I.
Introduction
Fluidized beds are physical phenomena where a solid particulate substance is placed under
specific conditions to create a fluid mixture. This is achieved by introducing pressurized
fluid through the particulate medium, resulting in the medium having properties of normal
fluids like free-flow under gravity or pumping using fluid type technologies. Fluidized beds
are used for various purposes, including reactors, solids separation, fluid catalytic cracking,
combustion, heat transfer, and interface modification. They are also increasingly used in
aquaculture for shellfish production in integrated multi-trophic systems. Packed and
fluidized beds are crucial in chemical engineering processes, such as filtration, wastewater
treatment, and crude oil flow in petroleum reservoirs. The study of fluid mechanical
behavior of these beds focuses on the incipient fluidization velocity and the dependence of
bed expansion on superficial velocity. Fluidized beds are used extensively in chemical
process industries, particularly for cracking high-molecular-weight petroleum fractions, due
to their excellent heat transfer and mixing characteristics. The objective of the experiment is
to determine the relationship between pressure drop and the flow rate through packed bed.
Thus it is also to determine the pressure drop at thr minimum fluidized velocity
I.1 Fluidized bed
A fluidized bed is a two-phase mixture of particulate solid material and fluid, commonly
used in modern technologies for efficient implementation of physical and chemical
processes. Particulate materials are mechanical mixtures of numerous solid particles,
originating from various long-term natural processes such as heating, cooling, thermal
dilatation, colliding, crushing, chopping up, atmospheric changes, river erosion, and erosion
caused by sea waves. They can also be organic (plant) origin, such as fruits and seeds. The
geometrical, physical, and aerodynamical properties of particulate solid materials affect the
onset of fluidization, and their characteristics, behavior, and main parameters are determined
by these properties. The most important solid properties of fluidized beds include particle
density, skeletal density, bulk density, porosity, mean equivalent particle diameter, particle
shape, size distribution, and free fall velocity. However, it is not sufficient to define a
fluidized bed as a two-phase mixture of particulate solid material and fluid. Between two
limiting states of the mixture fluid percolation in the vertical direction through a fixed bed of
particulate solids and the free fall of the particles through the stagnant fluid due to
gravitational force a variety of different states exist. These states differ from each other by
the presence of fluid-to-particle relative velocity and drag force. The solid particles can be
stagnant, floating, or moving chaotically, while the flow direction can be vertical or
horizontal. The fluid phase can be in concurrent or countercurrent flow, and the movement
of the solid material can be free or limited by a mechanical device. The density or
concentration of the mixture may also differ greatly from one state to another. Fluid flows
upward through a packed bed of particles at low velocities, causing particles to remain
stationary. As velocity increases, pressure drop increases, and the force of pressure drop
times cross-sectional area equals the gravitational force on the mass particles. This leads to
fluidization or minimum fluidization, with the minimum fluidization velocity being υ'mfin
m/s (superficial velocity).
I.2 Fixed bed reactors
The particles in a fixed bed are immobile, exerting forces on one another while leaning
against one another at multiple points of contact. Through the particle contact points, gravity
forces the weight of the particles and the weight of the entire bed are dispersed in all
directions. Catalytic processes frequently employ packed bed reactors, sometimes referred to
as fixed bed reactors. Convex heads and a cylindrical shell make up packed bed reactors.
The majority allow reactants to flow by gravity and are vertical. An immobilized, or fixed,
bed of catalyst is located inside the reactor. Heterogeneous reaction systems are packed bed
reactors. A packed bed is a hollow tube, pipe, or other vessel filled with packing material
used in chemical processing. Raschig rings or other small items can be thrown into the
packing at random, or it can be a specially made, structured packing. Adsorbents like
ballotini, zeolite pellets, granular activated carbon, and other catalyst particles may also be
present in packed beds.
I.3 Specifications
The SOLTEQ® Fixed and Fluidized Bed Unit (Model: BP23) comes complete with
the followings:
A. Water Tank (B1)
Cylindrical vessel with removable top cover and level sight tube
Capacity: 10-L
Material: stainless steel
B. b. Circulation Pump (P1)
Max. Delivery: 13 L/min
Max. Head: 5 m
Output power: 22 W
Max. flow rate in the system: 1.6 L/min
C. Fluidized Columns (K1 & K2)
Packed columns filled with sand and aluminium oxide (Al2O3)
Diameter: 50 mm (OD)
Effective packing height: 500 mm
Material: Clear acrylic
Packing: sand (K1) and Al2O3 (K2)
D. Water Differential Pressure Transmitter (DPT1)
Range: 0 to 14kPa
E. Air Differential Pressure Transmitter (DPT2)
Range: 0 to 5kPa
F. Flowmeter (FT1 & FT2)
Water Flow meter: 0.05 to 10 L/min
Air Flow meter: 0 to 37 L/min
G. Air Compressor (P2)
Power: 1/6 HP
Flow rate: 30 LPM
Normal pressure: 0-80 PSI
Max. Pressure: 100 PSI
I.4 Equation
I. The Blake-Kozeny equation for laminar flow, void frictions less than 0.5,
effective particle diameter Dp and NRe,p<10:
150' L (1 )2
p [1]
D 2p
Where
, 3
Δp = pressure drop
μ = viscosity
υ΄ = superficial
velocity Dp =
particle diameter ΔL
= length
ε = void friction
II. Turbulent flow for NRe,p> 1000, which is called the Burke-Plummer equation
become
1.75(')2 L 1
p [2]
3
Dp
III. Ergun proposed the following general equation for low, intermediate, and high
Reynolds numbers, which has been tested experimentally:
150' L (1 )2 1.75(')2 L 1
p 2 3
3
D p Dp
