The Impact of High Frequency Flow Pulsation on Fluidisation Behaviour of Powder

In a manufacturing world dominated by incentives to increase energy efficiency, pulsed flow fluidisation theoretically offers a simple means to significantly reduce the air velocity requirements of fluidised bed equipment.  To date, promising research has shown the capability of a pulsed flow, defined as the intermittent fluidising gas stream, to reduce gas requirements by over 70% in Group C powders, and a third in Group A/B powders.  In terms of energy use, the potential savings are sizeable.  However, the research has been limited to a low pulsation range of approximately 0-15 Hz due to the design of common pulsation devices.  Consequently the influence of a new high pulsation frequency range is presented, as an indication of the extent of the benefit from pulsed flow technology.  The effect of pulsation on pressure drop, bed structure and mixing performance are investigated.