HYDRODYNAMICS OF THREE PHASE FLUIDIZED BED USING LOW DENSITY PARTICLES

Experiment was conducted to analysis the hydrodynamics of a gas-liquid-solid fluidized bed containing low-density particles. Solid-Liquid-Gas fluidized beds are widely used in the environmental, pharmaceutical, petroleum, food and biotechnology plants. The three phase fluidization is strongly dependent on effective contact between the phases (solid-liquid-gas). Three-phase (solid-liquid-gas) fluidized beds are used to study the hydrodynamic characteristics of low density particles (solid wood) using air as the gas phase and water as liquid phase. The fluidized bed consists of three sections, the gas-liquid distributor section, the gas-liquid disengagement section, the test section. The hydrodynamic characteristics determined included the bed expansion ratios, bed pressure drop, and minimum fluidization velocity. The dependence of these quantities on liquid velocity, particle diameter, gas velocity initial, and static bed height, has been discussed. Results indicate that the minimum fluidization velocity and bed pressure drop increases with particle size but decreases with gas velocity. Bed expansion ratio decreases with dp and initial static bed height but increases with increase in the values of the liquid. Equations have been developed from factorial design analysis for predicting the values for bed expansion ratio and the predicated values have been found to agree with the experimental results.