Characterisation and control of bubbling behaviour in gas–solid fluidised beds

Bubbling fluidised beds are often exploited for the good mixing of phases they promote, which is required in many chemical processes. However, the bubbles cause heterogeneity in the fluidised system, and their dynamics must be understood for good process control. In this paper, the dynamic behaviour of the bubbles in a planar gas–solid fluidised bed is described analytically and experimentally validated. The bed resembles a temporary buffer of gas for which the bubble residence time in the bed is important. Subsequently, a closed-loop controller was developed using visual feedback to regulate the process.