Numerical Simulation of Dripping Behavior of Droplet in Packed Bed Using Particle Method

Abstract

The liquid flow in the packed bed strongly affects the productivity and operational stability of the blast furnace. It is controlled by the physical properties and wettability of the melt and the structure of the packed bed. However, this is a difficult object of analysis, as melt properties and conditions in the furnace are inhomogeneous. In this research, a three-dimensional model of the liquid flow in a packed bed was constructed using the MPS method, which is one of particle method, in order to express melt behavior. The liquid flow on solid surfaces was expressed by optimizing the relationship of energy at a three-phase (solid, gas, liquid) interface. The appropriateness of the calculation model was verified by analyzing and comparing the behaviors of liquids with different physical properties flowing on the surface of a single sphere experimentally and in calculations. Next, this model was applied to analysis of the flow of liquids dripping in a packed bed, and a simulation was calculated for a three-dimensional liquid flow comprising dispersion and coalescence of the liquid. Among the knowledge obtained in this study, the viscosity of a liquid migrating through a packed bed influences the velocity and flow path of the liquid, but has little effect on the amount of liquid which remains in a static condition in the packed bed.