Flow in Packed Beds v’

Introduction

 The packed bed (or packed column) is found in a number of

chemical processes including a fixed bed catalytic reactor, filter v
bed, absorption and adsorption.

 The ration of diameter of the tower to packing diameter should

be at least 8:1 to neglect wall effects

Laminar flow in packed beds

 The void fraction, e, in a packed bed is defined as:

volume of voids in bed

total volume of bed (voids plus solids)

 The specific surface of a particular is: av  S p V p

Where: Sp is the surface area of a particle and Vp its volume.
1
 Flow in Packed Beds (Laminar flow) v’

 For a spherical particle: av = 6/Dp, (Sp=πDp2 Vp=πDp3/6)

 For a packed bed of non-spherical particles, the effective

v
particle diameter Dp is:
D p  6 av

 The volume fraction of the particles in the bed is (1-ε)

6
and, thus, the ratio of the total surface area in the bed to
a  av 1     1   
total volume of the bed, a: Dp

Sp N  Sp total surface area of particles

av   
Vp N  Vp total volume of particles
total volume of particles
1     Example 3.1.3
total volume of bed
total surface area in the bed
a  av 1    
total volume of bed 2
 Flow in Packed Beds (Laminar flow) v’ = ev
 The average interstitial velocity in the bed (v) is related to the
superficial velocity (v’) by: v   v
 The hydraulic radius rH for flow is modified to be: v

cross - sectional area available for flow

rH 
wetted perimeter
void volume available for flow

total wetted surface of solids
volume of voids / volume of bed 
 
wetted surface / volume of bed a
Combining equations

a  av 1    
6
1     
rH  rH  Dp
61   
and gives:
Dp a
3
 Flow in Packed Beds (Laminar flow) v’ = ev

 Since the equivalent diameter for a channel is D  4rH

The Reynolds number for a packed bed is as follows:
v

N Re 
 4rH  v

4 D p v  v  v 
 61    
For packed beds, Ergun defined NRe without 4/6:

D p v D p G
N Re, p    G  v
1     1    

For laminar flow, the Hagen-Poiseuille equation can be expressed using rH to give:

32vL 32  v   L 72vL1   

2
p   
D 2
 4rH  2
 3 D p2
4
 Flow in Packed Beds (Laminar flow) v’ = ev
Experimental data show that the constant should be 150 (the true DL is
larger because of the tortuous path and use of rH predicts too large v’).
This leads to the Blake-Kozeny equation for laminar flow, e < 0.5, Dp and
NRe,p < 10:

150vL 1   
2
p 
D p2 3

Flow in Packed Beds (Turbulent flow)

For turbulent flow, we use the same procedure using equations:
L v 2 
p  4 f v  v D  4rH rH  Dp
D 2 61   
3 f  v L 1  
2
To obtain: p 
Dp 3 5
 Flow in Packed Beds (Turbulent flow) v’ = ev

For highly turbulent flow, f should approach constant value. Another

assumption is that all packed beds have the same relative roughness.
Experimental data show that : 3 f  1.75

Hence, for turbulent flow (NRe,p>1000), the Burke-Plummer eqnation is

used:
1.75  v L 1  
2
p 
Dp 3

Adding Blake-Kozeny equation (for laminar flow) and Burke-Plummer equation (for
turbulent flow), Ergun proposed a general equation for low, intermediate and high
Reynolds number (NRe,p) as:

150vL 1    1.75  v L 1  

2 2
p  
2
Dp  3
Dp 3
6
 Flow in Packed Beds (Turbulent flow) v’ = ev

By dimensional analysis, the general equation of Ergun can be rewritten

as:

p D p  3 150
  1.75  G  v
 G L 1   N Re, p
2

This equation can be used for gases where density is taken at the arithmetic average of the
inlet and outlet pressures
Example 3.1.4

Flow in Packed Beds (Shape factors)

Particles in packed beds are often irregular in shape. The shape factor or sphericity ( fs)
is defined by:

Surface area of sphere having the same volume as tha particle

s 
The actual surface area of the particle 7
For a sphere:
 The surface area is Sp=πDp2
 The volume is Vp=πDp3/6

Hence, for any particle: s  D p2 S p (Sp the surface area of the particle)

Sp D p2 s 6 6
av    and a  av 1     1   
Vp D p 6 s D p
3
s D p

For a sphere: s  1 (See table 3.1-1)

For a cylinder (L=D): s  0.874
Hw
For a cube: s  0.806

 Mixtures of particles

8
 Flow in Fluidized Beds
Packed bed Fluidized bed

Increased
L Lmin
velocity

v’ v’min

Two general types of fluidization in beds can occur:

 Particulate fluidization  Bubbling fluidization

9
 Flow in Fluidized Beds
 Minimum velocity and porosity

At very low velocity, packed bed remains stationary

When fluid velocity is increased, the pressure drop increases, Lmin

according to Ergun (Eqn. 3.1-20).

 At a certain velocity, when the pressure drop force (i.e. ∆P*A)

equalizes the gravitational force on the mass of particle (i.e. m*g), the v’min
particles begin to move (fluidize).

This velocity is called the minimum fluidization velocity (v’mf m/s)

(based on the superficial velocity).

At the minimum velocity, the porosity is called the minimum porosity of fluidization, εmf
(See Table 3.1-2 for ε for some materials )

Similarly, the new height of the bed is Lmf in m.

10
 Flow in Fluidized Beds
 Relation between bed height L and porosity e

The total volume of the solid particles is constant for a bed having a uniform cross-sectional
area A and is: V  L  A  1   
L1 1   2
Therefore: L1  A  1  1   L2  A  1   2   
L2 1  1

 Pressure drop and minimum fluidizing velocity

At the onset of fluidization, the following is approximately true:

p A  Lmf A1   mf   p    g

p
  1   mf   p    g (SI)
Lmf
11
 Flow in Fluidized Beds
Modifying the general equation of Ergun (substitute Dp with Dpfs) to correct for no spherical
particles, this yield to:

p 150v 1    1.75  v 1  

2 2
 2 2 
L s D p  3
s D p 3
This equation with the previous one can be combined to calculate the minimum fluidization
velocity:

1.75D v 2
p
'
 
mf
2
2

1501   mf  D p vmf
'


D 3p    p    g
0
 3
s mf
2
  
2 3
s mf  2

'
D p vmf 
Defining a Reynolds number as: N Re,mf 


1.75 N Re,mf  1501   mf  N Re,mf D 3p    p    g

2

We obtain:   0
 3
s mf  2 3
s mf  2

12
 Flow in Fluidized Beds

1.75 N Re,mf  1501   mf  N Re,mf D 3p    p    g

2

  0
 3
s mf  2 3
s mf  2

=0 =0
For small particles For large particles
(NRe,mf < 20) (NRe,mf > 1000)
1
 3
s mf 
If the terms emf and/or fs are not known, Wen and Yu 14
proposed the following approximations:
1   mf
 11
Substituting in the equation above implies: 2 3
s mf

D p  g 
12

 33.7  0.001  N Re,mf  4000
3

  33.7   0.0408
2 p
N Re,mf 
  2

Example 3.1.6 13
 Flow in Fluidized Beds
 Expansion of fluidized beds

For small particles We can estimate the variation of porosity and bed
D p v'  height L using equation a with the first term taken
N Re, f   20
 equal to zero.

D p2   p    gs2  3 3
v'   K1
150 1  1 
This equation can be used with liquids to estimate e with e < 0.8

 The maximum allowable velocity

For fine solids and NRe,f < 0.4 vt'  90vmf

'

For large solids and NRe,f > 1000 vt'  9vmf

'

Example 3.1.7 14