Numerical and Experimental Studies of Fluidized Bed Reactors for Adsorption Cooling and Desalination Systems

Abstract

Fluidization is widely utilized in various industrial processes due to its advantages, such as efficient material mixing, uniform temperature distribution, and enhanced heat and mass transfer between solids and the fluid. It is commonly applied in processes such as drying, heating, cooling, and freezing, and plays a key role in the energy sector, particularly in fluidized bed boiler systems. This article focuses on numerical simulations of fluidized bed hydrodynamics under low-pressure conditions, with applications in adsorption cooling and desalination systems. This study employed the specialized CeSFaMB software, designed specifically for fluidized bed systems, which has been extensively tested and validated against real-world experimental data. The experiments were performed under low-pressure conditions (1000–2600 Pa) at a temperature of 25 °C, with fluidization driven by a pressure difference. This study demonstrated that variations in particle size within the fluidized bed significantly affect its hydrodynamics. Particle size differences were found to influence solid circulation fluxes, bubble dynamics, and bed porosity, which in turn directly impacted the heat transfer coefficient. These interdependencies are crucial for optimizing the performance of adsorption cooling and desalination systems. Furthermore, this study revealed a maximum relative error of 9.3% between the experimental results and numerical simulations, indicating strong agreement and reliable performance in simulating the bubbling fluidized bed.