COMPARISON OF HYDRODYNAMIC PARAMETERS FOR COUNTERCURRENT AND COCURRENT FLOW-THROUGH PACKED-BEDS

Hydrodynamic parameters have been determined in common equipment, i.e. , same column and liquid and gas distributors, for cocurrent and count ercurrent two-phase flow through fixed beds. The piston/dispersion exc hange model (PDE) with usual Danckwerts' boundary conditions (closed/c losed system) has been used to describe the liquid flow. A new imperfe ct pulse method has been used to estimate the PDE model parameters dir ectly from the experimentally nonideal input and output response. The transition between trickle flow and pulse flow, for two-phase downflow , and the occurrence of flooding, for countercurrent flow, has been in vestigated using a macroscopic model for the two-phase flow.