Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 55 (2016) 674686

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/rser

Short overview on the jetting-fountain uidized bed (JFFB) combustor

Farouk M. Okasha n
Department of Mechanical Power Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Mansoura University, 35516 Mansoura, Egypt

art ic l e i nf o a b s t r a c t

Article history: The jetting-fountain uidized bed (JFFB) is a novel conguration for uidized bed. It is basically a bub-
Received 24 November 2014 bling uidized bed equipped with a spouted jet in the upper part of the bed. A part of gases is fed
Received in revised form through the distributor to uidize bed solids while the remaining part is fed through a vertical pipe
19 August 2015
creating a jet-fountain zone. A distinct feature of JFFB different from previous spouted bed congurations
Accepted 5 November 2015
Available online 5 December 2015
is that the jet spout height is independent of the bed height. This feature makes the design more exible
and the ow regimes more extendable. The JFFB is characterized by excellent gassolids contact that is
Keywords: expected to result in high heat and mass transfer both in bed and freeboard zones.
Fluidized bed The experiments carried out using the JFFB furnish promising results. The power consumption in deli-
Co-combustion
vering gases into the combustor was found much lower. It conrms a rapid reliable method for initial heating
Jet
of uidized bed combustor. The JFFB enables gaseous fuels to burn smoothly like a normal premixed ame
Gaseous fuels
Biomass avoiding acoustic effects and explosions due to volume combustion in the bubble phase. Applying the JFFB
dampens greatly the overheating in the freeboard, in particular, at lower bed temperatures. A useful feature of
the jetting-fountain uidized bed conguration is the option to apply staged-air technique in combustion
processes. Staged-air combustion has been applied for gaseous and biomass fuels. The performance of the
combustor has been found much better when compared with conventional operation.
& 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Contents

1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 675
2. Experimental set-up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 675
3. Results and discussion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 675
3.1. Hydrodynamic features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 676
3.2. Smooth combustion of gaseous fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 676
3.3. Rapid reliable method for initial heating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 677
3.4. Controlling the freeboard temperature. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 677
3.5. Increasing in-bed cooling load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 679
3.6. Enhancing emission reduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 680
3.6.1. Nitric oxides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 680
3.6.2. Sulfur dioxide. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 680
3.7. Improving combustion processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 682
3.7.1. Carbon monoxide. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 682
3.7.2. Fixed carbon loss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 683
3.7.3. Combustion efciency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 684
4. Future work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 684
4.1. Chemical looping combustion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 684
4.2. Catalytic gasication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 684
5. Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 685
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 685

n
Tel.: 20 1068869033; fax: 20 50 2244690.
E-mail addresses: faroukok@gmail.com, faroukok@mans.edu.eg

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2015.11.004
1364-0321/& 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
 F.M. Okasha / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 55 (2016) 674686 675

1. Introduction

Many processes related to energy production that developed in

uidized bed require good gassolids contact to complete con-
version. These may include gas catalytic conversion, catalytic
gasication, chemical looping combustion, combustion and waste
treatment [1,2]. In many circumstances, however, a signicant part
of gases may leave the bed without conversion due to bubble
segregation and contact deciency. Miyauchi [3] and Furusaki
et al. [4] studied the contact efciency between gas and solids at
different levels in uidized bed reactor. They found good contact
just above the distributor, but very poor contact in the bed itself.
On the other hand, the contact efciency was found very good in
the splashing zone. On this account, uidized bed is designed to
operate in the turbulent ow regime to achieve high gas
throughput. The very high gas velocities above the minimum
uidization generate a large dense splashing zone of emulsion
clusters at the bed surface, plus considerable solids in the free-
board. This gives good-solids contact and additional conversion of
reactants in the freeboard [1].
In many exothermic reactions in uidized bed, a considerable Jet-air
part of gases bypasses the bed without conversion. These gases Distributor air
Total air
complete reactions in the freeboard producing a large quantity of
heat that overheats the freeboard above bed temperature reducing Jetting-fountain configuration Conventional operation
the thermal homogeneity throughout. It is recommended to keep Fig. 1. JFFB conguration compared to conventional FB operation.
the overheating within a narrow range for better reactions stabi-
lity and low pollution effects over a wide range of load control [1].
For instance, the reaction may be explosive outside a narrow
reduces considerably the power consumed in feeding gases to the
temperature range; the yield of desired product to side products
combustor. More importantly, applying the JF conguration dam-
may be sensitive to the temperature level of operations or rapid
pens the overheating in the freeboard.
deterioration and deactivation of catalyst. These issues can emerge
This paper presents an overview on the applications of the JFFB
in highly exothermic synthesis reactions such as Sohio process and
in combustion of gaseous fuel, staged-air combustion, and co-
Fischer Tropsch Synthesis. The presence of entrained solids in the
combustion of biomass and gaseous fuel. Controlling the freeboard
freeboard is important as it works as a heat sink to dampen
temperature with applying the novel conguration will be also
overheating [1,5,6]. Further, high overheating could lead to higher
discussed. The possible future applications will be also summarized.
generation of gaseous emissions or melting of ash. These problems
may arise in the combustion of highly volatile solid fuels where a
considerable part of volatiles escapes the bed to burn in the
freeboard [69]. On the other hand, the ejected bed particles in the 2. Experimental set-up
splashing zone play an important role as they absorb and recover a
part of the heat released in the freeboard back to the bed. Hence, A bubbling uidized bed combustor has been modied to adopt
these particles act as a heat sink that contributes to controlling the the JF conguration. Fig. 3 shows a schematic of the combustor. It
freeboard temperature [5,6]. The freeboard overheating is also consists of uidization column of 0.3 m inner diameter and 3.3 m
important in the combustion of gaseous [1017] and liquid fuels height.
[1820]. A nozzle type plate is used to distribute the primary air at the
Over-bed start-up is a well-known technique used for initial bottom of the uidization column. The air serves in uidizing bed
heating of uidized bed reactors [2123]. Using this technique, the materials. A stainless steel tube of 38.1 mm inner diameter is used
ame impinges on the surface of a bubbling uidized bed in order to feed jet-gases vertically upward. It passes through the center
to heat the bed particles. The start-up time depends on the rate of lines of the plenum chamber and the gas distributor plate to the
heat transfer between the ame and the bed. The presence of center line of the uidization column. The tube is designed to be
entrained solids increases the rate of heat transfer. The later con- movable in the vertical direction in order to adjust the location of
sequence makes the start-up period shorter and the fuel con- the jet outlet regarding the bed surface.
sumption more economic. The column is implemented with 21 portals to insert probes for
Recently, Okasha has developed a novel uidized-bed cong- measuring purposes. It is also furnished with two eyeglasses to
uration, namely the jetting-fountain uidized bed (JFFB) [24,25]. It enable visualizing the freeboard of uidization column. Two taps,
is basically a bubbling uidized bed furnished with a spouted jet PTD are used to measure the pressure drop from the plenum to the
issuing in the upper part of the bed as indicated by dotted lines as freeboard. Two additional taps, PTJ, are used to measure the pres-
shown in Fig. 1. A part of air is fed through the jet pipe. The sure drop from the jet pipe entrance to the freeboard. PTD and PTJ
remaining part of air is fed through the distributor plate to uidize taps in the freeboard are located at 240 cm above the distributor.
bed solids. The different schemes for feeding air and fuel are given
in Fig. 2. The jetting-fountain (JF) conguration is characterized by
excellent gassolids contact. This feature is due to the creation a 3. Results and discussion
jet in the upper part of the bed, establishing a fountain in the
freeboard and moderating bubbles size in the main bed. Previous Different experimental works have been carried on the JFFB
work conrms that the JF enables gaseous fuels to burn smoothly conguration. Cold tests were performed to study hydrodynamic
similar to a normal premixed ame [2425]. The JF conguration features. Combustion experiments were carried out by burning
676 F.M. Okasha / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 55 (2016) 674686

DA DA DA+GF DA+GF

JA + GF JA TA + GF
JFFB smooth JFFB staged air Convent.operation
combustionof GF combustionof GF combustionof GF

BF
JA: jet air HA: hot air BF
DA: distributor air
GF: gaseous fuel
BF: biomass fuel
Convent: conventional
JFFB: jetting-fountain
fluidized bed
DA DA
JSA: secondary air via jet TA + GF
pipe (JFFB) JA + GF
FSA: freeboard secondary air Co-firing BF +GF JFFB Co-firing BF +GF
(conventional operation) con guration Convent. operation

FSA HA
BF
BF

DA DA DA DA
JSA DA JA
BF staged aircombustion BF staged air combustion Tests on JFFB controlling
JFFB configuration convent. operation freeboard temperature
Fig. 2. Schemes of feeding air and fuels.

gaseous fuel and by co-ring biomass with gaseous fuel. A useful
feature of the JFFB conguration is the option to apply staged-air
technique in combustion processes. Staged-air combustion has
been applied for gaseous and for biomass fuel [2429]. A special
study was dedicated to investigate controlling the freeboard
temperature [30]. The different advantages of the novel cong-
uration are characterized and explained in the following sub-
sections.
3.1. Hydrodynamic features
The power consumed in delivering air to the combustor has
been estimated based on the measured pressure drops. The
dynamic pressure term has been considered in calculating the
total pressure along the jet-pipe path. Fig. 4a illustrates the power
consumption as a function of total air ow rate. The gure pre-
sents a comparison between the conventional conguration (100%
distributor air) and the JF conguration at jet-air ratio 50%. It is
evident that the saving in power consumption becomes more
considerable at higher air ow rates.
Fig. 4b illustrates the impact of air distribution ratio on average
bubble sizes in the bed which are reported relative to the bubble
size when all air passes through the gas distributor. The bubble
size is estimated using an equation by Darton et al. [31]. The
results indicate that the average bubble size reduces considerably
with decreasing the ratio of air that passes through the gas dis-
tributor. Hence, bubble size can be controlled to an optimum size
by feeding a part of air through jet-pipe. This should enhance gas
solids contact and mass transfer inside the bed.
3.2. Smooth combustion of gaseous fuel
Direct observation showed establishing a jet-fountain-ame
zone with entrained particles traveling upward and downward. It
 F.M. Okasha / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 55 (2016) 674686 677

is worthwhile to indicate that the entrained particles were noticed 3.3. Rapid reliable method for initial heating
traveling in discrete manner rather than in clusters. For this rea-
son, gassolids contact efciency is very high in fountain zone. The The JFFB enables a rapid and reliable method for initial heating
normal acoustic effects and bubble explosion due to volume of uidized bed combustor. The procedure that is usually used to
combustion were not recognized. It was noticed that the com- initially heat the combustor can be described as follows. A part of
bustion mode is similar to the conventional turbulent ame. In air is passed through the distributor to uidize the bed particles at
0.5 m/s, a little greater than the minimum uidization velocity
other words, the JF conguration was characterized by smooth
(0.38 m/s at 35 C). The second part of air mixed with propane is
combustion and less vibration.
introduced through the jet pipe. The mixture in the jet pipe is rich
fuel of 1.25 equivalence ratio while the velocity is about 33.5 m/s
at the normal conditions. Taking into consideration the uidiza-
tion air, the overall equivalence ratio is about 0.8 corresponding to
13 25% excess air.
PTJ&PTD: Pressure Tap The obtained results demonstrate that the initial heating rate is
10 much faster when the JF conguration is applied [2426]. The bed
temperature attains 850 C within about 14 min. The fountain-
particles absorb a great part of combustion heat released in the
freeboard and recover it back to the bed. Alternatively, the com-
12 PTJ 9 bustor needs about 45 min to reach the same temperature when
operating at conventional method.
1
14
PTD 3.4. Controlling the freeboard temperature

In combustion of gaseous fuel and/or biomass, a considerable

15 part of combustible gases bypasses the bed without combustion.
These gases complete burning in the freeboard resulting in over-
2 heating the freeboard above bed temperature. Temperature dis-
tributions have been measured in axial direction along the com-
8 bustor height to assess the overheating of the freeboard. Applying
PTD 5
the JFFB greatly dampens the freeboard temperature compared to
7 7 conventional operation. This nding was demonstrated in com-
PTJ 3 bustion of gaseous fuels as shown in Fig. 5a [2426] and in co-
11
combustion of biomass and gaseous fuel, see Fig. 5b [27,28]. The
result was also conrmed in staged-air combustion of biomass as
4 shown in Fig. 5 c [25,26,29]. It is obvious that the fountain-
6 particles absorb a great part of combustion heat released in the
freeboard and recover it back to the bed.
1. Fluidization column 2. Gas distributor 3. Jet pipe Table 1 reports the maximum overheating in the freeboard
4. Compressor 5. Air tank 6. Natural gas above the bed temperature. It is given for different uidized bed
7. Control valve 8. Rotameter 9. Cyclone
systems and different fuel types. The reported results reveal that
10. Sand hopper 11. Cooling water 12.Paddle shaft
13. Solid fuel hopper 14. Screw feeder 15 two eyeglasses JFFB has the smallest freeboard overheating. It appears worth to
state that overheating for JFFB is obtained at the lowest reported
Fig. 3. Bubbling uidized bed combustor adopting the jetting-fountain conguration. excess air value and relatively low bed temperature. These ndings

Fig. 4. Hydrodynamic features of JFFB; (a) power consumption in delivering air into the combustor and (b) average bubble size.
678 F.M. Okasha / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 55 (2016) 674686

Fig. 5. Comparison of axial temperature proles for the JFFB conguration and conventional operations; (a) propane combustion, (b) co-ring rice-straw with natural gas,
and (c) staged-air combustion of rice straw. (a683 820) (b 748 868) (c 724 787 863).

Table 1
Maximum overheating in the freeboard (Tfb) for different combustors and different fuels at different operating conditions.

Authors Combustor system Fuel type Operating conditions Tfb (C)

Mf (kg/h) Tb (C) (%)

Arromdee BFBC Sunower shell 60 870 40 130

Kuprianov [32] SFBC 60 870 40 80
Chyang et al. [33] VFBC Corncob 33 750 83 125
Dounit et al. [34] BFBC Natural gas NA 650 20 175
Duan et al. [35] VFBC Rice husk NA 700 40 170
Faravelli et al. [36] BFBC Gasoil NA 650 25 145
Martnez et al. [37] BFBC Rice husk 5.02 660 82.5 65
Okasha et al. [38] BFBC Mazut 5 800 30 80
Qian et al. [39] VFBC Corn and soyabeen 32 800 40 130
Sirisomboon et al. [40] CFBC Rice husk 83 850 40 145
Tarelho et al. [41] BFBC Forest biomass waste 2.6 750 40 105
Vamvuka et al. [42] BFBC Orange tree pruning 0.84 880 70 115
Okasha et al. [29] BFBC Rice straw 16.4 700 20 163
Okasha and Zeidan [26] JFFB Rice straw 16.4 700 20 24
BFBC Propane 5.1 650 20 170
JFFB Propane 5.1 650 20 33

BFBC: bubbling uidized bed combustor, Mf: fuel ow rate.

SFBC: swirling uidized bed combustor, Tb: bed temperature.
VFBC: vortex uidized bed combustor, : excess air.
CFBC: conical uidized bed combustor, Tfb: freeboard overheating.
 F.M. Okasha / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 55 (2016) 674686
Fig. 6. Temperature difference between freeboard air and bed; (a) effect of jet-air ratio, (b) effect of bed particle size, and (c) effect of hot-air entrance height.
also conrm that JFFB can better control the freeboard tempera-
ture among other uidized bed systems.
An experimental study on controlling the temperature of gases
in the freeboard has been carried applying the JFFB [30]. In this
study, a third stream of hot air at 300 C is introduced in the
freeboard beyond the main bed to simulate a heat generation
source. Minimizing temperature difference between the bed and
freeboard is considered a measure for freeboard temperature
control. The results indicate that the temperature difference
between the freeboard air and bed becomes smaller (better con-
trol for freeboard temperature) with increasing jet velocity and
decreasing bed particle size as shown in Fig. 6a and b, respectively.
The jet velocity has a higher impact than the particle size in the
ranges considered in this study. When applying the JFFB cong-
uration, a fountain which has a longer zone with much more
particles is established compared to the conventional splashing
zone. This trend is evidently illustrated in Fig. 6c, where the steady
state temperature difference is plotted as a function of the hot air
height entrance with respect to static bed surface. Thus, the free-
board temperature can be effectively controlled to higher extent
along the reactor height compared with the splashing zone of
conventional operation.
679
3.5. Increasing in-bed cooling load
The in-bed cooling load based on temperature rise and ow
rate of cooling water was evaluated. In-bed coaling load with
applying the JFFB is shown in Fig. 7 at different combustion con-
ditions. Fig. 7ac represent the cooling load during combustion of
a gaseous fuel [26], co-combustion of biomass with gaseous fuel
[27], and staged combustion of biomass [29], respectively. In
Fig. 7c, JSA refers to secondary air with applying the JFFB while FSA
refers to secondary air when introduced at freeboard in conven-
tional operation. Generally speaking, the JF conguration exhibits
much greater amount of cooling load, in particular, at lower bed
temperatures. It is obvious that the fountain-particles absorb a
considerable part of combustion heat released in freeboard and
recover it back to the bed. With increasing bed temperature, the
ue gases have higher enthalpy and heat transfer through the wall
increases. Therefore, the in-bed cooling load reduces considering
the same ow rates of fuels. In the case of conventional operation,
in-bed cooling load increases with bed temperature as the com-
bustion zone moves from the freeboard into the bed. Accordingly,
bed particles absorb greater part of the heat released and transfer
it to the cooling water. The heat absorbed by bed particles should
have high importance when the combustor burns a fuel of high
680 F.M. Okasha / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 55 (2016) 674686
Fig. 7. Comparison of in-bed cooling for the JFFB conguration and conventional operations, (a) propane combustion, (b) co-ring rice straw with natural gas, and (c) staged-
air combustion of rice straw.
moisture content or incinerates waste water. The fed water con-
tent gets a considerable amount of heat from the bed particles to
evaporate and reach the bed temperature.
3.6. Enhancing emission reduction
Applying the JFFB in combustion processes signicantly redu-
ces NOx and SO2 emissions. In fact feeding air in the JFFB cong-
uration is in staged technique. Moreover, it creates hydrodynamic
conditions that favor emissions reduction as discussed below:
3.6.1. Nitric oxides
The measured NOx emissions for different fuels and combustion
techniques are reported in Fig. 8. The JFFB conguration exhibits
less NOx emission compared to conventional operation. Fig. 8a
demonstrates that NOx signicantly reduces by increasing the sec-
ondary air (JSA) ratio delivered though the jet pipe. The gure also
conrms that feeding secondary air through the jet pipe (JSA) is
more effective than feeding secondary air in the freeboard (FSA), the
conventional method. In co-ring natural gas with biomass,
applying the JFFB yields less NOx compared to convention opera-
tion, i.e., feeding all air and natural gas through the distributor as
shown in Fig. 8b. Fig. 8c conrms that applying staged-air com-
bustion applying the JFFB (JSA) is an effective technique to reduce
NOx emission even better than introducing secondary air in the
freeboard (FSA). The reduction in NOx with the JFFB conguration
may be ascribed to different reasons. The rst reason is the
hydrodynamic behavior. Introducing less air in the bottom zone
leads to a decrease in uidization velocity and in bubbles sizes [29].
Therefore, gas residence time increases and mass transfer processes
improve within the bed. Those later consequences should lead to an
enhancement in NOx reduction. Further introducing less air in the
bottom zone leads to higher NOx concentration that should force
toward NOx reduction. The lower freeboard overheating in the case
of the JF conguration, see Fig. 5, could be a third reason. Another
reason could be the presence of the fountain. It appears that the
fountain of bed particles, carbon char, and ashes created in the
freeboard offers an extra zone of contact and reduction in NOx,
more details can be found in ref. [29].
3.6.2. Sulfur dioxide
Sulfur dioxide emission as a function of bed temperature is
shown in Fig. 9. The gure is a comparison between the JF con-
guration and conventional operation. Fig. 9a illustrates the
comparison for co-ring rice straw with natural gas. The reduction
in sulfur dioxide emission in the case of the JF conguration may
be attributed to the hydrodynamic effects as the uidization
velocity is lower, residence time becomes longer and bubbles sizes
become smaller. Those latter consequences favor sulfur self-
retention processes. Another factor could be important is the
 F.M. Okasha / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 55 (2016) 674686 681

Fig. 8. Comparison of NOx emissions for the JFFB conguration and conventional operation, (a) staged-air combustion of propane, (b) co-ring rice straw with natural gas,
and (c) staged-air combustion of rice straw.

Fig. 9. Comparison of SO2 emissions for the JFFB conguration and conventional operation, (a) co-ring rice straw with natural gas and (b) staged-air combustion of
rice straw.
682 F.M. Okasha / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 55 (2016) 674686
dilution effect. In conventional operation, all gases pass the bed
that makes the concentration of generated SO2 lower. Alter-
natively, in the JF conguration, there are two distinct zones of
combustion. The main bed and an outer part of the freeboard is a
combustion zone for rice straw and its volatiles while the JF zone
in the inner part of the freeboard is the combustion zone for
natural gas. As only the air required for rice straw combustion is
delivered via the distributor, when applying the JF conguration,
the concentration of SO2 turns to be higher. It appears logical that
the higher concentration of SO2 accelerates the sulfur self-
retention processes.
SO2 emission due to staged-air combustion of rice straw in the
JFFB compared to conventional operation is shown in Fig. 9b. In
general, the reported results demonstrate that combustion in JFFB
yields lower SO2 emission. The inuence of secondary air introduced
in the freeboard (FSA) on the SO2 emission is not monotonic. At the
lowest secondary air ratio, 10%, SO2 concentration slightly reduces.
This result may be ascribed to the hydrodynamic effect as discussed
above. Further increasing in secondary air ratio, however; has a
negative impact on SO2 emission. To this end, the reducing envir-
onments created by staged operation start to have a major effect and
favor SO2 escaping along with CaSO4 decomposition that surpasses
the benecial of the hydrodynamic effects [29]. Alternatively,
Fig. 10. Comparison of CO emissions for the JFFB conguration and conventional operations, (a) staged-air combustion of propane, (b) co-ring rice straw with natural gas,
and (c) staged-air combustion of rice straw.
reduction in SO2 steadily increases with secondary air when applying
the jetting fountain conguration (JSA). It appears that the environ-
ment of the fountain zone is more appropriate to bind SO2 with fuel
ashes. Transporting O2 from jet in the core to the fountain zone
gradually compensates the shortage of oxygen. Presence of ashes and
oxygen renders the fountain zone benecial to retain further SO2.
More details can be found in Ref. [29].
3.7. Improving combustion processes
3.7.1. Carbon monoxide
Fig. 10a reports the inuence of staged-air combustion of pro-
pane on CO concentration for the two feeding techniques [25,26].
Considering freeboard feeding of secondary air (FSA), CO emission
multiplies with increasing secondary air ratio. This trend may be
ascribed to the combustor height above the secondary air entrance
that appears not adequate to ensure good mixing and complete
combustion processes.
On the other hand, CO concentration does not exhibit notable
changes with secondary air ratio when adopting the JF conguration
(JSA). In this case, secondary air starts to mix with the primary
stream at the upper part of the bed when some gases are entrained
by the jet. The mixing continues gradually in the fountain zone and
 F.M. Okasha / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 55 (2016) 674686
then along all the remaining freeboard height. Therefore, the com-
bustion processes actually proceed utilizing all combustor height.
Fig. 10b presents carbon monoxide emission for the JF cong-
uration in comparison with conventional operation during co-
ring rice straw with natural gas [27,28]. Carbon monoxide is
reported as a function of bed temperature. Conventional operation
exhibits much higher carbon monoxide emission compared to the
JFFB conguration. This is more evident at lower bed tempera-
tures. These results may be explained as follows: In conventional
operation, all air required for the combustion in addition to natural
gas are fed through the gas distributor. Hence, the uidization
velocity is considerably higher. The generated bubbles are, then
larger with higher velocities while the residence time of gases
within the bed becomes shorter [28]. Therefore, the combustibles
and oxygen don't have sufcient time for intimate mixing and
complete combustion. The situation appears worse for rice straw
as biomass tend to concentrate near the bed surface during
devolatilization period due to the draft effect of forming volatile
bubbles. Moreover, segregation of volatiles in bubbles decelerates
mixing with oxygen. On the other hand, in the case of the JFFB
conguration, only the air required for rice straw combustion is
fed through the gas distributor that results in lower uidization
velocity. Therefore, the bubbles are smaller and slower. As resi-
dence time of gases becomes longer, the rice straw volatiles have a
greater chance to burn within the bed. Moreover, natural gas
mixed with the air sufcient for its combustion is delivered via a
jet pipe and burns in a jetting-fountain ame in a manner similar
to conventional turbulent ame.
Fig. 10c illustrates the effect of staged air combustion of rice
straw on CO emissions for the two feeding techniques [29]. CO
emission multiplies with increasing secondary air ratio in the case
of conventional method. On the other side, CO emission does not
exhibit notable changes with secondary air when applying the
JFFB conguration. The same discussion for staged combustion of
propane appears also valid in this case.
3.7.2. Fixed carbon loss
Fig. 11a presents xed carbon loss as a comparison between the
JFFB conguration and conventional operation for co-ring rice
straw and natural gas. The gure indicates that xed carbon loss
considerably lower when the combustor operates at the JFFB
conguration. These trends again may be attributed to the
hydrodynamic behavior of the bed. The uidization velocity is
Fig. 11. Comparison of xed carbon for the JFFB conguration and conventional operation, (a) co-ring rice straw with natural gas, and (b) staged-air combustion of
rice straw.
683
lower in the case of the JF conguration as only the air required for
rice straw combustion is fed through the distributor. Consequently,
char comminution (attrition and fragmentation) lessens as the bed
becomes less turbulent. Moreover, a lower percentage of particu-
lates with terminal velocities less than the uidization velocity
will be entrained out of the bed.
Fig. 11b reports xed carbon loss during staged-air combustion
of rice straw applying the JFFB conguration (JSA) and conven-
tional operation, i.e., introducing secondary air in the freeboard
(FSA). In case of FSA, xed carbon loss tends to reduce with staged
operation in the lower range of secondary air ratio with benecial
of hydrodynamic variation discussed above. In the higher range,
increasing secondary air has a negative impact on the xed carbon
loss. Under these conditions the rate of char combustion decreases
due to the shortage of oxygen, and then, char concentration in the
bed steps up. Consequently, the char comminution rate increases
yielding higher rate of elutriable nes. Those later consequence
appears to counteract the hydrodynamic effect discussed above.
However, at lower bed temperature the char concentration in the
bed increases since reactivity of char tend to be lower. This result
is shown in Fig. 11b where the xed carbon loss attains a minimum
value earlier in the case of the lowest temperature compared to
the higher ones.
Alternatively, Fig. 11b demonstrates that xed carbon loss
steadily reduces with increasing secondary air ratio when adopt-
ing the JF conguration. Although the hydrodynamic and envir-
onmental features of the main bed discussed above are still valid,
the JF behavior is responsible on the later improvement. The jetted
air is fresh that entrains solids from the bed including chars. Thus
the entrained chars pass the jet and contact with fresh air at high
relative velocity. Under these conditions the reactivity of chars
turns to be great. The chars in the fountain zone are also in
combustion processes as the oxygen gradually transports from the
jet to the fountain zone. Moreover the entrained nes experience
burning processes along all the combustor height where the sec-
ondary air is available from the very beginning of the freeboard. All
those consequences contribute in reducing the xed carbon loss in
the case of JSA.
Fig. 11a, and b also show that rising bed temperature causes a
signicant reduction in the xed carbon loss. With rising bed
temperature the reactivity of char combustion increases that leads
to a reduction in char concentration in the bed. And consequently,
generation and entrainment rates of ne chars become also lower.
684 F.M. Okasha / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 55 (2016) 674686

Fig. 12. Comparison of combustion efciency for the JFFB conguration and conventional operation, (a) co-ring rice straw with natural gas, and (b) staged-air combustion of
rice straw.

3.7.3. Combustion efciency Table 2

The combustion efciency for co-ring rice straw with natural Combustion efciency () for different combustors and different fuels at different
gas is shown in Fig. 12a. Combustion efciency exhibits higher operating conditions.

values with the JFFB conguration. The gain in combustion ef- Authors Combustor Fuel type Operating conditions (%)
ciency is mainly attributed to the reduction in xed carbon loss, system
see Fig. 11a, and partially to the reduction in carbon monoxide Mf Tb (C) (%)
(kg/h)
concentration, see Fig. 10b.
The combustion efciency is shown in Fig. 12b for staged Arromdee and BFBC Sunower 60 850 20 95.0
combustion of rice straw. In the case of FSA, combustion efciency Kuprianov shell
improves in the lower range of secondary air ratio. This [32]
40 98.1
improvement is mainly ascribed to the decrease in xed carbon
77 99.0
loss. Combustion efciency attains a maximum value, and then SFBC Sunower 60 850 19 92.8
decreases with further increase in secondary air ratio. In the shell
higher range of secondary air CO concentration steadily multiplies 40 98.3
75 98.6
(see Fig. 10c) while the xed carbon loss tend to increase after a Kuprianov and CFBC Peanut 60 950 19 98.0
minimum (see Fig. 11b). On the other hand, the combustion ef- Arromdee shells
ciency steadily improves with increasing secondary air when [43]
37 98.9
applying the JF conguration (JSA). Actually, CO concentrations
80 99.8
does not exhibit notable changes with secondary air (see Fig. 10c) Tamarind 60 850 19 97.1
while the xed carbon loss steadily decreases (see Fig. 11b). shells
The positive impact of bed temperature on combustion ef- 40 98.4
81 99.7
ciency is evident in Fig. 12a, and b. as combustion efciency Martnez et al. BFBC Rice husk 5.02 661 82.5 98.0
becomes greater at higher bed temperatures. Increasing bed [37]
temperature multiplies the reactivity of combustibles that steadily Kuprianov et al. SFBC Rice husk 80 800 40 98.8
[44]
reduces xed carbon loss and carbon monoxide emission as shown
Okasha et al. BFBC Rice straw 16.4 700 20 94.9
in Figs. 10 and 11. [29]
Combustion efciency for different uidized bed combustor 800 20 96.7
systems are reported in Table 2. The combustion efciencies of 900 20 98.0
JFFBC Rice straw 16.4 700 20 96.1
JFFB are among the higher even though they were conducted at 800 20 97.8
low excess air value. 900 20 98.9

BFBC: bubbling uidized bed combustor, Mf: fuel ow rate.

SFBC: swirling uidized bed combustor, Tb: bed temperature.
4. Future work VFBC: vortex uidized bed combustor, : excess air.
CFBC: conical uidized bed combustor, : freeboard overheating.

4.1. Chemical looping combustion

The JFFB is characterized by excellent gassolids contact that is

expected to result in high heat and mass transfer rate both in bed 4.2. Catalytic gasication
and in freeboard. It appears opportune to apply the JFFB in che-
mical looping combustion that requires good solid contact, parti- The JFFB seems to be good choice for catalytic gasication as it
cularly, in oxidizer. allows excellent gassolids contacting. Moreover, the JFFB enables
 F.M. Okasha / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 55 (2016) 674686
two paths for feeding gasication agents including a distributor
and a jet pipe.
Other applications may include combustion of liquid fuel, co-
combustion of liquid fuel and biomass, and incineration of waste
using gaseous or liquid fuel.
5. Conclusion
A novel conguration of uidized bed combustor, namely, the
jetting-fountain uidized bed combustor (JFFB) has been devel-
oped and tested. This novel conguration is characterized by
excellent gassolids contact that is expected to result in high heat
and mass transfer rates both in the bed and freeboard. This feature
is due to the creation of a jet in the upper part of the bed estab-
lishing a fountain in the freeboard and moderating bubbles size in
the main bed. The main ndings are summarized in the following
points:
1. The JFFB conguration reduces considerably the power con-
sumed in feeding gases to the combustor, in particular, at higher
ow rates. In addition to that, the JFFB conguration enables
gaseous fuels to burn smoothly similar to a normal premixed
ame avoiding acoustic effects and explosions due to volume
combustion in bubble phase.
2. A rapid reliable method for initial heating of uidized bed
combustor using the JFFB has been conrmed. Adopting the
novel conguration allows bed temperature to attain 800 C
within 10 min.
3. Applying the JFFB dampens greatly the freeboard overheating,
in particular, at lower bed temperatures. The fountain-particles
absorb a great part of heat released in freeboard and recover it
back to the bed. The later hypothesis is conrmed by measuring
the in-bed cooling load that was found to considerably increase,
in particular, at lower bed temperatures.
4. A useful feature of the JFFB conguration is the option to apply
staged-air technique in combustion processes. Staged-air com-
bustion has been applied for gaseous and biomass fuels. More-
over, the JFFB enables smooth and efcient method for co-ring
biomass with gaseous fuel.
5. The FFB enhances combustion processes and emissions reduc-
tion. These ndings were demonstrated in combustion of pro-
pane, co-ring rice straw with natural gas, and staged-air
combustion of rice straw.
6. Applying the JFFB conguration creates a fountain which has a
longer zone with much more particles. Thus, the freeboard
temperature can be effectively controlled to a higher extent
along the reactor height compared with the splashing zone of
conventional operation. The freeboard temperature can be
dampened and better controlled with increasing jet velocity and
decreasing bed particle size.
References
[1] Kunii D, Levenspiel O. Fluidization engineering. 2nd ed.. Butterworth-
Heinemann; 1991.
[2] Massimilla L. Gas jet in uidized beds. In: Davidson JF, Clift R, Harrison D,
editors. 2nd edition. New York: Academic Press; 1985. p. 13372.
[3] Miyauchi T. Fluidization III'. In: Grace JR, Matsen JM, editors. Fluidization III';
1980. p. 571.
[4] Furusaki S, Kikuchi T, Miyauchi T. AIChE J 1976;22(2):35461 Peterson W. S.
Multiple Spouted Bed. US 3242586, 1966.
[5] Okasha F. Modeling combustion of straw-bitumen-pellets in a uidized bed.
Fuel Process Technol 2007;88(3):28193.
[6] Scala F, Salatino P. Modeling uidized bed combustion of high-volatile solid
fuels. Chem Eng Sci 2002;57:117596.
[7] Goncalves A, Kiss L, Farinas ML, Rousse D. Temperature control of bubbling
uidized bed combustor burning forest residues without in-bed heat
685
exchanger. Rcents Progress en Gnie des Procds Numro 2011:1610
2011:16.
[8] Okasha F. Staged combustion of rice straw in uidized bed. Exp Thermal Fluid
Sci 2007;32:529.
[9] Borodulya VA, Didalenko VI, Palchonok GI, Stanchitis LK. Fluidized bed com-
bustion of solid organic wastes and low-grade coals: research and modeling.
In: Proceedings of the 13th international conference on FBC; 1995: p. 93542.
[10] Baron J, Bulewicz E, Zukowski W, Kandefer S, Pilawska M. Combustion of
hydrocarbon fuels in a bubbling uidized bed. Combust Flame 2002;128:410
21.
[11] Baron J, Bulewicz EM, Zabago J, Zukowski W. Propagation of reaction between
bubbles with a gas burning in a uidized bed. Flow Turbulence Combust
2012;88(4):479502.
[12] Dennis JS, Hayhurst AN, Mackley IG. The ignition and combustion of propane/
air mixtures in a uidized bed. In: Proceedings of the 19th international
symposium on combustion; 1982: 120512.
[13] Hayhurst AN, John JJ, Wazacz RJ. The combustion of propane and air as cata-
lyzed by platinum in a uidized bed of hot sand. Proc Combust Inst
1998;27:31118.
[14] Laviolette JP, Patience GS, La Marca C, Chaouki J. Gas-phase propane com-
bustion in the freeboard of a uidized bed. Fuel 2013;111:31623.
[15] Pre P, Hemati M, Marchand B. Study on natural gas combustion in uidized
beds: modeling and experimental validation. Chem Eng Sci 1998;53
(16):287183.
[16] van der Vaart DR, Davidson JF. The combustion of propane, premixed with air
in a uidized bed. In: Proceedings of the 5th engineering foundation con-
ference on uidization; 1986: 53946.
[17] van der Vaart DR. Freeboard ignition of premixed hydrocarbon gas in a ui-
dized bed. Fuel J 1988;67:10037.
[18] Miccio F, Kaliz S, Baxter D, Svoboda K. Combustion of liquid bio-fuels in an
internal circulating uidized bed. Chem Eng J 2008;143:1729.
[19] Miccio F, Miccio M, Olivieri G. A study on bubbling bed combustion of gasoil.
In: Proceedings of the 16th international conference on FBC; 2001: 1728.
[20] Okasha F. Modeling of liquid fuel combustion in uidized bed. Fuel
2007;86:224153.
[21] Jain V, Groulx D, Basu P. Study of heat transfer between an over-bed oil burner
ame and a uidized bed during start-up: determination of the ame to bed
convection coefcient. Appl Energy 2010;87:260514.
[22] Basu P, Ghosh A. Innovative means for reduction of oil consumption for
overbed start-up of uidized bed boilers. J Energy Inst 2007;80:20413.
[23] Jain V. Studies on over-bed start-up of bubbling uidized combustors. Halifax,
Nova Scotia, Canada: Dalhousie University; 2009 MSc thesis.
[24] Okasha F. A novel conguration for uidized bed. Recent Pat Chem Eng
2013;6:99106.
[25] Okasha F. Smooth combustion of gaseous fuels in a novel conguration of
uidized bed. Fuel 2013;106:5128.
[26] Okasha FM, Zeidan EB. Experimental study on propane combustion in a novel
uidized bed conguration. Fuel Process Technol 2013;116:7984.
[27] Okasha F, Zaater G, El-Emam S, Awad M, Zeidan E. Co-combustion of biomass
and gaseous fuel in a novel conguration of uidized bed: thermal char-
acteristics. Energy Convers Manag 2014;84:48896.
[28] Okasha F, Zaater G, El-Emam S, Awad M, Zeidan E. Co-combustion of biomass
and gaseous fuel in a novel conguration of uidized bed: combustion char-
acteristics. Fuel 2014;133:14352.
[29] Okasha F, Elnaggar M, Zeidan E. Enhancing emissions reduction and com-
bustion processes for staged-air combustion of biomass in uidized bed.
Energy Fuels 2014;28:66107.
[30] Zeidan EB, Okasha FM. Controlling the freeboard temperature applying a novel
design of uidized bed. J Taiwan Inst Chem Eng 2014;45(4):134753.
[31] Darton RD, La Nauze RD, Davidson JF, Harrison D. Bubble growth due to
coalescence in uidized beds. Trans Inst Chem Eng 1977;55:274.
[32] Arromdee P, Kuprianov VI. A comparative study on combustion of sunower
shells in bubbling and swirling uidized-bed combustors with a cone-shaped
bed. Chem Eng Process 2012;6(2):2638.
[33] Chyang CS, Duan F, Shih-Min Lin SM, Tso J. A study on uidized bed com-
bustion characteristics of corncob in three different combustion modes.
Bioresour Technol 2012;116:1849.
[34] Dounit S, Hemati M, Steinmetz D. Natural gas combustion in uidised bed
reactors between 600 and 850 8C: experimental study and modelling of the
freeboard. Powder Technol 2001;120:4954.
[35] Duan F, Chyang CS, Lin CW, Tso J. Experimental study on rice husk combustion
in a vortexing uidized-bed with ue gas recirculation (FGR). Bioresour
Technol 2013;134:20411.
[36] Faravelli T, Frassoldati A, Ranzi E, Miccio F, Miccio M. Modeling homogeneous
combustion in bubbling beds burning liquid fuels. J Energy Resour Technol
2007;129:3341.
[37] Martnez JD, Pineda T, Lpez JP, Betancur M. Assessment of the rice husk lean-
combustion in a bubbling uidized bed for the production of amorphous
silica-rich ash. Energy 2011;36:384654.
[38] Okasha F, El-Emam SH, Mostafa HK. The uidized bed combustion of heavy
liquid fuel (mazut). Exp Thermal Fluid Sci 2003;27(4):47380.
[39] Qian FP, Chyang CS, Huang KS, Tso J. Combustion and NO emission of high
nitrogen content biomass in a pilot-scale vortexing uidized bed combustor.
Bioresour Technol 2011;102:18928.
686 F.M. Okasha / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 55 (2016) 674686

[40] Sirisomboon K, Kuprianov VI, Arromdee P. Effects of design features on
combustion efciency and emission performance of a biomass-fuelled ui-
dized-bed combustor. Chem Eng Process 2010;49:2707.
[41] Tarelho LAC, Neves DSF, Matos MAA. Forest biomass waste combustion in a
pilot-scale bubbling uidized bed combustor. Biomass Bioenergy
2011;35:151123.
[42] Vamvuka D, Sfakiotakis S, Kotronakis M. Fluidized bed combustion of residues
from oranges plantations and processing. Renew Energy 2012;44:2317.
[43] Kuprianov VI, Arromdee P. Combustion of peanut and tamarind shells in a
conical uidized-bed combustor: a comparative study. Bioresour Technol
2013;140:199210.
[44] Kuprianov VI, Kaewklum R, Chakritthakul S. Effects of operating conditions
and fuel properties on emission performance and combustion efciency of a
swirling uidized-bed combustor red with a biomass fuel. Energy
2011;36:203848.