SEGREGATION IN GAS-SOLID FLUIDIZED-BEDS - CONCENTRATION PROFILES ESTIMATION

Segregation and mixing in gas-solid fluidized beds with solid particle s of the same size (3.2-3.6 mm) and different densities (between 0.92 and 2.2 g/cm3) are studied. Experimental concentration profiles are ob tained, employing and experimental technique consisting in bed divisio n without gas flow cutting, for binary mixtures of polyethylene, alumi ne and glass, changing both mixture composition (between 5 and 75% in jetsam) and gas linear velocity (between 100 and 170 cm/s). Concentrat ion profiles have been theoretically estimated using the Gibilaro-Rowe model, calculating the parameter values according to equations given in the literature, and comparing theoretical and experimental results. Such comparison yields relatively similar profiles for both experimen tal and estimated, but they become quite different in that experimenta l conditions when segregation is favoured.