Characteristics of liquid flow in a countercurrent rotating bed

Publication date: Available online 5 December 2018Source: Chemical Engineering and Processing - Process IntensificationAuthor(s): Hangtian Li, Zhiguo Yuan, Youzhi Liu, Huijun LiuAbstractA rotating packed bed (RPB) is a new type of process intensification equipment. Its packing zone is an important mass transfer zone. However, the issue of liquid flow in the RPB remains unclear. In this work, the effects of rotational speed, liquid initial velocity in the cavity, and the packing zone of a countercurrent rotating bed on liquid phase flow patterns, droplet velocity, average droplet diameter, and droplet size distribution were measured using a charge-coupled device (CCD) camera in the air–water system. Experimental results show the influence of rotational speed and liquid initial velocity on fluid flow characteristics. Computational fluid dynamics modeling was employed to analyze the characteristics of liquid flow. Two-dimensional numerical simulation of gas–liquid two-phase flow was achieved using the volume of fluid model in the multiphase flow model and the Reynolds stress model in the turbulence model. Simulation results are consistent with the experimental rules. In addition, correlations were established to predict the average droplet diameter, the rotational speed, and the liquid initial velocity. The predicted values were in agreement with the experimental values, with deviations generally within ±15%.Graphical abstract

Source: Chemical Engineering and Processing: Process Intensification - December 7, 2018 Category: Chemistry Source Type: research