Preliminary Results for the Investigation of Hydrodynamic Scaling Relationships in Shallow Spouted Beds

Abstract

This research is targeted at developing improved experimentally based scaling relationships for the hydrodynamics of shallow, gas-spouted beds of dense particles. The work is motivated by the need to more effectively scale up shallow spouted beds used in processes such as in the coating of nuclear fuel particles where precise control of solids and gas circulation is critically important. Experimental results reported here are for a 50 mm diameter spouted bed containing two different types of bed solids (alumina and zirconia) at different static bed depths and fluidized by air and helium. Measurements of multiple local average pressures, inlet gas pressure fluctuations, and spout height were used to characterize the bed hydrodynamics for each operating condition. Follow-on studies are planned that include additional variations in bed size, particle properties, and fluidizing gas. The ultimate objective is to identify the most important non-dimensional hydrodynamic scaling groups and possible spouted-bed design correlations based on these groups.

Keywords:

• fluidized beds
• hydrodynamic relationships
• scaling groups
• scaling spouted beds
• shallow spouted beds

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The author wishes to express her sincere appreciation to her present and former advisors at the University of Tennessee, Prof. Robert M. Counce and Prof. Duane D. Bruns, and her graduate committee members, Prof. Ke Nguyen, Prof. Tsewei Wang, Dr. C. Stuart Daw, and Dr. Charles E.A. Finney for their continuing assistance in this research. Special thanks go to Prof. Bamin Khomami for his support.