Investigation of Particle Motion in a Dry Separation Fluidized Bed Using PEPT

Abstract

Developing dry separation methods to replace the commonly used water-based separation has become crucial due to increasing water shortages. One of the candidates for dry processing is gas–solid fluidized beds. The bed behavior and solid motion in fluidized beds have been investigated using various visual and numerical methods for decades. However, there are not enough studies focused on the separation behavior of the fine particles. This work details the investigation of particle motion through a fluidized bed using the positron emission particle tracking (PEPT) technique. Single-particle tracking is a powerful mechanism providing knowledge about separation mechanisms through direct visualization of the particle trajectory determined from recording the particle position over time. In this study, the movements of different-sized beds were characterized by tracking an activated single quartz particle and then by tracking an activated single hematite particle. The separation behavior of a heavy particle was determined for different-sized fractions.