Computation of Holdups in Fluidized Beds and Trickle Beds by Computer Assisted Tomography

ABSTRACT

A fourth-generation X-ray computer-assisted tomography (CAT) scanner was used for the study of fluidized and trickle beds. A variety of exploratory experiments were performed, and images of density and holdup were obtained in three dimensions as a function of time. The gas/solid fluidized beds were glass bead/nitrogen and polyethylene/nitrogen systems. The trickle bed was a glass bead/nitrogen/water system. The algorithms presented can be used to determine holdup from X-ray absorption data. These algorithms—extensions of similar algorithms used for the calculation of fluid saturations in porous media—are applied on data of CAT scanner images as they are generated by the scanner and after they are transferred to a workstation. The results of the presented tests demonstrate how detailed holdup calculations can be performed in a chemical reactor. Radial and longitudinal variances of the holdup can be easily defined. The proposed algorithms can assist in the design of chemical reactor prototypes.

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