Study of the effect of local hydrodynamics on liquid distribution in a gas-solid fluidized bed using a capacitance method

Injection of liquid into fluidized beds is widely applied in the petrochemical, chemical, food and pharmaceutical industries. The local bed hydrodynamics have a strong impact on the contact between the injected liquid and the bed solids. By adjusting the local bed hydrodynamics or locating the injection nozzle in the appropriate region of the bed, the contact between the injected liquid and the bed solids may be optimized to minimize agglomerate formation, which is detrimental to many industrial operations such as Fluid Coking. The effect of bed hydrodynamics on liquid distribution was investigated with a new, reliable and sensitive capacitance method. Results show that the fluidized bed hydrodynamics have a considerable impact on the contact efficiency between injected liquid and fluidized solids. (c) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.