PHOSPHATE REMOVAL IN A FLUIDIZED-BED .1. IDENTIFICATION OF PHYSICAL PROCESSES

The main processes concerning the precipitation of calcium phosphate i n a fluidized bed were studied. Primary nucleation and molecular growt h occur at the bottom of the bed, where the incoming phosphate is mixe d with the reactants, producing fine particles which partly aggregate with the grains of the bed and further leave the reactor with the liqu id effluent. This aggregation seems to be the most important process f or phosphate removal, while molecular growth of the grains seems to be of secondary importance. Copyright (C) 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd