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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 145 records · Page 8
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2014

Particle size effects in particle-particle triboelectric charging studied with an integrated fluidized bed and electrostatic separator system

Fundamental studies of triboelectric charging of granular materials via particle-particle contact are challenging to control and interpret because of foreign material surfaces that are difficult to avoid during contacting and measurement. The measurement of particle charge itself can also induce charging, altering results. Here, we introduce a completely integrated fluidized bed and electrostatic separator system that charges particles solely by interparticle interactions and characterizes their charge on line. Particles are contacted in a free-surface fluidized bed (no reactor walls) with a well-controlled fountain-like flow to regulate particle-particle contact. The charged particles in the fountain are transferred by a pulsed jet of air to the top of a vertically-oriented electrostatic separator consisting of two electrodes at oppositely biased high voltage. The free-falling particles migrate towards the electrodes of opposite charge and are collected by an array of cups where their charge and size can be determined. We carried out experiments on a bidisperse size mixture of soda lime glass particles with systematically varying ratios of concentration. Results show that larger particles fall close to the negative electrode and smaller particles fall close to the positive electrode, consistent with theory and prior experiments that larger particles charge positively and smaller particles charge negatively. The segregation of particles by charge for one of the size components is strongest when its collisions are mostly with particles of the other size component; thus, small particles segregate most strongly to the negative sample when their concentration in the mixture is small (and analogous results occur for the large particles). Furthermore, we find additional size segregation due to granular flow, whereby the fountain becomes enriched in larger particles as the smaller particles are preferentially expelled from the fountain.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2015

Effect of process temperature on morphology of CNTs grown in a vertically fluidized bed reactor with Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3}/Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} catalyst

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are one of the most researched materials due to their exceptional mechanical and electrical properties. Among the various techniques, catalytic chemical vapor deposition in a fluidized bed reactor is the most promising technique for bulk production of CNTs. To meet the demand of good quality along with the bulk production of CNTs, the effect of reaction temperature on the micro structures, morphology, diameter, quality and quantity of CNTs was investigated in these studies. CNTs were synthesized at process temperature ranging from 700-850°C by catalytic decomposition of C{sub 2}H{sub 4} on Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3}/Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} catalyst a vertical fluidized bed reactor. The microstructures of the grown CNTs at different reaction temperatures were investigated by using scanning electron microscope. The results of this study depicted a positive correlation between the average diameter of CNTs and reaction temperature. Narrow diameters (35∼40 nm) of CNTs with fewer defects were found at the low and mild temperatures, in particular 800°C. At this temperature, a dynamic equilibrium between the rate of C{sub 2}H{sub 4} decomposition and CNTs quantity was found due to maximum carbon diffusion over catalyst. The CNTs produced with Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3}/Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} catalyst wer e also exhibiting high quality with relatively small mean outer diameter and fewer surface defects.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Assessment of Drag Models for Geldart A Particles in Bubbling Fluidized Beds

In order to accurately predict the hydrodynamic behavior of gas and solid phases using an Eulerian–Eulerian approach, it is crucial to use appropriate drag models to capture the correct physics. In this study, the performance of seven drag models for fluidization of Geldart A particles of coal, poplar wood, and their mixtures was assessed. In spite of the previous findings that bode badly for using predominately Geldart B drag models for fine particles, the results of our study revealed that if static regions of mass in the fluidized beds are considered, these drag models work well with Geldart A particles. It was found that drag models derived from empirical relationships adopt better with Geldart A particles compared to drag models that were numerically developed. Overall, the Huilin–Gidaspow drag model showed the best performance for both single solid phases and binary mixtures, however, for binary mixtures, Wen–Yu model predictions were also accurate.

01 COAL, LIGNITE, AND PEAT↗
DOE OSTI2024

Two-Fluid and Discrete Element Modeling of a Parallel Plate Fluidized Bed Heat Exchanger for Concentrating Solar Power

A novel high-temperature particle solar receiver is developed using a light trapping planar cavity configuration. As particles fall through the cavity, the concentrated solar radiation warms the boundaries of the receiver and in turn heats the particles. Particles flow through the system, forming a fluidized bed at the lower section, leaving the system from the bottom at a constant flowrate. Air is introduced to the system as the fluidizing medium to improve particle heat transfer and mixing. A laboratory scale cavity receiver is built by collaborators at the Colorado School of Mines and their data are used for model validation. In this experimental setup, near IR quartz lamp is used to provide flux to the vertical wall of the heat exchanger. The system is modeled using the discrete element method and a continuum two-fluid method. The computational model matches the experimental system size and the particle size distribution is assumed monodisperse. A new continuum conduction model that accounts for the effects of solid concentration is implemented, and the heat flux boundary condition matches the experimental setup. Radiative heat transfer is estimated using a widely used correlation during the post-processing step to determine an overall heat transfer coefficient. The model is validated against testing data and achieves less than 30% discrepancy and a heat transfer coefficient greater than 1000 W/m2 K.

concentrating solar power↗
DOE OSTI2017

Fluidized-Bed Heat Transfer Modeling for the Development of Particle/Supercritical-CO2 Heat Exchanger

Concentrating solar power (CSP) technology is moving toward high-temperature and high-performance design. One technology approach is to explore high-temperature heat-transfer fluids and storage, integrated with a high-efficiency power cycle such as the supercritical carbon dioxide (s-CO2) Brayton power cycle. The s-CO2 Brayton power system has great potential to enable the future CSP system to achieve high solar-to-electricity conversion efficiency and to reduce the cost of power generation. Solid particles have been proposed as a possible high-temperature heat-transfer medium that is inexpensive and stable at high temperatures above 1,000 degrees C. The particle/heat exchanger provides a connection between the particles and s-CO2 fluid in the emerging s-CO2 power cycles in order to meet CSP power-cycle performance targets of 50% thermal-to-electric efficiency, and dry cooling at an ambient temperature of 40 degrees C. The development goals for a particle/s-CO2 heat exchanger are to heat s-CO2 to =720 degrees C and to use direct thermal storage with low-cost, stable solid particles. This paper presents heat-transfer modeling to inform the particle/s-CO2 heat-exchanger design and assess design tradeoffs. The heat-transfer process was modeled based on a particle/s-CO2 counterflow configuration. Empirical heat-transfer correlations for the fluidized bed and s-CO2 were used in calculating the heat-transfer area and optimizing the tube layout. A 2-D computational fluid-dynamics simulation was applied for particle distribution and fluidization characterization. The operating conditions were studied from the heat-transfer analysis, and cost was estimated from the sizing of the heat exchanger. The paper shows the path in achieving the cost and performance objectives for a heat-exchanger design.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2022

Scalable synthesis of supported catalysts using fluidized bed atomic layer deposition

Overcoating layers deposited on the surface of heterogeneous catalysts using atomic layer deposition (ALD) have been shown to increase catalyst activity, lifetime, and selectivity. In this study, we performed Al 2 O 3 ALD and Pd ALD in a commercial fluidized bed reactor on high surface area mesoporous powder supports to create overcoated catalysts with high precursor utilization. We investigated the reaction mechanism for both Al 2 O 3 ALD and Pd ALD using in situ mass spectrometry and developed a mathematical model to understand the precursor saturation behaviors. We characterized the catalyst samples using a variety of techniques to measure the surface area, porosity, composition, and surface chemistry of the overcoated catalysts. Finally, we used propane dehydrogenation as a probe reaction to evaluate the performance of the catalysts prepared by fluidized bed ALD.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2025

Dimensionless Regime Mapping and Chaos Analysis of Solids Volume Fraction Data in a Circulating Fluidized Bed Riser

Presentation of experimental results of solids volume fraction data measurements in a 12-inch diameter cold flow circulating fluidized bed in relation to a dimensionless fluidization regime map. Statistical and chaotic system analysis results are shown to illustrate differences in hydrodynamic behavior at different operating conditions. Presentation was made at the ASTFE 10th Thermal and Fluids Engineering Conference, March 09-12, 2025.

chaos↗
DOE OSTI2020

Determining Design Criteria for Feeding Biomass into a Fluidized Bed Using a Feed Screw

Many pathways have been discovered for the thermochemical conversion of biomass to products. These pathways often show very promising results on the benchtop scale and could be economical with the appropriate scale up. However, many of the fundamental challenges of scaling up thermochemical reactions are not well understood. One primary problem area that rarely receives much upfront attention is feeding large quantities of biomass into thermochemical reactors. As biomass transitions from ambient to reactor conditions, it undergoes chemical and physical changes that affect its flowability. Often these changes lead to agglomeration of feed particles within the transfer screw, leading to large clumps of feed entering and disrupting the fluidized bed, or more critically leading to a plug in the feed screw causing costly downtime and maintenance to remove. This transitional phase must be better understood for scale up of conversion technologies to be successful. The Feedstock-Conversion Interface Consortium (FCIC) is a collaboration of eight National Laboratories. FCIC is currently conducting research on screw feeding of biomass into thermochemical fluidized bed reactors. Heat transfer models have been constructed for the screw/reactor interface. Mechanical forces on biomass within screw feeder are being determined, as well as how those forces change by varying feed screw design. Feedstock physical and chemical properties are then being measured along these temperature and mechanical force gradients. This work will better inform feed screw design for scale up, increasing the success rate of future biorefineries. Discussion will include research approach, testing, and preliminary results.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗
DOE OSTI2019

Coarse grained computational fluid dynamic simulation of sands and biomass fluidization with a hybrid drag

We report the bubbling fluidized bed reactor is widely used in fast pyrolysis of biomass. Discrete simulation of this reactor is challenging due to many sand particles and lack of accurate drag corrections accounting for the interaction of two different solid particles with different properties. In this research, the computational cost is reduced by using the coarse-grained computational fluid dynamic-discrete element method, where many sand particles are lumped into a larger numerical parcel. The Syamlal–O'Brien drag model is used for sand, while Ganser correction coupled with Gidaspow model is used for the nonspherical biomass particles. This hybrid approach shows superior behavior over other drag models using pressure drops as a benchmark. The predicted bed height and pressure fluctuating frequencies compare well with experiment. Finally, the mixing of biomass is close to perfect if the superficial velocity is larger than four times the minimum fluidization velocity.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Design, scaling and cost evaluations of circulating fluidized-bed systems for biomass pyrolysis

To generate updated and transparent capital cost estimates for biomass fast pyrolysis equipment, refinery fluidized catalytic cracking design and sizing principles are examined and extended to pyrolysis of woody biomass. Capital costs for the sized equipment are estimated with process-industry software. A one-dimensional flow simulation with pyrolysis kinetics is leveraged to validate the fluidization conditions and thermal energy balance. After successful sizing and a system cost estimate of $\$$2.8 M (in 2016 US$\$$) at the biorefinery scale of 1000 metric tons per day (MTD), these methods were exercised for even smaller equipment at the distributed pyrolysis scale with modifications to the process design constraints, and not directly comparable with the 1000 MTD case, arriving at capital cost estimates of $\$$1.2 M for a 500 ton/day system and $\$$0.9 M for a 200 ton/day system. Here in this work, It is noted that this work only estimates purchased equipment costs at the ±50% accuracy level; there are significant other custom factors applicable to each installation based on location, maturity, scale, complexities during installation, engineering and licensing costs, etc. that need to be added on to these estimates to derive investment costs.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗
DOE OSTI2017

Extension of a coarse grained particle method to simulate heat transfer in fluidized beds

The heat transfer in a gas-solids fluidized bed is simulated with computational fluid dynamic-discrete element method (CFD-DEM) and coarse grained particle method (CGPM). In CGPM fewer numerical particles and their collisions are tracked by lumping several real particles into a computational parcel. Here, the assumption is that the real particles inside a coarse grained particle (CGP) are made from same species and share identical physical properties including density, diameter and temperature. The parcel-fluid convection term in CGPM is calculated using the same method as in DEM. For all other heat transfer mechanisms, we derive in this study mathematical expressions that relate the new heat transfer terms for CGPM to those traditionally derived in DEM. This newly derived CGPM model is verified and validated by comparing the results with CFD-DEM simulation results and experiment data. The numerical results compare well with experimental data for both hydrodynamics and temperature profiles. Finally, the proposed CGPM model can be used for fast and accurate simulations of heat transfer in large scale gas-solids fluidized beds.

01 COAL, LIGNITE, AND PEAT↗
DOE OSTI2019

Operational Performance Characteristics of an Aerated L-valve Operated Within a Closed Circulating Fluidized Bed Loop

An experimental study was conducted in a large scale circulating fluidized bed (0.3 m diameter ×15.5 m tall) equipped with nonmechanical L-valve (0.25 m diameter ×1.52 m long) varying the riser superficial gas velocity (U g ), bed inventory (m), L-valve aeration velocity (U Lvalve ) and standpipe aeration velocity (U move ). The effects of these operational parameters on pressure drop were investigated in each of the different components in the CFB and on the solid circulation rate with two different Group B particles (180 μm glass bead and 750 μm phosphorescent polyethylene beads, PPE). Tests were carried out at ambient temperature and pressure conditions using air as the fluidization gas. The operating parameters were shown to significantly affect pressure drops across various sections of the CFB due to redistribution of solids within the system. The pressure drop in the horizontal section of the L-valve was affected by aeration rates in addition to the solid flow rate reported in previous studies of smaller L-valves without aeration. A new dimensionless semi-empirical correlation was able to explain > 98% of the variance between pressure drop across the horizontal section of the L-valve and operating parameters for these Group B particles. The results of present study indicated that the nonmechanical L-valve cannot be isolated from the CFB system for performance evaluation.

Monazam, Esmail R.↗
DOE OSTI2021

Integrated modeling methodology for ash agglomeration in poly-disperse fluidized beds using particle population framework

This article discusses a unique agglomeration modeling methodology developed based on binary collisions to combine the effects of heterogeneity in ash chemistry and granular physics. A simple population balance is defined to find changes in the particle size distribution (PSD) of a fluidized bed. Thermodynamic equilibrium calculations and a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code, are used to obtain hydrodynamic parameters. A method to calculate and use a distribution of collision frequencies in fluidized beds, corresponding to a poly-disperse particle size distribution, was developed in order to incorporate the particle level heterogeneities. A distribution of collision frequencies obtained for poly-dispersed particles showed a three orders of magnitude higher collision frequency amongst the smaller particles than the coarser ones, at the initiation of agglomeration. Ash agglomeration occurred when the slag amount (binder) was less than 10 wt% at temperatures <850 °C for Pittsburgh No. 8 coal.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2016

In Situ and ex Situ Catalytic Pyrolysis of Pine in a Bench-Scale Fluidized Bed Reactor System

In situ and ex situ catalytic pyrolysis were compared in a system with two 2-in. bubbling fluidized bed reactors. Pine was pyrolyzed in the system with a catalyst, HZSM-5 with a silica-to-alumina ratio of 30, placed either in the first (pyrolysis) reactor or the second (upgrading) reactor. Both the pyrolysis and upgrading temperatures were 500 degrees C, and the weight hourly space velocity was 1.1 h -1 . Five catalytic cycles were completed in each experiment. The catalytic cycles were continued until oxygenates in the vapors became dominant. The catalyst was then oxidized, after which a new catalytic cycle was begun. The in situ configuration gave slightly higher oil yield but also higher oxygen content than the ex situ configuration, which indicates that the catalyst deactivated faster in the in situ configuration than the ex situ configuration. Analysis of the spent catalysts confirmed higher accumulation of metals in the in situ experiment. In all experiments, the organic oil mass yields varied between 14 and 17% and the carbon efficiencies between 20 and 25%. The organic oxygen concentrations in the oils were 16-18%, which represented a 45% reduction compared to corresponding noncatalytic pyrolysis oils prepared in the same fluidized bed reactor system. GC/MS analysis showed the oils to contain one- to four-ring aromatic hydrocarbons and a variety of oxygenates (phenols, furans, benzofurans, methoxyphenols, naphthalenols, indenols). Lastly, high fractions of oxygen were rejected as water, CO, and CO 2 , which indicates the importance of dehydration, decarbonylation, and decarboxylation reactions. Light gases were the major sources of carbon losses, followed by char and coke.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2018

Flying MOFs: polyamine-containing fluidized MOF/SiO 2 hybrid materials for CO 2 capture from post-combustion flue gas

Solid-state synthesis ensures a high loading and well dispersed growth of a large collection of metal–organic framework (MOF) nanostructures within a series of commercially available mesoporous silica allowing to render MOFs into fluidized solid sorbents for CO 2 capture from post-combustion flue gas in a fluidized-bed reactor.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2020

Effects of Riser Diameter on Solids Holdup and Particle Velocity Profiles in Circulating Fluidized Bed Riser Systems

Tests were performed in a 0.1-m diameter small circulating fluidized bed (SCFB) and 0.3 m diameter cold flow circulating fluidized bed (CFCFB) riser systems located at the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) to study the effects of riser diameter on the riser hydrodynamics. These tests were performed at solids circulation rates of G s = 20 and 75 kg/m 2 s and superficial gas velocities of U g = 5.8 and 6.5 m/s using high-density polyethylene (HDPE) pellets with a density of 0.863 g/cm 3 , particle size range of 600–1400 µm (with a Sauter mean diameter of 871 µm, placing them in the Geldart B classification). Comparisons of riser axial pressure and solids fraction profiles, radial particle velocity profiles, and radial profiles of higher statistical moments and select chaos analysis parameters were considered. The results showed that for a given U g and G s , the smaller diameter riser exhibited characteristics associated with more dilute solids flow than that observed in the larger diameter riser. Additionally, the larger diameter riser exhibited a downward flow of solids near the wall under all test conditions, whereas the smaller diameter riser data exhibited little or no indications of solids downflow near the wall. Overall, these findings suggest that, from an industrial standpoint, a direct scaleup of small-scale tests cannot readily be accomplished as the solids holdup and the solids velocity profiles in small units (those normally tested in the laboratory) are not similar to those of large units and the performance of large units can therefore not be predicted from small-scale tests.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2016

Equilibrium and kinetic studies of sorption of 2.4-dichlorophenol onto 2 mixtures: bamboo biochar plus calcium sulphate (BC) and hydroxyapatite plus bamboo biochar plus calcium sulphate (HBC), in a fluidized bed circulation column

Sorption studies were carried out to investigate removal of 2.4-dichlorophenol (2.4-DCP) from aqueous solution in a fluidized bed by two types of adsorbent mixtures: BC (Bamboo char plus Calcium sulphate), and HBC (Hydroxyapatite plus Bamboo char plus Calcium sulphate); both manufactured in ball shape. The main material bamboo char was characterized by FTIR, DTA and SEM. The adsorption experiments were conducted in a fluidized bed circulation column. Adsorption, isotherms and kinetic studies were established under 180 min operating process time, at different initial 2.4-DCP solution concentrations ranging from 5–10 mg/L, and at different flow rates ranging from 0.25–0.75 L/min. The data obtained fitted well for both the Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm models; indicating favorable condition of monolayer adsorption. The kinetics of both adsorbents complies with the pseudo second-order kinetic model. BC was proven a new effective composite and low cost adsorbent which can be applied in the field of wastewater treatment, and it can also play an important role in industry water treatment

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2018

Fluidized Bed Production of Surface Functionalized Powders for Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Cathodes

Fuel cells offer tremendous potential for highly efficient conversion of fossil fuels to useable electrical power. Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) are particularly attractive, due to their high efficiency and capability to utilize either hydrogen or hydrocarbon fuels. Presently, there is considerable incentive to develop medium temperature (600 C to 800 C) SOFC's, in order to reduce the material compatibility issues and the engineering challenges associated with higher operating temperatures. Developing cathode materials with viable performance at intermediate temperatures is presently one of the key challenges in commercialization of solid oxide fuel cells. Recent works have shown the advantages of using surface functionalized cathode materials to improve SOFC performance at intermediate temperatures. However, present techniques for surface functionalization are expensive and difficult to implement in commercial SOFC production. In this SBIR Program, Structured Materials Industries, Inc. (SMI), along with partners FuelCell Energy, Inc. (FCE) and the University of Connecticut (UConn), demonstrated a simple and economical process to produce surface functionalized cathode materials, based on fluidized bed technology. SMI has developed a variation on this technology, known as Fluidized Bed Chemical Vapor Deposition (FBCVD), and is presently implementing and commercializing FBCVD as an economical and scalable process to deposit coatings on powder materials. In Phase I of this Project, the SBIR team demonstrated technical feasibility of this approach for producing high performance SOFC cathode materials. In this Phase II Project, the SBIR team refined and optimized the FBCVD process and the surface functionalized cathode materials. Surface functionalized powders of various composition and morphology were produced at SMI using the FBCVD process. Electrochemical characterization of the powders was done at FCE under actual SOFC operating conditions. The results demonstrated the potential for significant improvement in SOFC performance. Long term testing at FCE showed the performance enhancement to be stable with time. Advanced materials characterization at UConn identified the composition and morphology of the materials. SMI's FBCVD processed materials represent a "drop in" replacement for present cathode materials, and should have minimal impact on SOFC production costs. SMI has designed a scaled up FBCVD system for high volume production of SOFC cathode materials, and is well positioned for future implementation and commercialization of the technology developed in this SBIR.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗