FLUIDIZATION OF FINE PARTICLES

Experiments on the fluidization of fine particles (Geldart group C) wi th mean sizes 0.01-18.1 mu m and densities 100-8600 kg/m(3) were condu cted. Experimental results show that the process of fluidizing fine pa rticles usually involves plugging, channeling, disrupting, and agglome rating. When fluidized, the entities fluidized generally consist of pa rticle agglomerates varying in size from the largest at the bottom of the bed (some even defluidized) to the smallest at the top (some even unassociated to discrete particles). Best to fluidize are the agglomer ates which have reached a uniform equilibrium size after repeated soli ds circulation. Lowering agglomerate density proves to be an effective measure for improving the fluidization quality of fine particles. The fluidizing behavior of fine-particle agglomerates, compared with that of normal discrete particles, is illustrated diagrammatically. The la rge amount of factual findings poses a challenging problem for analysi s, and even possible quantitative correlation, between particle proper ties and fluidization behavior. (C) 1997 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.