Modelling of gas-liquid/gas-liquid-solid flows in bubble columns: Experiments and CFD simulations

Abstract

Gas-liquid/gas-liquid-solid systems are widely used in the chemical process industry for a variety of applications. In the present work, we have characterized the dynamics of gas-liquid/gas-liquid-solid flows in cylindrical bubble columns using experiments and CFD simulations. The low frequency oscillations corresponding to the local re-circulatory flow were characterized using wall pressure fluctuation measurements. Eulerian-Eulerian two-/three-phase simulations were carried out with a focus on characterizing the dynamic properties of gas-liquid/gas-liquid-solid flows. The effects of superficial gas velocity, H/D ratio and solid loading on the dynamic and time-averaged flow behavior were studied experimentally and computationally. The simulated results were compared with the experimental measurements. The results presented are useful for understanding the dynamics of gas-liquid/gas-liquid-solid flows in bubble columns and provide a basis for further development of CFD models for three-phase systems.