Numerical prediction of heat transfer in fluidized beds by a kinetic theory of granular flows

Abstract In dense gas–solid two-phase flows of bubbling fluidized beds the particle-to-particle interactions cannot be neglected and an Eulerian approach has been used to predict the fluid dynamics as well as the heat transfer. The physical properties of the solid phase can be modeled with the kinetic theory of granular medias and the governing equations are solved numerically. The present work compares different physical models for the thermal transport coefficients of the solid phase for a lab-scaled two-dimensional fluidized bed filled with mono-disperse glass beads. The numerical results show a strong correlation between fluid dynamics and the instantaneous heat transfer similar to the so-called packet theory by Mickley and Fairbanks [1].