Powder Technology 131 (2003) 56 – 65

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Hydrodynamics of a spouted bed with a porous draft tube

containing a small amount of finer particles
Toshifumi Ishikura *, Hiroshi Nagashima, Mitsuharu Ide
Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Fukuoka University, Fukuoka 814-0180, Japan

Received 16 December 1999; received in revised form 24 September 2002; accepted 7 November 2002

Abstract

A small-size spouted bed with a porous draft tube was employed to obtain hydrodynamic data of binary mixtures of glass beads for a
range of operating conditions and design factors. In this case, a small amount of finer particles was added mostly to the large majority of
coarser particles. Under this condition, minimum spouting velocity, bed pressure drop, hold-up of solid particles within a draft tube, gas flow
rate through the annulus and solids circulation rate were determined by changing the total gas flow rate and the mass fraction of finer particles
as operating parameters, and by changing the height of the entrainment zone and the draft tube diameter as geometric parameters. The results
show that the gas flow rate through the annulus increases by increasing the distance between the gas inlet nozzle and the bottom of the draft
tube, that is, the height of the entrainment zone, but decreases with increasing draft tube diameter and mass fraction of finer particles. The
porous draft tube shows a higher gas flow rate through the annulus than the non-porous draft tube, particularly in the case of the low height of
the entrainment zone. The solids circulation rate increases with increasing gas velocity, the height of the entrainment zone and the porous
draft tube diameter. Moreover, the porous draft tube leads to a higher solids circulation rate than the non-porous draft tube.
D 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Spouted beds; Porous draft tube; Binary particle mixtures; Minimum spouting velocity; Annulus gas flow rate; Solids circulation rate

1. Introduction in the application of spouting with a non-porous draft tube to

Conventional spouted bed (CSB) technology in solid –
gas system [1] has been proven to be an effective means of
contacting for gas and coarse solid particles such as Geldart
type D materials. However, it has a drawback if the particle
history is to be closely controlled, because particles can
enter the spout from the annulus at all levels, resulting
essentially in random behavior of these particles. The
insertion of an axially positioned non-porous draft tube into
the conventional spouted bed has shown potential advan-
tages due to the stability and the flexibility.
In 1997, Hatate et al. [2] reviewed the flow characteristics
of a non-porous draft tube spouted bed and its application. In
fact, many papers have been published on particle circulation
[3 –5] and spouting of finer particles [6], as well as on the
unique flow characteristics with modified fluid inlet [7]. A
recent trend in the development of this technology has been
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +81-92-871-6631; fax: +81-92-865-
6031.
E-mail address: ishikura@fukuoka-u.ac.jp (T. Ishikura).
a wide variety of chemical processes including drying [8,9],
coal gasification [10], combustion [11,12], pyrolysis of
hydrocarbon [13], pneumatic conveying [14 –17], pharma-
ceuticals [18,19] and mixing [20].
However, there is a potential limitation in using a
spouted bed with a non-porous draft tube when the gas
has an active role, such as drying or reaction. The reason is
that the non-porous draft tube prevents gas percolation from
the draft tube to the annulus. This could reduce the net gas –
solid contacting efficiency which may rely on particle – gas
contact and heat transfer coefficient in both the spout and
the annulus. A porous draft tube reduces this drawback,
while still providing a means for controlling particle history.
Some research has been carried out on spouting with a
porous draft tube [21 –26]. The unique features make it
suitable for applications such as thermal disinfestation of
wheat where there is a need for control of particle movement
and good gas – solid contacting at a modest pressure drop
[21]. Fig. 1 shows schematics of a conventional spouted bed
and spouted bed with a non-porous and a porous draft tube
and Table 1 shows their characteristics.

0032-5910/02/$ - see front matter D 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/S0032-5910(02)00321-2
 T. Ishikura et al. / Powder Technology 131 (2003) 56–65 57

effect of the mass fraction of finer particles on the minimum

spouting velocity, and Grace et al. [30] studied particle
segregation. However, little research has been done on a
spouted bed with a non-porous and a porous draft tube for
binary mixtures of particles [31,32].
From these practical viewpoints, for spouting with a
porous draft tube of binary mixtures of particles, detailed
knowledge of the minimum spouting velocity, the gas flow
pattern and the solids circulation rate is important in
ascertaining both the effectiveness of gas – solid contact
and heat transfer characteristics. Therefore, in this study, a
small-size spouted bed with a porous draft tube was
employed to obtain hydrodynamic data consisting of finer
and coarser glass beads for a range of operating conditions
and design factors, and these data were compared with those
for spouting with a non-porous draft tube. In this case, a
small amount of finer particles was added mostly to the
large majority of coarser particles. This was based on the
fact that addition of only a small amount of finer particles
caused the bed to spout at a lower gas velocity and caused
gas velocity through annulus to decrease in a conventional
spouted bed [27]. Consequently, it is considered that the
change of the minimum spouting gas velocity and gas
velocity through the annulus have direct effect upon oper-
ability and effectiveness of gas – solid contact, respectively.
Fig. 1. Schematic diagram of a conventional spouted bed and spouted beds
with a non-porous and a porous draft tube (arrows indicate direction of solid
particles movement).
2. Experimental set-up and procedure

For these applications as shown in Table 1, a binary Fig. 2 shows the experimental apparatus for a batch
particles system is of practical importance. For conventional system under steady state conditions, and Table 2 indicates
spouted beds of binary mixtures of particles, Ishikura et al. the experimental conditions and particle properties. The
[27], Uemaki et al. [28] and Anabtawi [29] determined the bed consists of a 0.10-m ID acrylic column DT with a

Table 1
Characteristics for a spouted bed without and with a draft tube
Type of bed Design parameters Advantages Limitations Application
[1] Conventional spouted . Diameter of column DT . Simple grid design . Limitation on geometry . Drying of grains and
bed without a draft tube . Diameter of nozzle DO . Regular solids circulation and operation suspensions
. Cone angle h . Good solids mixing for . Limitation of bed height . Coating of particles
. Spout diameter DS coarse solids . Somewhat narrower . Granulation of particles
. Maximum spouted . Low pressure drop particle size . Gas cleaning
bed height Hm . Good fluidization for sticky . Poor spouting for fine particle . Coal gasification
or lumpy solids . Chemical products
[2A] Spouted bed with a . Diameter of draft . No limitation of bed height and . Complex design . Drying of grains and
non-porous (impermeable) tube DD particle size uniformity . Reduced mixing suspensions
draft tube . Entrainment zone . Greater operation flexibility . Plugging of draft tube . Coating of particles
(Draft tube clearance) . Lower gas flow and pressure drop . Reduced contact between . Granulation of particles
HD . Narrower spread of solid RTD gas and solids . Coal gasification
. More control of solid circulation . Lower heat and mass transfer . Combustion
. Pyrolysis hydrocarbon
. Pneumatic conveying
[2B] Spouted bed with a . Diameter of draft . Advantages of (2A) are retained . More complex design . Drying of grains and
porous (permeable) tube DD . More control of gas percolation . Plugging of draft of tube chemical products
draft tube . Entrainment zone HD through annulus . Thermal disinfestation
. Opening ratio of . Higher heat and mass transfer process
porous draft tube b
58 T. Ishikura et al. / Powder Technology 131 (2003) 56–65

Fig. 2, pressure taps are attached for measuring the total bed
pressure drop DPS, the total pressure drop within the draft
tube DPD, and the pressure drop of the annulus DPA,
respectively. Longitudinal pressure distributions PA and
PD were measured at intervals of 0.02 m by inserting a
pressure probe into the annulus or the draft tube. Here the
pressure drop of the annulus was used to calculate the
superficial gas velocity through the annulus UA. A relation-
ship between the pressure gradient DPA/L and the superficial
gas velocity UA for the annulus was calibrated from the
measurements taken under the state of the loosely packed
bed for each of the mass fraction of finer glass beads CS.
The experimental data could be approximated by quadratic
equations. The equations regarding DPA and UA were
determined by the least squares method for the each average
mass fraction of finer particles. For example, for CS = 0.05,
the following equation was used assuming uniform gas flow
in a horizontal plane:

DPA =L ¼ 16:2UA þ 18:8UA2 ð1Þ

As gas density is constant, the mass balance of gas for a

spouted bed with a draft tube is as follows:

QT ¼ U  AT ¼ UA  AA þ UD  AD ¼ QA þ QD ð2Þ
Fig. 2. Schematic diagram of experimental apparatus and the details of
optical fiber probe. where QT is total gas flow rate through inlet nozzle, U is
superficial gas velocity in column and UD is superficial gas
velocity within draft tube. To a first approximation, the gas
conical base having an included angle h of p/3 radian and
flow into the draft tube QD is calculated by subtracting the
an inlet nozzle diameter DO of 0.012 m. The porous draft
gas flow rate through the annulus QA from the total gas flow
tubes are 0.30 m long with diameters DD in the range of
rate QT.
0.012 – 0.018 m. The height of the entrainment zone HD,
Before a spouted bed with a draft tube can be used as a
which indicates the distance between the gas inlet nozzle
stable efficient solid – gas contacting reactor, the solids
and the bottom of the draft tube, was varied from 0.02 to
circulation rate WS and the hold-up of solid particles within
0.04 m. This range was determined from a viewpoint of the
the draft tube (1  eD) must be known since these two
stability of spouting and the clogging of solid particles in
parameters are closely related to the state of stable spouting.
relation to the diameter of solid particles used [2]. The
WS is calculated from the mass balance of particles in the
porous-wall draft tube is made from sintered metallic filter
annulus as shown in Eq. (3) by using the experimental value
of stainless steel with the pore diameter of 120 Am and the
void fraction of about 40%. Permeability of the sintered Table 2
metallic filter is given experimentally as a function between Experimental conditions
the pressure drop DP and superficial gas velocity Ur through Column
it, that is, DP =0.74Ur + 3.17Ur2. Two different sizes of glass Inside diameter DT [m] 0.10
beads were used. The coarser particles have an arithmetic Nozzle diameter DO [m] 0.012
mean particle diameter of 1351 Am and the finer particle is Cone angle h [rad] p/3
477 Am in size. Therefore, the ratio of the particle diameters
Porous draft tube (sintered metallic filter, material: stainless steel)
is 2.83. About 3 kg of glass beads corresponding to a static Inside diameter DD [m] 0.012, 0.014, 0.018
bed height of 0.30 m were spouted at a given gas velocity. Tube length LD [m] 0.30
The average mass fraction of finer particles CS is 10 kinds as Distance of HD [m] 0.02, 0.03, 0.04
shown in Table 2. However, as mentioned above, CS = 0.05 entrainment zone
was used except for the measurement of minimum spouting
Particle (glass beads)
gas velocity Ums or gas velocity through annulus UA. Diameter DP [Am] 1351 (G1), 477 (G2)
Air was used as the spouting fluid and its flow rate was DPB/DPS = 2.83
measured by using a quadrant nozzle flow rate meter. The Density qP [kg/m3] 2480
superficial gas velocity U based on the cross-sectional area Mass fraction of CS [kg/kg] 0.00, 0.01, 0.03, 0.05, 0.10,
finer particles 0.15, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75, 1.00
of column was varied from 0.10 to 0.90 m/s. As shown in
 T. Ishikura et al. / Powder Technology 131 (2003) 56–65 59

of particle velocity VPA and void fraction within the annular

bed flow eA. eA was calculated by using the volume and the
mass of particles bed in the annular bed flow. To a first
approximation, VPA could be measured by determining the
average time required for a colored tracer particle to descend
a constant distance ( = 0.05 m) using a stopwatch. Hadzis-
majlovic et al. [33] have shown that the particle velocity in
the annulus is uniform except in the cone region so that WS
was approximately determined using the experimental value
of VPA from Eq. (3).

Ws ¼ ð1  eA ÞqP  AA  VPA ð3Þ

At the same time, the local velocity of particles within

the draft tube VPS was measured by an optical fiber probe
method [34] as shown in Fig. 2. The optical fiber probe was
mounted horizontally and placed in the center axis of the
draft tube at the middle section. The probe consists of three
optical fibers with a diameter of 1000 Am. The central fiber
guides illuminating laser light to moving glass beads and the
others guide the reflected light from glass beads to each
photomultiplier to convert it into a voltage signal. The
sampling rate of the voltage signal is 102 kHz. VPS is
calculated by using the following equation:

VPS ¼ S =sm ð4Þ

where S is the effective distance between light detecting
fibers and sm is the average lag time calculated by FFT
analyzer for the data of about 10 second periods. S in Eq. (4)
was calibrated as S = 1.016 mm. The hold-up of solid
particles within the draft tube (1  eD) was determined from
Eq. (5) based on mass balance of particles within the draft
tube by using both VPS measured by an optical fiber probe
and WS calculated from Eq. (3).
ð1  eD Þ ¼ Ws =ðqP  AD  VPS Þ ð5Þ
3. Experimental results and discussion
3.1. Spouting characteristics of a binary mixture of fine –
coarse particles for porous draft tube
A total bed pressure drop DPS is important from a
viewpoint of the stable spouting. In the case of the mass
fraction of finer particles CS = 0.05, Fig. 3 shows the
relationship between the typical total bed pressure drop
DPS and superficial gas velocity U for fluidization (FB),
and spouting without a draft tube (CSB) and with a non-
porous (S-DSB) and a porous (P-DSB) draft tube. As shown
in Fig. 3, DPS for spouting with a draft tube (DSB) is lower
than those of others. Therefore, DSB has a considerable
advantage from the viewpoint of power consumption. DPS
for spouting with a porous draft tube (P-DSB) is higher than
for a non-porous draft tube (S-DSB), due to gas percolation
from the draft tube to the annulus. Moreover, the minimum
Fig. 3. Typical pressure drop-flow rate curves for fluidization, and spouting
without and with a draft tube (FB: fluidized bed; CSB: conventional
spouted bed; S-DSB: spouted bed with a non-porous draft tube; P-DSB:
spouted bed with a porous draft tube).
spouting velocity Ums of spouting with a draft tube (DSB) is
much lower than the others.
For spouting with a porous draft tube, Fig. 4 shows a
relationship between the total bed pressure drop DPS and
superficial gas velocity U with the height of the entrainment
zone HD as a parameter for the case where the mass fraction
of finer particles is CS = 0.05. This figure shows that DPS
decreases with a decrease in U for the stable spouting
region. Furthermore, when the spouting state changes from
stable spouting into fixed bed region, the transitional point
is regarded as minimum spouting velocity Ums. The Ums
was defined as the velocity at a point where a slight
reduction of gas velocity caused solid particles within a
porous draft tube to clog and at the same time the pressure
drop rose suddenly. From Fig. 4, it is found that both DPS
and Ums increase with increasing HD. The reason is that the
gas flow through the annulus increases with increasing HD
as shown in Fig. 10. Also, both DPS and Ums for spouting
with a porous draft tube are higher than for spouting with a
non-porous tube, particularly at a lower height of the
entrainment zone HD. This is due to the decrease of the
energy of vertical gas stream entering from bottom of the
porous draft tube by the radial gas percolation through a
porous draft tube.
60 T. Ishikura et al. / Powder Technology 131 (2003) 56–65

Fig. 5. Relationship between DPS and U as a parameter of DD for a porous

Fig. 4. Relationship between DPS and U as a parameter of HD for a porous
draft tube.
draft tube.

Fig. 5 shows a relationship between DPS and U with the

draft tube diameter DD as a parameter. DPS increases with
decreasing DD, but Ums increases with increasing DD. Both
DPS and Ums for spouting with a porous draft tube are
higher than for spouting with a non-porous draft tube.
Fig. 6 shows the effects of the mass fraction of finer
particles CS on the minimum spouting velocity Ums. It is also
found that Ums decreases with increasing CS, especially in
the range of CS = 0 –0.3. When a small amount of finer
particles is added to coarser particles, Ums is much less than
for coarser particles alone (CS = 0). From this fact, it is noted
that addition of only a small amount of finer particles caused
the bed to spout at a much lower gas velocity. This is
considered to be due to a notable decrease in the void fraction
within the annular bed flow eA for the same range of CS. As
mentioned above, this phenomenon is similar to observations
in a conventional spouted bed (CSB) [27]. Ums for spouting
with a porous draft tube is also higher than for spouting with
a non-porous draft tube as shown in Fig. 6. As mentioned
above, this is due to the decrease of the energy of vertical gas
stream entering from bottom of the porous draft tube by the
radial gas percolation through a porous draft tube.

3.2. Gas flow rate through the annulus for porous draft tube

The variations of reduced longitudinal pressure with Fig. 6. Effect of average mass fraction of coarser component and HD on
reduced bed level Z/H for the spout and the annulus with minimum spouting velocity for a porous and a non-porous draft tube.
 T. Ishikura et al. / Powder Technology 131 (2003) 56–65
Fig. 7. Longitudinal pressure distribution within annulus and spout region
for a porous draft tube spouted bed as parameters of CS and radial ordinate
r.
a porous draft tube are shown in Fig. 7. This figure dem-
onstrates that the spout pressure is greater than the annulus
pressure, particularly in the cone section of the bed, but that
further up the bed the difference in pressure between the two
regions becomes small. These distributions mean that gas
percolates from the porous draft tube to the annulus,
particularly in the lower part of the bed. The shape of the
annulus pressure profile obtained with the porous draft tube
is different from that for a non-porous draft tube in the range
of Z/H = 0.25 –1.0, as shown in Fig. 7. The reason is that the
non-porous draft tube prevents radial gas percolation from
the draft tube to the annulus, therefore the annulus pressure
Fig. 8. Relationship between gas flow rate through annulus and vertical distance as parameters of CS and radial ordinate r for a porous draft tube.
61
profile gives essentially a straight line in the range of Z/H
= 0.25 –1.0.
Fig. 8 shows the relationship between the gas flow rate
through the annulus QA/QT = UAAA/UAT and the vertical
distance Z from the gas inlet nozzle with both CS and radial
ordinate r as parameters. QA/QT profiles for a porous draft
tube are important from the viewpoint of a solid – gas
contacting as reaction and heat transfer. The Q A /Q T
increases almost exponentially with Z and reaches a con-
stant value at Z = 0.20 m as shown in Fig. 8. This proves that
the part of gas within the porous draft tube percolates into
the annulus through the porous wall draft tube as shown in
Fig. 7 in the same manner as in a conventional spouted bed
[35] and no effect of radial ordinate r on QA/QT is noticed,
but the effect of addition of only a small amount of finer
glass beads on QA/QT is notably recognized because of a
marked decrease of the void fraction within the annular bed
flow eA. On the other hand, in a non-porous wall draft tube,
the QA/QT profile becomes flat because the radial gas
percolation within the non-porous draft tube is blocked,
and QA/QT is smaller than for a porous draft tube.
Fig. 9 indicates the effects of U and CS on both the
superficial gas velocity through annulus UA and the super-
ficial gas velocity within the draft tube UD. As UA did not
change very much with the height of annulus between
Z = 0.20 m and Z = 0.25 m as shown in Fig. 8, UA was
measured at the position. UD can be calculated approxi-
mately from Eq. (2) based on a mass balance of gas. It can
be seen from Fig. 9 that both UA and UD increase with
increasing superficial gas velocity U, and UA decreases and
UD increases with an increase in CS. From this figure, it can
be seen that UA for spouting with a porous draft tube is
higher than for the non-porous draft tube because of radial
gas percolation through the porous draft tube, and UD shows
62 T. Ishikura et al. / Powder Technology 131 (2003) 56–65

Fig. 10. Relationship between gas flow rate through annulus and total gas
flow rate as a parameter of HD for a porous draft tube.
Fig. 9. Effect of U on gas velocity through annulus and gas velocity within
draft tube with CS as a parameter for a porous draft tube.
Fig. 12 shows that WS increases with increasing U and
HD. It is considered that as U increases, the entrainment of
the opposite tendency. In this experiment, it is indicated that solid particles in the entrainment zone increases, and there-
UA is lower than minimum gas velocity for fluidization Umf fore WS increases monotonously with U in the same manner
as shown in Fig. 9, and therefore the annulus region is a
stable moving bed.
Fig. 10 plots the gas flow rate through the annulus QA/QT
and the total gas flow rate QT with HD as a parameter.
QA/QT increases with decreasing QT and with increasing HD
for each of the systems. This is because the gas jet expands
with decreasing QT and with increasing HD. The porous
draft tube provides a higher QA/QT than the non-porous
draft tube, particularly in the narrower HD because of a
considerable decrease in the static pressure for the annulus
zone of cone section as shown in Fig. 7. From the viewpoint
of gas distribution to the annulus, the porous draft tube has
an advantage over the non-porous wall tube in the lower
height of the entrainment zone.
Fig. 11 indicates the effect of the porous draft tube
diameter DD on QA/QT. QA/QT increases with decreases in
DD for each of the systems. From this figure, QA/QT for
spouting with a porous draft tube is higher than for a non-
porous draft tube for every condition.

3.3. Solids circulation rate for porous draft tube

The solids circulation rate WS is an important factor in

predicting the performance of a spouted bed with a draft
tube, which is mainly dependent on the superficial gas Fig. 11. Relationship between gas flow rate through annulus and total gas
velocity U and the height of the entrainment zone HD. flow rate as a parameter of DD for a porous draft tube.
 T. Ishikura et al. / Powder Technology 131 (2003) 56–65 63

Fig. 12. Relationship between solids circulation rate and U as a parameter Fig. 13. Relationship between solids circulation rate and U as a parameter
of HD for a porous draft tube. of DD for a porous draft tube.

Fig. 14 indicates the relationship between the local

velocity of particles VPS and superficial gas velocity UD
as in a conventional spouted bed [1]. On the other hand,
within a porous draft tube in case of average mass fraction
with increasing HD, more solid particles can be entrained by
the gas due to an increase in the contact area of entrainment
zone, and thereby WS increases. However, the increase in
WS with increasing HD may be limited by gas bypassing
from the entrainment zone to the annulus, and when HD is
too large, the system may become unstable. As shown in
Fig. 12, WS for spouting with the porous draft tube is higher
than for the non-porous draft tube, due to the effect of
aeration through the porous wall of the draft tube into the
annulus. This can be attributed to higher flowability of the
solid particles from the annulus to the entrainment zone due
to the larger gas flow rate through the annulus QA/QT as
shown in Figs. 10 and 11.
Fig. 13 shows that the solids circulation rate WS increases
monotonously with increases in both U and draft tube
diameter DD. However, when DD is too large, the flow
may become unstable. Also WS for spouting with the porous
draft tube is slightly higher than for the non-porous draft
tube, by similar reasoning.

3.4. Behavior of gas and solid particles within porous draft

tube

Stable spouting with a draft tube is controlled only by the

energy of the gas stream entering the bottom of the draft
tube. The behavior of both the gas and solid particles within
the draft tube is important for reaction and drying of grain Fig. 14. Relationship between local velocity of particles and UD as a
[8]. parameter of CS for a porous draft tube.
64 T. Ishikura et al. / Powder Technology 131 (2003) 56–65
of finer particles CS = 0.05 and 0. The VPS was measured by
an optical fiber probe as shown in Fig. 2. From Fig. 14, VPS
increases linearly with increasing UD and VPS is almost the
same for CS = 0.05 and 0, probably due to a small fraction of
finer particles.
Fig. 15 shows the effects of both superficial gas velocity
within draft tube UD and average mass fraction of finer
particles CS on total pressure drop within the draft tube DPD
and hold-up of solid particles within the draft tube (1  eD).
The results show that the behavior of both gas and solid
particles within the draft tube is similar to that for vertical
pneumatic conveying. (1  eD) was calculated from the
mass balance within the draft tube as shown in Eq. (5),
using the local velocity of particles VPS as shown in Fig. 14.
It is shown that DPD and (1  eD) are almost the same for
CS = 0.05 and CS = 0, probably because of the small mass
fraction of finer particles. However, minimum spouting
velocity Ums and gas velocity through annulus UA are not
equivalent for CS = 0.05 and CS = 0, respectively, as shown
in Figs. 6 and 9, due to notable effect of average void
fraction within annular bed flow eA. Also DPD for spouting
with a porous draft tube is higher than for a non-porous draft
tube due to the larger kinetic energy of solid particles within
the porous draft tube. The kinetic energy of particles
decreases with decreasing UD. Therefore, DPD decreases
Fig. 15. Effect of gas velocity within draft tube on both total pressure drop
within draft tube and hold-up of solid particles within draft tube as a
parameter of CS for a porous draft tube.
with decreasing UD within the stable spouting region. When
the behavior of particles changes from stable spouting to the
fixed bed, the transition point is regarded as minimum
spouting velocity within the draft tube UDms. UDms is about
83% of the coarser particle terminal velocity UT for both
CS = 0.05 and CS = 0. This ratio does not change in spite of
different geometric and operating conditions as found from
past research [25]. UDms depends only on the void fraction
eD within the draft tube, similar to hindered settling. This
finding is different from the tendency of the minimum
spouting velocity Ums as shown in Figs. 4 and 5, which
indicates the index on the beginning points of the whole
spouting system for different geometric and operating con-
ditions.
On the other hand, (1  eD) increases gradually as UD de-
creases. Furthermore, when (1  eD) reached about 0.06, the
behavior of particles within the draft tube could not maintain
the stable pneumatic conveying state and a slight reduction of
gas velocity within the draft tube caused solid particles within
the draft tube to clog. Therefore, the pressure drop DPD and
hold-up of solid particles (1  eD) within the draft tube play
important roles in maintaining stable spouting.
4. Conclusions
The minimum spouting velocity decreases with increas-
ing mass fraction of finer particles, and also decreases with
decreasing height of the entrainment zone and porous draft
tube diameter. The minimum spouting velocity for a porous
draft tube is larger than for a non-porous draft tube.
The gas flow rate through the annulus is increased by
increasing the height of entrainment zone, but decreases as a
result of increasing both the draft tube diameter and the mass
fraction of finer particles. The effectiveness of solid – gas
contact for spouting with a porous draft tube can be improved
considerably in comparison with a non-porous draft tube,
particularly with a low height of the entrainment zone.
The solids circulation rate increases monotonously with
increasing gas velocity, increasing height of the entrainment
zone and increasing porous draft tube diameter. The porous
draft tube achieves a higher solids circulation rate than the
non-porous draft tube.
The total pressure drop and hold-up of solid particles
within the porous draft tube play essential roles in main-
taining stable spouting.
Further studies, both experimental and theoretical, are
necessary to gain a better understanding of the behavior of
gas and particles within a porous draft tube to maintain
stable spouting.
List of symbols
AA cross-sectional area of annulus, ( = p(DT2  DD2)/4),
(m2)
AD cross-sectional area of draft tube, ( = pDD2/4), (m2)
AT cross-sectional area of bed, ( = pDT2/4), (m2)
 T. Ishikura et al. / Powder Technology 131 (2003) 56–65 65

CS average mass fraction of finer particles, ( = mass of References

finer particles/mass of whole bed), (kg/kg)
DD inside diameter of draft tube (m) [1] K.B. Mathur, N. Epstein, Spouted Beds, Academic Press, NewYork,
DO inside diameter of nozzle (m) USA, 1974.
[2] Y. Hatate, K. Ijichi, Y. Uemura, J. Soc. Powder Technol., Jpn. 34
DP arithmetic mean diameter of particles (Am) (1997) 343 – 360.
DS spout diameter (m) [3] J.R. Muir, F. Berruti, L.A. Behie, Chem. Eng. Commun. 88 (1990)
DT column diameter (m) 153 – 171.
g gravitational acceleration (m/s2) [4] H. Ji, A. Tsutsumi, K. Yoshida, AIChE Symp. Ser. 93 (1997)
H bed height under spouting condition (m) 131 – 135.
[5] H. Ji, A. Tsutsumi, K. Yoshida, J. Chem. Eng., Jpn. 31 (1998)
HD distance between gas inlet nozzle and bottom of 842 – 845.
draft tube ( = height of entrainment zone), (m) [6] K. Ijichi, Y. Uemura, Y. Hatate, Y. Tanaka, J. Soc. Powder Technol.,
L distance between pressure taps in annulus (m) Jpn. 33 (1996) 706 – 710.
LD length of draft tube (m) [7] H. Hattori, T. Nagai, J. Chem. Eng., Jpn. 29 (1996) 484 – 487.
S effective distance between light detecting fibers (m) [8] G.K. Khoe, J.V. Brakel, Can. J. Chem. Eng. 61 (1983) 411 – 418.
[9] T.N. Tulasidas, T. Kudra, G.S.V. Raghavan, A.S. Mujumdar, Proc. of
DP pressure drop for superficial velocity through 15th Intern. Symp.on Drying, 1992, pp. 1564 – 1570.
sintered metallic filter (kPa) [10] Y. Hatate, H. Mihara, K. Ijichi, T. Yoshimi, S. Arimizu, Y. Uemura,
PA pressure drop within annulus at any point (kPa) D.F. King, Kagaku Kogaku Ronbunshu 22 (1996) 1180 – 1184.
DPA pressure drop of annulus for distance of L (kPa) [11] I. Naruse, H. Matsuda, M. Hasatani, Kagaku Kogaku Ronbunshu 15
(1989) 105 – 112.
PD pressure drop within draft tube at any point (kPa)
[12] R. Konduri, E.R. Altwicker, M.H. Morgan III, Can. J. Chem. Eng. 73
DPD total pressure drop within draft tube (kPa) (1995) 744 – 754.
DPS total bed pressure drop due to solid particles (kPa) [13] R.K. Stocker, J.H. Eng, W.Y. Svrcek, L.A. Behie, AIChE J. 35 (1989)
DPf (cal.) theoretical pressure drop due to fluidization, 1617 – 1624.
(=(Wg)/AT), (kPa) [14] M.C. Ferreira, J.T. Freire, Can. J. Chem. Eng. 70 (1992) 905 – 909.
QA gas flow rate through annulus, ( = UAAA), (m3/s) [15] B.J. Milne, F. Berruti, L.A. Behie, T.J.W.D. Bruijn, Can. J. Chem.
Eng. 70 (1992) 910 – 915.
QD gas flow rate within draft tube, ( = UDAD), (m3/s) [16] T.S. Pugsley, B.J. Milne, F. Berruti, Powder Technol. 88 (1996)
QT total gas flow rate through inlet nozzle, ( = UAT), 123 – 131.
(m3/s) [17] K. Ijichi, Y. Uemura, H. Yoshizawa, Y. Hatate, K. Yoshida, Kagaku
r radial ordinate (m) Kogaku Ronbunshu 24 (1998) 365 – 369.
U superficial gas velocity based on cross-sectional [18] Y. Fukumori, H. Ichikawa, J. Soc. Powder Technol., Japan 34 (1997)
536 – 544.
area of column (m/s) [19] H. Littman, M.H. Morgan III, C.B. Morgan, AIChE Symp. Ser. 93
UA superficial gas velocity through annulus (m/s) (1997) 125 – 130.
UD superficial gas velocity within draft tube (m/s) [20] W. Krambrock, Powder Technol. 15 (1976) 199 – 206.
UDms superficial gas velocity within draft tube for [21] J.K. Claflin, A.G. Fane, Can. J. Chem. Eng. 61 (1983) 356 – 363.
[22] J.K. Claflin, A.G. Fane, AIChE Symp. Ser. 80 (1984) 17 – 23.
minimum spouting (m/s)
[23] H. Hattori, S. Tanabe, Preprints of the 55th Meeting of the Society of
Umf minimum superficial gas velocity for fluidization Chem. Eng., Japan, 1990, pp. 487.
(m/s) [24] H. Hattori, K. Higuchi, Preprints of the 56th Meeting of the Society of
Ums minimum superficial gas velocity for spouting Chemical Engineering, Japan, 1991, pp. 615.
(m/s) [25] T. Ishikura, M. Ide, Proc. of 16th Intern. Symp. on Drying, 1994,
Ur superficial gas velocity through sintered metallic pp. 351 – 358.
[26] T. Ishikura, H. Nagashima, M. Ide, Kagaku Kogaku Ronbunshu 22
filter (m/s) (1996) 615 – 621.
UT terminal velocity for a single particle (m/s) [27] T. Ishikura, H. Shinohara, K. Funatsu, Can. J. Chem. Eng. 60 (1982)
VPA particle velocity in annulus (m/s) 697 – 698.
VPS local particle velocity within draft tube (m/s) [28] O. Uemaki, R. Yamada, M. Kugo, Can. J. Chem. Eng. 61 (1983)
W mass of particle bed (kg) 303 – 307.
[29] M.Z. Anabtawi, Can. J. Chem. Eng. 76 (1998) 132 – 136.
WS solids circulation rate (kg/s) [30] J.R. Grace, E. Kutluoglu, K.W. Murchie, P.H. Cavanagh, Can. J.
Z longitudinal ordinate (m) Chem. Eng. 61 (1983) 308 – 316.
[31] T. Ishikura, H. Nagashima, M. Ide, Kagaku Kogaku Ronbunshu 24
(1998) 346 – 348.
[32] H. Nagashima, T. Ishikura, M. Ide, Korean J. Chem. Eng. 16 (1999)
Greek letters 688 – 693.
b opening ratio of porous draft tube (%) [33] Dz. Hadzismajlovic, Z. Grbavcic, D.S. Povrenovic, D.V. Vukovic,
eA average void fraction within annular bed flow (– ) R.V. Garic, H. Littman, Proc. of the 7th Eng. Foundation Conference
(1  eD) hold-up of solid particles within draft tube (– ) on Fluidization, 1992, pp. 337 – 344.
[34] Y.L. He, S.Z. Qin, C.J. Lim, J.R. Grace, Can. J. Chem. Eng. 72 (1994)
h cone angle (rad.) 561 – 568.
qP particle density (kg/m3) [35] G.A. Lefroy, J.F. Davidson, Trans. Inst. Chem. Eng. 47 (1969)
sm average lag time calculated by FFT analyzer (s) T120 – T128.