An axial dispersion/population balance model is presented for describing heat transfer processes in gas-solid turbulent fluidized beds. In the model, the gas and particle transport is described by the axial dispersion model, while the particle-particle and particle-wall heat transfers are modeled as collisional random events, characterized by the collision frequencies and random variables with probability density functions determined on interval [0, 1]. An infinite hierarchy of moment equations is derived from the population balance equation, which can be closed at any order of moments. The properties of the model and the effects of process parameters are examined by numerical experimentation. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.