The effect of turbulent clustering on particle reactivity

Abstract

The effect of turbulence on the heterogeneous (solid–fluid) reactions of solid particles is studied numerically with Direct Numerical Simulations (DNS). A simplified reaction system is used, where the solid–fluid reaction is represented by a single isothermal reaction step. It is found that, due to the clustering of particles by the isotropic turbulence, the overall reaction rate is entirely controlled by the turbulence for large Damköhler numbers. The particle clustering significantly slows down the reaction rate for increasing Damköhler numbers which reaches an asymptotic limit that can be analytically derived. This implies that the effect of turbulence on heterogeneously reacting particles should be included in models that are used in CFD simulations of e.g. char burnout in combustors or gasifiers. Such a model, based on the chemical and turbulent time scales, is here proposed for the heterogeneous reaction rate in the presence of turbulence.