6

Fluid Flow Through a Packed Bed of Particles

6.1 PRESSURE DROPFLOW RELATIONSHIP 6.1.1 Laminar Flow

In the nineteenth century Darcy (1856) observed that the ow of water through a packed bed of sand was governed by the relationship:  pressure gradient  /  liquid velocity  or p /U H 6:1

where U is the supercial uid velocity through the bed and p is the frictional pressure drop across a bed depth H. (Supercial velocity uid volumetric ow rate/cross-sectional area of bed, Q=A.) The ow of a uid through a packed bed of solid particles may be analysed in terms of the uid ow through tubes. The starting point is the HagenPoiseuille equation for laminar ow through a tube: p 32mU H D2 6:2

where D is the tube diameter and m is the uid viscosity. Consider the packed bed to be equivalent to many tubes of equivalent diameter De following tortuous paths of equivalent length He and carrying uid with a velocity Ui . Then, from Equation (6.2), p mU i K1 2 De He 6:3

Introduction to Particle Technology - 2nd Edition # 2008 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Martin Rhodes

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FLUID FLOW THROUGH A PACKED BED OF PARTICLES

Ui is the actual velocity of uid through the interstices of the packed bed and is related to supercial uid velocity by: Ui U =e 6:4

where e is the voidage or void fraction of the packed bed. (Refer to Section 8.1.4 for discussion on actual and supercial velocities.) Although the paths of the tubes are tortuous, we can assume that their actual length is proportional to the bed depth, that is, He K2 H The tube equivalent diameter is dened as 4 flow area wetted perimeter where ow area eA, where A is the cross-sectional area of the vessel holding the bed; wetted perimeter SB A, where SB is the particle surface area per unit volume of the bed. That this is so may be demonstrated by comparison with pipe ow: Total particle surface area in the bed SB AH . For a pipe, wetted perimeter wetted surface pDL length L 6:5

and so for the packed bed, wetted perimeter

SB AH SB A. H Now if Sv is the surface area per unit volume of particles, then Sv 1 e SB 6:6

since       surface of particles volume of particles surface of particles volume of particles volume of bed volume of bed

and so equivalent diameter; De 4e A 4e SB Sv 1 e 6:7

Substituting Equations (6.4), (6.5) and (6.7) in (6.3): p 1 e2 K3 mUS2 v 3 e H 6:8

where K3 K1 K2 . Equation (6.8) is known as the CarmanKozeny equation [after the work of Carman and Kozeny (Carman, 1937; Kozeny, 1927, 1933)] describing

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laminar ow through randomly packed particles. The constant K3 depends on particle shape and surface properties and has been found by experiment to have a value of about 5. Taking K3 5, for laminar ow through a randomly packed bed of monosized spheres of diameter x (for which S 6=x) the CarmanKozeny equation becomes: p mU 1 e 2 180 2 e3 H x 6:9

This is the most common form in which the CarmanKozeny equation is quoted.

6.1.2 Turbulent Flow

For turbulent ow through a randomly packed bed of monosized spheres of diameter x the equivalent equation is: p r U 2 1 e 1:75 f x H e3 6:10

6.1.3 General Equation for Turbulent and Laminar Flow

Based on extensive experimental data covering a wide range of size and shape of particles, Ergun (1952) suggested the following general equation for any ow conditions: p mU 1 e2 rf U 2 1 e 150 2 1 : 75 e3 x H x e3     laminar turbulent component component

6:11

This is known as the Ergun equation for ow through a randomly packed bed of spherical particles of diameter x. Erguns equation additively combines the laminar and turbulent components of the pressure gradient. Under laminar conditions, the rst term dominates and the equation reduces to the Carman Kozeny equation [Equation (6.9)], but with the constant 150 rather than 180. (The difference in the values of the constants is probably due to differences in shape and packing of the particles.) In laminar ow the pressure gradient increases linearly with supercial uid velocity and independent of uid density. Under turbulent ow conditions, the second term dominates; the pressure gradient increases as the square of supercial uid velocity and is independent of uid viscosity. In terms of the Reynolds number dened in Equation (6.12), fully laminar condition exist for Re less than about 10 and fully turbulent ow exists at Reynolds numbers greater than around 2000. Re xU rf m1 e 6:12

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FLUID FLOW THROUGH A PACKED BED OF PARTICLES

In practice, the Ergun equation is often used to predict packed bed pressure gradient over the entire range of ow conditions. For simplicity, this practice is followed in the Worked Examples and Exercises in this chapter. Ergun also expressed ow through a packed bed in terms of a friction factor dened in Equation (6.13): Friction factor; f p x e3 H rf U 2 1 e 6:13

(Compare the form of this friction factor with the familiar Fanning friction factor for ow through pipes.) Equation (6.11) then becomes f with f (see Figure 6.1). 150 for Re < 10 Re and f 1:75 for Re > 2000 150 1:75 Re 6:14

6.1.4 Non-spherical Particles

The Ergun and CarmanKozeny equations also accommodate non-spherical particles if x is replaced by xsv the diameter of a sphere having the same surface to volume ratio as the non-spherical particles in question. Use of xsv gives the correct value of specic surface S (surface area of particles per unit volume of particles). The relevance of this will be apparent if Equation (6.8) is recalled.

Figure 6.1 Friction factor versus Reynolds number plot for uid ows through a packed bed of spheres