| Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 652591 | Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science | 2007 | 9 Pages |
Thermal regenerator systems are very effective devices for the abatement of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), mainly in industrial processes with high flow rates. In these units, VOCs are usually converted with air to CO2, H2O and usable heat. Thermal regenerators consist of two or more beds containing ceramic materials. Alternatively one bed absorbs and stores the heat from the hot gases while the other heats up an entering stream of raw gases. The regenerators allow to clean and purify raw gases, recovering the combustion heat. The optimization of the process reduces the amount of auxiliary fuel, minimizing operating costs.Thermal performances of the regenerator are investigated experimentally and numerically in this work. A one dimensional, two phases, dynamic model has been developed and validated on the basis of a properly designed set of experiments. In this way, it is possible to compare the thermal efficiency and pressure drops of different structured packing materials in different operative conditions. The role of dwell time, flow rate, specific area and heat capacity is analysed, mainly in terms of cyclical temperature conditions, with specific attention to the thermal efficiency of the unit. Moreover, the coupling of the regenerator model with a general and detailed kinetic scheme of pyrolysis and combustion of hydrocarbon species is also discussed and some preliminary simulations of VOCs abatement are also presented. This model is a very useful tool not only to evaluate the conversion level of different pollutants but also to prevent detrimental ignition processes inside the bed.
