FROM BUBBLES TO CLUSTERS IN FLUIDIZED-BEDS

Clusterlike solutions are reported for volume-averaged equations of mo tion in fluidized gas-particle suspensions (i.e., fluidized beds). A c onnection between bubbles and clusters is established through bifurcat ion analysis and numerical continuation in the mean volume fraction of the suspension. The robustness of this connection is established by v arying the model parameters and the closures. The bubbles and clusters are shown to belong to the same family of nonuniform solutions.