspect est important, car une réaction de polymérisation devrait se produire uniformément à la surface des nano particules, le monomère étant le gaz fluidifiant. Les deux techniques ont mis en évidence une distribution de rétention de solide uniforme dans la section transversale, bien que la méthode par fibres optiques ait surestimé la concentration de solide globale, obtenue à partir des résultats d'expansion du lit. Cependant, la densimétrie radioactive est capable de prédire de manière correcte la concentration de phase dans le lit d'après l'observation de l'expansion de lit. Enfin, l'effet de la masse volumique apparente sur la fluidisation des nano particules est examiné en comparant la fluidisation de différents types de matériaux particulaires. [source]

A Practical Method to Estimate the Bed Height of a Fluidized Bed of Fine Particles

CHEMICAL ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY (CET), Issue 12 2008
M. Zhang
Abstract Knowledge of both dense bed expansion and freeboard solids inventory are required for the determination of bed height in fluidized beds of fine particles, e.g., Fluidized Catalytic Cracking (FCC) catalysts. A more accurate estimation of the solids inventory in the freeboard is achieved based on a modified model for the freeboard particle concentration profile. Using the experimentally determined dense bed expansion and the modified freeboard model, a more practical method with improved accuracy is provided to determine the bed height both in laboratory and industrial fluidized beds of FCC particles. The bed height in a fluidized bed can exhibit different trends as the superficial gas velocity increases, depending on the different characteristics of the dense bed expansion and solids entrainment in the freeboard. The factors that influence the bed height are discussed, showing the complexity of bed height and demonstrating that it is not realistic to determine the bed height by a generalized model that can accurately predict the dense bed expansion and freeboard solids inventory simultaneously. Moreover, a method to determine the bed height, based on axial pressure fluctuation profiles, is proposed in this study for laboratory fluidized beds, which provides improved accuracy compared to observation alone or determining the turning points in the axial pressure profiles, especially in high-velocity fluidized beds. [source]

Fluidization enhancement of agglomerates of metal oxide nanopowders by microjets

AICHE JOURNAL, Issue 6 2010
Jose A. Quevedo
Abstract The quality of gas,solid fluidization of agglomerates of nanoparticles has been greatly enhanced by adding a secondary flow in the form of a high-velocity jet produced by one or more micronozzles pointing vertically downward toward the distributor. The micronozzles produced a jet with sufficient velocity (hundreds of meters per second), turbulence, and shear to break-up large nanoagglomerates, prevent channeling, curtail bubbling, and promote liquid-like fluidization. For example, Aerosil R974, an agglomerate particulate fluidization (APF) type nanopowder, expanded up to 50 times its original bed height, and difficult to fluidize agglomerate bubbling fluidization (ABF) type nanopowders, such as Aeroxide TiO2 P25, were converted to APF type behavior, showing large bed expansions and homogeneous fluidization without bubbles. Microjet-assisted nanofluidization was also found to improve solids motion and prevent powder packing in an internal, is easily scaled-up, and can mix and blend different species of nanoparticles on the nanoscale. © 2009 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2010 [source]

Kinetic study of carbon nanotubes synthesis by fluidized bed chemical vapor deposition

AICHE JOURNAL, Issue 2 2009
R. Philippe
Abstract Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) have been produced with high selectivity by fluidized bed catalytic chemical vapor deposition from ethylene on Fe/Al2O3 catalysts. The influence of operating parameters such as deposition duration, temperature, ethylene and hydrogen partial pressures, and iron loading on MWCNT productivity, process selectivity, characteristics of final powders, and chemical composition of the outlet gases has been analyzed. Using gas phase chromatography, methane and ethane have been detected, whatever are the conditions used. Between 650 and 750°C, no catalyst deactivation occurs because nucleation remains active all along the synthesis, thanks to the explosion of the catalyst grains. Above 650°C, ethane itself produces MWCNTs, whereas methane does not react in the temperature range, 550,750°C. The formation of MWCNTs induces marked bed expansions and sharp decreases of grain density. Apparent kinetic laws have been deduced from the collected data. The apparent partial orders of reaction for ethylene, hydrogen, and iron were found to be 0.75, 0, and 0.28, respectively. © 2008 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2009 [source]