PARTICLE DYNAMICS AND GAS-PHASE HYDRODYNAMICS IN A ROTATING CONE REACTOR

The rotating cone reactor is a novel reactor type which can be used fo r rapid thermal solids processing. This paper focuses on particle dyna mics and gas-phase hydrodynamics in a rotating cone reactor as a first stage to obtain a basic understanding of the processes that govern th e performance of this reactor. Therefore, the flow of nearly spherical monosized PVC powder in a cold-flow rotating cone reactor has been st udied under variation of the particle diameter (140-780 mum), the cone rotational speed (up to 1800 rpm) and two different cone top-angles ( 60 and 90-degrees). The gas flow created by the rotating cone showed a marked influence on motion of particles smaller than 200 mum. A mathe matical model is presented using a single-particle description, and a turbulent ps flow description near the wall according to the universal velocity profile. The experimentally observed residence time of the p articles inside the present reactor is typically in the order of 0.2 s .