Wurster fluidised-bed coating: Coarse-graining technique within CFD-DEM in conjunction with heat and mass transfer

• In this study, we use a combined CFD-Discrete Element Method to assess predictive capabilities and numerical implications of a coarse-graining technique in Wurster fluidised-bed coaters. We investigated both hydrodynamics and heat and mass transfer and conducted simulations of a full three-phase system for the original and three coarse-grained systems, analysing velocity distributions, macroscopic solid stresses, moisture content and phase temperatures. We achieved a logarithmic simulation speed-up by aggregating up to 64 original particles into each coarse grain. This was accomplished while maintaining fidelity to the original CFD-DEM system in terms of reproducing with high accuracy macroscopic granular flow properties in different regions of a coater (drying, tube and bed regions). By integrating a liquid spray and humid air, we demonstrated that the phase temperatures were accurately predicted within the coarse-grained system, with a high capability of delivering liquid spray distributions with the same uniformity and drying. We also give arguments for choosing a certain degree of coarse-graining as a compromise between a desired reduction of computational costs and a trustworthy reproduction of granular-flow physics encountered in different regions of a Wurster bed. Our findings pave the way to using CFD-DEM to industrially-scaled Wurster-bed systems, which is currently unfeasible due to prohibitive computational costs.

Subject headings

TEKNIK OCH TEKNOLOGIER  -- Maskinteknik (hsv//swe)

ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY  -- Mechanical Engineering (hsv//eng)

NATURVETENSKAP  -- Fysik (hsv//swe)

NATURAL SCIENCES  -- Physical Sciences (hsv//eng)

TEKNIK OCH TEKNOLOGIER  -- Kemiteknik (hsv//swe)

ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY  -- Chemical Engineering (hsv//eng)

Keyword

Three-phase system

CFD-DEM

Liquid spray modelling

Coarse-graining technique

Granular flow regime characterisation

Wurster fluidised-bed coater

Publication and Content Type

art (subject category)

ref (subject category)