Characterization of Pressure Signals in Fluidized Beds Loaded with Large Particles Using Wigner Distribution Analysis: Feasibility of Diagnosis of Agglomeration

An experimental verification is reported on the early predicting index of agglomeration in bubbling fluidized bed. Coarse quartz sand, which has the same density but larger diameter than the bed material, was used to simulate the initial agglomerated particle. Wigner distribution was used to analyze the pressure fluctuation of the tested bed, and the average amplitude of local domain frequency (LDF) and local peak weighted average frequency (LPWA) under different operating conditions were measured and compared. The results showed that the LDF is sensitive to the agglomeration phenomena and had quick response to the incipient agglomeration in fluidized beds. It can be concluded from the results that these two parameters could be taken as the characteristic indexes to the agglomeration in fluidized beds.