PARTICLE PRESSURES IN GAS-FLUIDIZED BEDS

The particle pressure is the surface force that is exerted due to the motion of particles and their interactions. This paper describes measurements of the particle pressure exerted on the sidewall of a gas-fluidized bed. As long as the bed remains in a packed state, the particle pressure decreases with increasing gas velocity as progressively more of the bed is supported by fluid forces. It appropriately reaches a minimum fluidization and then begins to rise again when the bed is fluidized, reflecting the agitation of the bed by bubbles. In this fully fluidized, region, the particle pressure scales with the particle density and the bubble size.