Experimental Method and Setup for Laboratory Fluidized Bed Reactor Testing

Abstract

A small laboratory fluidized bed reactor is used to test the chemical reactivity of solid particles fluidized with a gas. The novelty of the system is that it can be used for testing any solid particles, and, in this work, oxygen carriers with Mn/Si oxide supported on TiO2 are used to present the possibilities and layout of the laboratory system. The system is equipped with automatic valves that make it possible to rapidly change the gas conditions in the reactor. The setup facilitates solid particle testing using a sample of a few grams with gas-solid contact conditions relevant for a full-scale fluidized bed. With this small system, it is possible to mimic a section or a part of a larger system. It is also possible to test extreme conditions that can occur in a bigger unit. The system is designed for determining chemical reactivity in combustion, gasification, and reforming, but it can be used for investigating any type of gas-solid reaction in fluidized bed conditions. The setup presented here is one of the smallest possible devices that can be realized while maintaining fluidized bed conditions.

Keywords

• laboratory fluidized bed
• oxygen carriers
• Chemical-Looping Combustion (CLC)
• Mn/Si oxide