Shaoshuo Li1, Yaohui Wang1,
Yao Yang1*, Zhengliang Huang1,
Jingyuan Sun1, Zuwei Liao1, Jingdai
Wang1, Yongrong Yang1, Bing
Du2
1 College of Chemical and Biological Engineering,
Zhejiang University,
Hangzhou 310027, P.R. China
2 ExxonMobil Research and Engineering, 1545 Route 22
East,
Annandale, NJ 08801, USA
Based on a cold-flow
experimental device, the
transiti on
between trickle flow and pulse flow in a 3D cocurrent downflow
three-phase moving bed is investigated by the standard deviation of
pressure drop and visual observations. Results show that at a constant
gas flow rate, the trickle-to-pulse transition shifts to a higher
liquid flow rate with the increasing solid flow rate because the
particle movinginhibits
the formation of local liquid blockage. Furthermore, an empirical model
is proposed to fit the trickle-to-pulse transition boundary by
correlating the dynamic liquid holdup at the boundary with the gas
Reynolds number and the particle velocity. Finally, the effects of the
particle moving on the liquid distribution is investigated, which show
that the particle moving makes the liquid distribution more uniform when
the solid flow rate is smaller than a certain value. But further
increasing the solid flow rate, the liquid distribution becomes uneven.