Detecting densified zone formation in membrane-assisted fluidized bed reactors through pressure measurements

This work reports the results of an experimental investigation on densified zone formation in a membrane fluidized bed reactor using combined pressure fluctuation and PIV (Particle Image Velocimetry) measurements. A pseudo 2D experimental setup was used, where porous plates on the back plate of column mimicked gas extraction through flat vertically inserted membranes. The maximum in the standard deviation of pressure fluctuations, commonly employed to indicate the transition to turbulent fluidization, shifted to lower fluidization velocities with an increase in the fraction of fluidizing gas being extracted. Flow visualization showed that this result is connected to the onset of stable densified zone formation, which occurred at progressively lower fluidization velocities as the gas extraction fraction was increased. It has also been found that the extent of densified zones quantified using instantaneous particle velocity maps collected by PIV increases with increasing gas extraction rates. This effect became larger for smaller particles. Results have therefore shown that the peak in pressure fluctuations in fluidized beds with gas extraction through flat vertical membranes indicates the onset of densified zones formation rather than turbulent fluidization. Such densified zones can have substantial detrimental effects (such as induced mass transfer limitations, gas bypass etc.) on the reactor performance and can be identified via pressure measurements, as illustrated in this work.