Powder Technology, Vol.322, 258-272, 2017
An integrated workflow for resolved-particle packed bed models with complex particle shapes
A promising workflow for computational generation and meshing of resolved-particle randomly packed beds of arbitrary-shaped-particles is described. The workflow is based on an automated package that is developed for the Bullet Physics Library for packed bed generation, and on the shrink-wrap method for handling the meshing challenges of the particle contact areas. Packed bed properties such as radial voidage and particle angle distributions are validated against existing experimental data and theoretical methods in the literature. Furthermore, the accuracy of the generated mesh using the shrink-wrap technique is evaluated by calculating the bulk and radial voidage distribution, the pressure drop, and by velocity profile and heat transfer analysis using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. It is shown that the proposed workflow can speed up the process of the geometry and mesh generation while it maintains the structural features of the bed. Finally, applications of such geometries to fixed bed reaction engineering problems are presented to illustrate simulations that can be achieved using the new workflow. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Keywords:Fixed bed;Computational fluid dynamics;Packed bed generation;Bullet physics library;Meshing;Reactor simulation