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A particle population balancing model for a circulating uidized bed
combustion system
K. Redemann, E.-U. Hartge, Joachim Werther
Institute of Solids Process Engineering and Particle Technology, Hamburg University of Technology, Denickestr. 15, D-21071 Hamburg, Germany
a b s t r a c t a r t i c l e i n f o
Article history:
Received 4 September 2007
Received in revised form 15 August 2008
Accepted 23 September 2008
Available online 1 October 2008
Keywords:
Particle population balance
Circulating uidized bed
Fluid dynamics
Refuse derived fuel
A dynamic simulation model of the particle population in a circulating uidized bed combustor with external
heat exchanger has been developed. It considers the uid dynamic processes in the various parts of the
system, as well as the particle attrition. To handle multiple solids types simultaneously and to fulll the mass
balances, some of the uid dynamic sub-models taken from the literature were modied. The model allows
to calculate the solids mass ows as well as the corresponding particle size distributions at any point inside
the combustion system.
The model has been applied to the combustion plant of Stadtwerke Neumnster in Germany, which operates
on refuse-derived fuel. The particle balancing model provides new insights into the operating behavior of
such a system. In particular, the calculation of the residence time of different particle classes in the system
reveals a very broad distribution of size dependent average residence times, ranging from several minutes to
a maximum of roughly 40 h. A size fraction exists between 100 and 300 m with a maximum average
residence time of about 40 h. The Preprint submitted to Elsevier Science 15 August 2008 simulation provides
a means for examining possibilities to control the particle size distribution in the combustion system. It is
shown howa recirculation of a ne ash fraction can be used to control the bed particle size distribution in the
combustion chamber.
2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
1. Introduction
A key parameter for the proper operation of a circulating uidized
bed combustor (CFBC) is the particle size distribution (PSD) of the bed
inventory.
It governs e.g. the solids circulation rate and with it the heat
transport from the combustion chamber into the external heat
exchanger. The particle population results from the PSDs and mass
ows of the solids fed into the system and reaction, classication,
transport and comminution processes occurring in the plant.
Improper operating conditions or imperfect plant components can
cause serious problems in the plant operation.
For example, the separation behavior of the cyclone, which is
attached to the combustion chamber, is a major issue. A properly
designed cyclone should be able to keep a given mass of solids with a
predetermined particle size distribution in the cycle. If the loss of
material through the cyclone is too high and if the input of fresh ash
for example in the case of a coal with a low content of ash is too
small, it may be necessary to continuously add new bed material, in
order to keep the mass of solids in the inventory. Respective operating
experience exists with Rheinbraun [1].
It is therefore desirable to have a properly designed cyclone, whose
design is considering the special operating conditions in CFB
operation, i.e. the high solids loading at the inlet. Comprehensive
work on the design of cyclones under these conditions, which was
mainly focused on the inlet design and the formation and ow of the
strand formed there, has been carried out by Muschelknautz and his
group at the University Stuttgart (e.g. [24]) and by Reh and his co-
workers at ETH Zrich (e.g. [5,6]). Their results have found a striking
conrmation by the experience made by Alstom in their Zeran project
[7]. The Zeran A boiler in Warsaw, Poland, a 450 t/h CFB steam
generator, was commissioned in 1995. At that time it was the largest
CFB boiler in Poland and the rst to operate on Polish hard coal. Due to
the high debris rock content in the ash it turned out to be difcult to
achieve the proper particle size distribution of the circulating ash. The
cyclones were not able to prevent the loss of ne inert material. When
the order for the boiler B of Zeran was placed in 1998, it was built
almost identical to boiler A, with the exception of the cyclone design.
In order to improve the separation efciency the arrangement of the
cyclone's inlet ducts with respect to the furnace was optimized, the
inlet ducts were prolonged and inclined downward, the vertical
velocity in the cyclone was decreased and eccentric vortex nders
were installed.
The new design turned out to be extremely efcient: the 50% value
of the cumulative mass distribution of the circulating particles went
down from 180 m for boiler A to 75 m for boiler B. The increased
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0032-5910/$ see front matter 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.powtec.2008.09.009
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cyclone efciency and the thus realized ner inventory of the system
had several benecial effects, including an increased overall heat
transfer coefcient, which allowed to reduce the inventory and thus to
lower power consumption. Furthermore limestone utilization was
improved and even the NO
x
and CO emissions were reduced.
It is interesting to note in this context that the same experience
with regard to the signicance of the cyclone design was made over
10 years before in Germany [8]. Two 105 MW
th
CFB boilers were built
for Bayer AG on their Leverkusen site. The rst one was commissioned
in 1988, the second one in 1991. During operation (both units operated
on the same coal) it turned out that in the second unit the combustion
efciency was lower, the Ca/S ratio was twice as high, the d
p,50
of the
recirculating ash was 170 m instead of 150 m and the y ash had a
d
p,50
of 80 m compared to 30 m in the rst unit. A detailed analysis
brought the result that the cyclone design had been changed
unintentionally, i.e. the diameter of the vortex nder had been
increased by 14% and a design change of the vortex nder's suspension
enabled a short-circuiting ow to take place.
The PSD of the bed inventory results from the uid dynamic
processes in the different plant components, the ash formation
behavior of the fuel and additionally fed solids, e.g. additional inert
solids, limestone or recycled bed material. A mathematical simulation
tool considering these effects can be used to predict the PSDs in the
different parts of a circulating uidized bed under various operating
conditions. It can also be used to survey and judge the impact of
changes in the operation of a plant or in the characteristics of the input
fuel on the resulting particle size distributions.
In the present work a mathematical model based on particle
population balances is developed, which considers the circulating
uidized bed combustion system as separate modules. Mathematical
descriptions were, as far as possible, taken from the literature.
However, in some cases available descriptions had to be modied in
order to fulll the requirements of particle population balancing. The
resulting model represents a dynamical description of the system
behavior, which also allows conclusions about the residence time of
individual size fractions in the system to be drawn.
The model is rst applied to the simulation of the refuse-derived
fuel red circulating uidized bed combustor of Stadtwerke Neumn-
ster GmbH in Neumnster in north Germany. Its schematic layout is
shown in Fig. 1. Refuse-derived fuel (RDF) is fed into the combustion
chamber. Fly ash is leaving via the cyclone overowand is collected in
the heat recovery boiler and the multi-cyclone. Finally small quantities
of ultra ne ash are passing into the ue gas treatment section.
Since the ash particle size distribution which is produced by the
refuse-derived fuel cannot be easily predicted, the plant contains two
means for inuencing the PSD of the bed inventory. The one is the
addition of sand, which was also used for starting the facility. The
second means is the recirculation of ne ash, obtained after sieving of
the bottom ash offtake.
In the framework of a research project initiated by Stadtwerke
Neumnster, measurement campaigns were carried out where solids
mass ows and solids particle size distributions were measured at
different locations at the plant. Additional lab scale investigations
formed the basis for the development of the particle population
balances presented here. Since the experimental facts were decisive
for the design of the model, they will be presented below before the
description of the theory.
2. Experimental
2.1. Measurements at the Neumnster plant
In general measurements of solids mass ows and solids particle
size distributions in an industrial plant are quite difcult. The access to
the various parts of such a complex system is not easy, safety
precautions have to be taken and above all, the refuse-derived fuel is a
matter which is very difcult to characterize.
Solids mass ows were determined on larger time intervals by
counting the number and loading of trucks which transported the
ashes to a disposal site. This was done for the coarse bottom ash, the
ne bottom ash, the y ash (sum of ashes taken from the radiation
boiler, convection boiler and the multi-cyclone). The sand supply was
Fig. 1. Flowsheet of a circulating uidized bed combustion system (Neumnster plant).
79 K. Redemann et al. / Powder Technology 191 (2009) 7890
Author's personal copy
also measured. It is admitted that all ows necessarily contain sand
particles as well, so all ash streams are in reality mixtures of fuel ash
and sand. However, for simplicity these streams are still called ash
here. The mass ow of the ultra-ne ash was calculated from
information about the lime and activated coke fed to the ue gas
cleaning and about the solids withdrawn fromthe ue gas cleaning for
disposal. From these information the ash input with the refuse-
derived fuel could be calculated.
With regard to the solids particle size distributions samples were
taken of the coarse bottom ash, the ne bottom ash, the y ash
(mixture of y ashes taken from the different sources) and from the
sand. The solids samples were analyzed by sieving and a laser
diffractometer (Beckman-Coulter LS 13 320). No sample could be
taken from the ultra-ne ash. For this latter material the correspond-
ing particle size distribution was estimated by calculating the
separation efciency of the multi-cyclone for the given y ash. Fig. 2
shows the particle size distributions of different samples and Table 1
presents the measured solids mass ows.
2.2. Measurement of the attrition characteristics of the refuse-derived
fuel ash
The RDF which is used in the Neumnster plant is produced by
mechanical and biological processing of the municipal waste from
the north German region around Neumnster. The processing plant
has a total capacity of 210,000 t/h of household waste. It produces
103,000 t/h refuse-derived fuel. The processing results in an increase
of the caloric value of 9 MJ/kg for the original waste to 14.5 MJ/kg of
the RDF. The RDF itself is very difcult to characterize.
It contains pieces of wood and organic matter, as well as sheets of
paper and plastics. The particles have a maximum dimension of
roughly 10 cm. According to the concept of the primary ash particle
size distribution (PAPSD) suggested by Salatino and co-workers [9,10],
devolatilization and combustion of a solid fuel leads to an ash particle
size distribution, i.e. the PAPSD, which will during its further residence
time in the combustion chamber undergo fragmentation and attrition.
For population balancing purposes it is necessary to follow the
changes of particle sizes inside the combustion system. In previous
work on the modeling of uid bed catalytic reactors [11] and coal and
sludge combustion in the uidized bed [12], the authors' group has
developed a tool for the description of attrition processes. In order to
apply the same tools to the RDF combustion problem, samples of the
original RDF were exposed for a short time to combustion conditions
in a uidized bed in order to create an ash sample, which could then
be further used.
Fig. 3 gives an example of such a distribution. Of course this is not a
real PAPSD in the sense of its denition, because it has already
undergone some stress in the uidized bed due to the nite residence
time under combustion conditions. However, the material is well
suited for attrition experiments.
Following the distinction of the three attrition mechanisms [13]:
in-bed attrition by solids movement, induced by bubbles
in-bed attrition, induced by distributor jet action
attrition during the passage through a cyclone
the attritioncharacteristics weredeterminedinspecializedtest facilities,
which have been described elsewhere [13].
Fig. 4 shows two sets of data for the bubble induced attrition. The
attrition rate r in kg of nes produced per kg of bed material and
second is plotted against the time. It is remarkable that contrary to
what was observed with catalyst and coal ashes [13] no constant
attrition rate is obtained after a certain time of operation. Obviously,
due to the structure of the RDF ash no steady-state attrition rate is
reached. On the contrary, the particles are continuously breaking
down and even after 1500 h of attrition no plateau is reached.
Fig. 2. Measured particle size distribution of ashes leaving the plant and of the feed
sand.
Table 1
Measured solids mass ows and calculated feed mass ow of attrited ash at the
Neumnster plant
Solids stream Mass ow
[kg/h]
Ultra ne ash 481
Fly ash 1778
Fine ash 1508
Coarse ash 1390
Sand 373
Feed of attrited ash 4786
Fig. 3. Measured PAPSD originating from laboratory scale uidized bed combustion.
Fig. 4. Results for bubble induced attrition experiments with two different ash samples,
operated at a supercial velocity of u=0.5 m/s, plotted against the operating time.
80 K. Redemann et al. / Powder Technology 191 (2009) 7890
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In Fig. 5 the attrition rate r is plotted against the relative material
loss m
att
/ m
b0
, where m
att
denotes the cumulative attrited mass and
m
b0
is the initial bed solids mass. Both experiments can be
approximated by straight lines on the semi-logarithmic grid,
r a exp b
m
att
m
b0
_ _
: 1
The different slopes are probably due to the fact that both ashes
originate from different RDF samples.
Fig. 6 shows in its upper half the time-dependent attrition rate in
kg of attrited material produced per time unit for the jet attrition test,
as a function of time. Again, no steady state of attrition is reached. In
the lower half the attrition rate is plotted against the relative material
loss m
att
/ m
b0
. Fig. 7 shows the results of the cyclone attrition test for
two different samples operated under different conditions. Here also,
no steady state attrition is reached.
3. Theory
3.1. The particle population balancing model
Although Fig. 1 presents a special design of a circulating uidized
bed combustion system the model, which is presented here, can be
applied to any other circulating uidized bed combustor design. The
aim of the mathematical model is to track the particle population in
the bed inventory of a CFBC. The software tool calculates the physical
processes in a dynamic-sequential simulation with a pipe-and-lter
architecture [14].
The simulation model divides the CFB system into modules, each
representing an apparatus of the plant. The combustion chamber is
separated into two sub-modules, the dense bottom zone and the
upper dilute zone. The calculation of transport, classication and
comminution of the solids in the different parts of the plant is
performed in these modules. They are calculated sequentially in the
order the solids are passing them. An overview of the whole model
setup is given in Fig. 8.
Although a lot of more sophisticated models are available for the
description of the uid mechanics of circulating uidized beds (e.g.
[15]) a very simple approach is followed here, where the circulating
uidized bed is modeled as a bubbling uidized bed, operated at high
gas velocities with a correspondingly high solids elutriation. Therefore
above a dense bottom zone which contains the bubbling uidized bed
and where the accumulation of solids is considered, we have a
freeboard section with solids transport and segregation with height.
In the cyclone the separation is considered and transport in the
return leg. The external heat exchanger is treated simply as a stirred
Fig. 5. Results for bubble induced attrition experiments for with different ash samples,
operated at a supercial velocity of u=0.5 m/s, plotted against the relative mass loss due
to attrition.
Fig. 6. Results for jet attrition experiments, operated at a supercial velocity of u=0.5 m/s,
jet velocity of u
j
=50 m/s, nozzle diameter d
o
=1 mm, d
s
=189 m plotted against time and
against the relative mass loss due to attrition.
Fig. 7. Results for cyclone attrition experiments for with different ash samples, operated
at different operating conditions (cyclone diameter: 90 mm, further details cf. [31]).
81 K. Redemann et al. / Powder Technology 191 (2009) 7890
Author's personal copy
tank with regard to the solids. Accumulation is taken into account, but
no entrainment with the uidizing gas. The entrainment may be
neglected, since entrained nes are fed again to the combustion
chamber together with the off-gas from the EHE.
The devolatilization and combustion times of the fuel particles are
in the order of seconds to minutes [16]. On the other hand the
residence times of ash particles in the system are of the order of
minutes to hours, as will be shown below. Therefore as a means of
simplication the combustion is placed outside the combustion
chamber and only ash with its primary ash particle size distribution
(PAPSD) is entering into the combustion chamber. The ash particles
are then undergoing bubble-induced attrition and jet attrition in both,
the dense bottomzone of the combustion chamber and in the external
heat exchanger. Furthermore attrition is occurring in the cyclone.
In CFBCs various solid types, e.g. fuel ash, sorbent material or
additional inert material, are present. These solids have different
physical properties, e.g. densities and particle sizes, which are
inuencing the particle behavior in the uidized bed system. Another
important parameter is the stress history of the particles (e.g. [11,12]).
In order to map all of these effects, the model treats particles of
different size, solid type and stress history separately. For that purpose
the bed inventory is discretized into a three dimensional matrix,
which contains classes of particles with the same combination of the
three characteristic properties, mentioned above. As proposed by
Scarlett [17], the matrix entries contain the masses in the respective
particle classes. All other characteristic values, e.g. the Sauter diameter
and the minimum uidizing velocity are derived from that matrix.
3.1.1. Modeling of the combustion chamber
The combustion chamber module is divided into two sub-modules,
the dense bottom zone and the upper dilute zone. The dense bottom
zone is modeled as a bubbling uidized bed with an approach
according to Werther and Wein [18] and the upper dilute zone is
described according to Kunii and Levenspiel [19]. Both sub-modules
calculate the vertical solids volume prole. Solids are elutriated from
the dense bottom zone into the upper dilute zone, whereby the
masses of the particles classes in the upper dilute zone result fromthe
PSDin the dense bottomzone. The task of combustion chamber model
is to nd the mass and PSD in the dense bottom zone with which the
mass balance in the total combustion chamber if fullled. This is
achieved in an iterative calculation process.
3.1.1.1. Modeling the dense bottom zone. The Werther and Wein
model [18] was used to calculate the vertical prole of the solids
volume concentration in the dense bottom zone. To handle conical
shapes of the combustionchamber, the wideningof the cross-sectional
area with height is considered for the calculation of the masses and the
pressure drop in the dense bottom zone.
From the overall solids volume concentration c
v
at height h above
the gas distributor and the height of a suspension layer h, the solid
mass of the layer m can be calculated by
m A h
s
c
v
h h 2
where
s
is the solid and A(h) the cross-sectional area of the dense
bottom zone at the height h.
The pressure drop p
b
of the dense bottom zone can be calculated
from
p
b

s
_
h
b
0
A h c
v
h dh 3
where h
b
denotes the height of the dense bottom zone.
3.1.1.2. Elutriation into the upper dilute zone. The mass elutriated
from the particle fraction i into the freeboard per time unit is given by
:
m
i
K
4
i
Q
3;i
A 4
where Q
3,i
is the mass fraction in the dense bottom zone and A the
cross-sectional area of the combustion chamber at the height h
b
above
the distributor. The elutriation constant K
i

is a key parameter for the

modeling of the upper dilute zone. A correlation for K
i
was developed
by Colakyan and Levenspiel [20] for gas-particle systems at operating
conditions comparable to the conditions found in CFBCs. Unfortu-
nately, this elutriation model assumes that particles with a terminal
velocity u
t
exceeding the supercial velocity u cannot be elutriated.
The measurements taken in the Neumnster plant, which will be
described later on, have shown that this is not the case in a circulating
uidized bed. We have found a considerable amount of particles in the
external heat exchanger ash with sizes corresponding to terminal
velocities exceeding the operating gas velocity in the upper dilute
zone of the combustion chamber. Therefore a correction factor f
K
with
values between 0 and 1 was introduced into the Colakyan and
Levenspiel correlation,
K
4
i
0:011
s
1
u
t;i
f
K
u
_ _
2
for u
t;i
f
K
b u
K
4
i
0 for u
t;i
f
K
zu
5
where the solids density
s
is to be inserted in kg/m
3
. u
t,i
is the
terminal velocity of the particle class i. The effect of the factor f
k
is
shown in Fig. 9. The factor shifts the curve of the elutriation rate to the
right, towards higher terminal velocities. It follows for the solids
Fig. 8. General model layout.
Fig. 9. Elutriation rate calculated from the modied Colakyan and Levenspiel [20]
model, Eq. (5), for various values of f
k
(calculated with
s
=2350 kg/m
3
).
82 K. Redemann et al. / Powder Technology 191 (2009) 7890
Author's personal copy
concentration above the transport disengaging height (TDH) which is
due to the particle class i
c
4
V;i

K
4
i

s
u u
t;i
f
K
_ _ _ : 6
The vertical solids volume prole in the upper dilute zone is
describedbytheexponential decayapproach(Kunii andLevenspiel [19]),
c
v
hV c
4
v
c
vd
c
4
v
_ _
e
hV
7
wherec
vd
is the solids volumeconcentrationat thesurface of thebedand
c
v
(h) the solids concentration at the height h above the dense bottom
zone. The decay constant is obtained from Kunii and Levenspiel [19],

u
8
8
:
m
e;i
c
vi
h
f
u u
t;i
f
K
_ _ _

s
9
where h
f
is the distance between the surface of the dense bottom zone
and the middle of the inlet duct into the gas cyclone.
3.1.2. Modeling of the gas cyclone
For the calculation of the solids separation in the gas cyclone the
model of Muschelknautz [21], withthe modications by Muschelknautz
and Trefz [22] has been taken as a basis. In this model the separation
mechanisminthe cyclone is dividedintotwo parts. At rst, immediately
near the inlet that part of the solids loading
e
, which exceeds a limiting
value
g
is forminga strand, whichows directly intothe underow. The
remaining part of the solids is undergoing the separation in the vortex.
Both mechanisms are described by semi-empirical correlations, which
are based ona large number of measurements, including measurements
at large-scale industrial cyclones.
Unfortunately, theMuschelknautz model does not fulll thefractional
solids mass balances for the calculation of the strand separation, which is
a crucial point for a particle populationbalancing model. Also mixtures of
solids with different densities and particle size distributions have to be
considered in the present application. Therefore the Muschelknautz
model had to be modied.
3.1.2.1. Modeling the strand separation. Under the conditions prevail-
ing in circulating uidized bed combustors the solids loading
e
at the
cyclone inlet exceeds the loading limit
g
by far [6]. Therefore the strand
separation is responsible for most of the cyclone's separation efciency.
The particle attribute whichis decisive for the separationina gas cyclone
is not its size but rather its terminal velocity. In order to be able to handle
mixtures of solids of different sizes and densities the terminal velocity is
chosen here as the quantity which unambiguously characterizes a given
particle with respect to its separation in the cyclone. The particle size
distributions of mixtures of solids of different densities are therefore
converted into a single distribution of terminal velocities u
t
.
Particles with a probability of 50% to be separated in the strand
have according to [21] a terminal velocity of
w
s;50

0:5 0:9
:
V
e
_ _
A
w
10
where V

e
is the inlet gas volume owand A
w
is the sedimentation area
of the strand, dened in [21].
The loading limit
g
can by calculated from

g
K
g
4

w
s;50
u
t;50;e

10
e

k
11
The exponent k in Eq. (11) can be calculated by
k 0:15 0:66 exp

e
0:015
_ _
0:6
_ _
12
u
t,50,e
is the 50% value of the terminal velocity distribution of the solids
mixture entering the cyclone.
In the original Muschelknautz model [21] the particle size
distribution of the solids going into the inner vortex is described by
Fig. 10. Comparison of the inner feed PSDs and separation efciency curves calculated fromthe Muschelknautz and the newmodel for the strand separation in a laboratory cyclone (a,
b) and the large cyclone of the Neumnster plant (case c).
83 K. Redemann et al. / Powder Technology 191 (2009) 7890
where u is to be inserted in [m/s]. The mass ow in the particle class
i (m
e,i
) leaving the combustion chamber can be calculated with the
particle slip velocity
Author's personal copy
a RRSB distribution. The assumption of this distribution leads to a
violation of the mass balance, because the RRSB distribution implies
the presence of particle sizes which need not exist in reality. To
circumvent this problem, the assumption of the RRSB distribution for
the inner feed material has been replaced here by modeling the strand
separation with a separation efciency function.
The mean terminal velocity of the particles entering the inner
vortex, u
t,50,v
is then in analogy to [22] calculated from
u
t;50;v
u
t;50;e
for
e
V
g
u
t;50;v


u
t;50;e
p


u
t;50;e
p


w
s;50
p
_ _

1
g
=
e
0:75
_ _2
for
g
b
e
V 4
g
u
t;50;v
w
s;50
for
e
N 4
g
:
13
Using this terminal velocity the function for the strand separation
efciency can be set up in analogy to the approach by Rogers [23],
T u
t
1a T4 u
t
a 14
with
T4 u
t

1
1

u
t;50;v
ut
_
exp 1

ut
u
t;50;v
_
3
_ _ _ _; 0 V T4 V 1 15
where is the separation sharpness and a is an offset value.
The total solids mass ow m
v
into the vortex, the so-called inner
feed is prescribed by the solids loading limit
g
of the gas and its mass
ow. To comply with the loading limit, the inner feed is tted by
means of the offset value a in Eq. (14). It adjusts the mass ow of the
solids going to the inner vortex, but leaves the PSD of this material
unchanged. It is calculated by
a

i
T4 u
t;i
_ _

:
m
e;i

g
0:9
:
V
e

s

i
T4 u
t;i
_ _

:
m
e;i
: 16
There are cases possible, where the total mass in the particle
classes with T(u
t
) b1 is too small to fulll the required loading limit.
This will then lead to negative values of a with Eq. (16). For these
exceptional cases, the directive given in Eq. (13) is neglected and the
mean terminal velocity u
t,50,v
is raised until the loading limit is
fullled with an offset of a=0.
The mass ow m
v, i
of a particle class i entering the inner vortex is
calculated fromthe mass owof the particle class entering the cyclone
m
e,i
, multiplied with the corresponding separation efciency.
:
m
v;i
1T u
t;i
_ _ _ _

:
m
e;i
: 17
To estimate the impact of the changes made to the strand
separation model, three different cases were calculated with the
original model given in [21] and with the new model discussed above.
In Fig. 10 the results are compared.
In cases A and B laboratory cyclones were simulated with two
different feedparticle size distributions at the same loading limit
e
=0.05.
The geometry of the cyclone and the operating conditions are given
together with the calculation parameters values in Table 2. In case C a
large-scale cyclone with the dimensions and operating conditions of the
Neumnster plant has been chosen. Its dimensions and operating data
are also listed inTable 2. The most signicant distinction between cases A
and B on the one side and case C on the other side is the high solids
loading of
g
=8 in the latter case.
In addition to the inlet PSDs and the calculated inner feed PSDs, the
separation efciency curves according to the original model and the
new model are depicted in Fig. 10. The separation efciency of the
original model [21] has been calculated fromthe ratio of the predicted
inner feed PSD to the corresponding mass fraction in the cyclone inlet.
In all cases the separation sharpness used in Eq. (15) was =0.05. The
offset a has been calculated from Eq. (16).
It can be taken from Fig. 10 that the separation efciency curves
calculated with the present model are practically identical with those
derived from the Muschelknautz model. The advantage of the present
model is that it does not violate the fractional mass balances and
therefore can be used for population balancing.
3.1.2.2. The separation in the inner vortex. The particle diameter d
v

with force equilibrium on the radius with the maximum vortex

velocity can be calculated according to [21]
d
4
v

18
L
0:9
:
V
e

g
_ _
u
2
i
2h
i

_ 18
where V

e
is the volumetric gas ow entering the cyclone,
L
the
dynamic viscosity of the gas,
g
and
s
the densities of gas and solids,
respectively, h
i
is the distance between the vortex nder and the apex
and u
i
the maximum tangential gas velocity. According to Eq. (18)
Table 2
Cyclone dimensions, suspension and model parameters and intermediate results of the
strand separation calculation for three different cyclone arrangements, carried out with
the Muschelknautz [21] and the present model
Parameter Unit Cases
A B C
Cyclone
dimensions
Inlet width [mm] 13 13 1890
Inlet height [mm] 37 37 4240
Outer diameter [mm] 90 90 6020
Total height [mm] 140 140 14710
Cylinder height [mm] 42 42 6464
Vortex nder dia. [mm] 28 28 1325
Vortex nder height [mm] 41 41 1065
Apex diameter [mm] 34 34 1010
Suspension Solids density [kg/m
3
] 2500 2500 2500
Gas density [kg/m
3
] 1.2 1.2 0.3
Dynamic gas viscosity [Pa s] 18.2E6 18.2E6 46.8E6
Inlet velocity [m/s] 16.6 16.6 15.6
Solid loading [] 0.1 0.1 8
Wall friction coefcient
0
[] 0.005 0.005 0.005
Factor in Eq. (11) K
g
[] 0.025 0.025 0.025
Intermediate
results
Mean inlet terminal vel. w
s,50
[m/s] 0.151 0.151 0.301
Mean inlet particle dia. d
e
[m] 19 76 76
Exponent for loading limit k [] 0.179 0.179 0.150
Loading limit
g
[] 1.69E3 4.22E4 1.96E2
Strand separation sharpness [] 0.05 0.05 0.05
Offset value a [] 0.632 0.323 0.991
Fig. 11. Simplied model layout, using the attrited ash particle size distribution as the
fuel ash PSD entering the system.
84 K. Redemann et al. / Powder Technology 191 (2009) 7890
Author's personal copy
solids with different densities have different vortex separation cut
sizes d
v
. These cut sizes are used to calculate the vortex separation
efciency
F
according to [21],

F
d
p
_ _
0:5 1 cos 1
log
dp
d
4
v
_ _
logD
2logD
_
_
_
_
_
_
_
_
_
_
_
_
: 19
The parameter D is discussed in [21] and can be used for the tting
of the separation efciency curve of a given cyclone. In cases where
solids with different densities are present in the cyclone, different
separation efciencies for the same particle size apply due to the
different separation cut sizes.
F
is then a function of both d
p
and
s
.
The mass ow of a particle class (same size, same density) going
into the cyclone overow m
Ov,i
results from
:
m
Ov;i

F
d
p
;
s
_ _

:
m
v;i
20
where m
v,i
denotes the solids mass ow of particle class i entering the
inner vortex.
3.1.3. Modeling of return leg and bed material bunker
Both, the return leg and the bed material bunker are modeled as
pipes with plug ow behavior and have a constant total mass. The
solids leaving the bed material bunker are fed into the bottom zone of
the combustion chamber. The solids leaving the return leg are split
into two material streams, one going directly back to the combustion
chamber and one going to the external heat exchanger.
3.1.4. Modeling of the external heat exchanger
The external heat exchanger (EHE) is modeled as a stirred tank.
Particles in the EHE are exposed to jet and bubble induced attrition,
when comminution processes are considered. As a simplication the
existence of the freeboard with its entrainment and classication
effects is neglected.
3.1.5. Modeling of the solids recycle loop
Part of the bottom ash can be recycled after removing the coarse
particles on a sieve. In the simulation the total solids mass in the bed
material silo is kept constant. The solids mass needed to be drained
fromthe combustion chamber to generate the recycle mass owof ne
ash can be calculated from the PSD in the dense bottom zone and the
separation efciency curve of the sieve which is modeled according to
Rogers [23]. The model parameters are derived formthe split between
the ne and coarse ash measured at the technical plant.
3.2. Modeling the attrition
The comminution processes of ashes in CFBCs can be divided into
fragmentation and attrition. Fragmentation is the breakage of a
mother particle into two or more pieces, which leads to a broader and
ner PSD. Attrition is the abrasion of small particles from a much
larger mother particle, making the mother particle shrinks slowly [13].
Abrasion is the dominant mechanism for catalysts in uidized bed
chemical reactors [13]. As a rst approximation it is assumed that the
same mechanism generally holds also for the ash particles in uidized
bed combustion.
For the population balance expressions are required for the nes
production, on the one hand per unit time for in-bed attrition induced
by bubbles and grid jets, respectively, and on the other hand per pass
in the case of attrition in the cyclone.
The experiments described in Section 2.2 above have shown that
the rate of bubble induced attrition r
b
(t) is described by Eq. (1). r
b
is
dened as the ratio of nes produced due to attrition m
att
to the
product of the bed mass at the time t, m
b
(t) and the time interval t.
r
b
t
m
att
m
b
t t
: 21
Among the factors inuencing the bubble induced attrition are the
most important ones the excess gas velocity (uu
mf
) and the diameter
of the particle size fraction under consideration. Since no systematic
investigation of these parameters has been carried out in the present
work it is assumed according to Merrick and Highley [24], Arena et al.
[25] and Pis et al. [26],
r
b
~ uu
mf
: 22
Furthermore, according to Ray et al. [27], Donsi et al. [28] and
Chirone et al. [29] it holds
r
b
~
1
d
p
: 23
Fig. 12. Overview of the solids streams entering and leaving the circulating uidized bed combustion plant.
Fig. 13. Measured particle size distributions of ashes leaving the plant, the sand and the
calculated AAPSD.
85 K. Redemann et al. / Powder Technology 191 (2009) 7890
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Since the dependence of the attrition rate on time t was found to
be described by Eq. (1), as a rst assumption it is now assumed that
the attrition rate r
b
(t) is given by
r
b
t K
b

uu
mf
d
p
exp b
b

m
att
t
m
b0
_ _
24
where K
b
and b
b
are material specic constants.
For grid jet attrition we are in the same situation: The inuencing
parameters particle size d
p
, orice diameter d
or
and jet velocity u
or
have not been systematically varied in the present work. Therefore we
adopt the ndings by Werther and Xi [30], who found that
r
j
~d
p

g
d
2
or
u
3
or
: 25
Although the description of the time-dependence with an
exponential function is not as good as in the case of bubble-induced
attrition, we formulate
r
j
t K
j
d
p

g
d
2
or
u
3
or
exp b
j

m
att
t
m
b0
_ _
: 26
The attrition in the cyclone occurs during the passage of the solids.
The cyclone attrition rate is therefore dened as the ratio of the mass
of nes m
att
(n) produced during the nth passage to the mass of the
solids passing through the cyclone in this passage. According to the
experimental results in Section 2.2, r
c
is also described by an
exponential function. The governing parameters according to Reppen-
hagen and Werther [13] for cyclone attrition are the solids loading at
the cyclone entry
e
, the inlet velocity u
c,in
and the particle size d
p
.
With the same reasoning that was used above in the derivation of
Eqs. (24) and (26) the relationship determined by Reppenhagen and
Werther [13] is adapted here, which leads to
r
c
t K
c
d
p

u
2
c;in

e
p exp b
c

m
att
t
m
c0;in
_ _
27
where m
c0,in
is the mass of the solids batch at the beginning of the set
of experiments.
With the population balances the unsteady state changes in the
various parts of the uidized bed system are monitored. For the
description of what happens during a given time interval in a given
part of the system with regard to attrition an information about the
stress history which the particle have previously undergone is
required. How far is a given particle fraction already attrited?
In previous work (Klett et al. [11]) on the time-dependence of ash
particle attrition in uidized bed systems a stress history parameter
was used. This latter parameter basically indicates how far a given
particle is away fromthe steady state of attrition. Unfortunately, for the
present RDF ash sucha steady state is not reached, as has beenfound in
the experiments described above. Therefore another description has to
be found. It is suggested now to characterize the state of the stress
history by calculating the ratio of the mass of nes matt produced
from the beginning of the attrition process, to the initial mass of the
same particle fraction m
0
. is taken as an indication of the amount of
stress the particle has already experienced,

m
att
m
0
: 28
The mass of nes matt can either result from the time-dependent
attrition induced by bubbles and grid jets, or from the attrition in the
cyclone, which is dependent on the number of passes or a successive
mixture of these mechanisms.
The particle population balancing calculation proceeds sequen-
tially from one module of the system to another. At the beginning of
each time-interval in a given module, the particle class i indicates its
status of the stress history by the mass of attrited nes m
att,i
, which
have originated from this particle class since its introduction into the
system, divided by the original mass m
0,i
. For this value of the actual
amount of attrition, which is occurring in the given module during the
time-interval t, can then be calculated as the product of attrition rate
and time-interval t, with the attrition rate being given either by
Eq. (24), (26) or (27), respectively.
3.3. The AAPSD concept
Upon entering the combustion chamber the fuel particles will be
heated and dried. Then they will devolatilize until nally the
Fig. 14. Development with time of the mean particle diameter in the dense bottomzone
of the combustion chamber, the external heat exchanger and the cyclone overow.
Fig. 15. Comparison of the measured values of the pressure prole and the prole of the solids volume concentration with steady state calculation results for the 100% load operating
conditions at the Neumnster plant.
86 K. Redemann et al. / Powder Technology 191 (2009) 7890
Author's personal copy
carbonaceous matrix is burnt out leaving the primary ash behind. This
primary ash will then undergo fragmentation and attrition. The
determination of the primary ash particle size distribution (PAPSD)
and of its attrition characteristics is quite difcult. The question is
whether it is absolutely necessary to consider the ash fragmentation
and attrition processes inside the combustion system, when aiming at
the population balancing of the CFB system as a whole. In this respect
a comparison of the mean residence time of the ash particles in the
combustion system with the burnout time of coal particles in a
uidized bed combustor can be helpful.
If we take the conditions of the Neumnster plant, we have an solids
inventory in the combustion chamber of 43 t, in the external heat
exchanger of 23 t and in the return line of 6 t, which yields a total solids
inventory of 72 t. Considering the total ash input of 4.8 t/h and of sand of
0.8 t/h we obtain a total solids ux of 5.6 t/h, which leads a to mean
residence time of the solids in the system of roughly 13 h. On the other
hand the burnout time of coal particles with 13 mmin a uidized bed
combustor is between1and10minaccordingtoLaNauze [16]. If wetake
intoaccount that most of the fragmentationandattritionoccurs withthe
fresh ash particles, this may be taken as a justication to neglect in a
rst approximation ash formation, fragmentation and attrition inu-
ences in the calculation of the particle population balances for the
uidized bed system. This simplied model of the uidized bed
combustor is shown in Fig. 11, which now shifts the ash formation,
fragmentation and attrition effects out of the combustion chamber such
that attrited ash only is entering the combustor. This simplied model
canonlybeusedfor cases as theonetreatedhere, wheretheashparticles
do not or only negligibly change there size for most of the time they stay
in the system. In cases where larger primary ash particles shrink over a
long period and are carried out as nes only, this concept would fail.
FromFig. 12 it follows that the following mass balance holds for the
integral mass ow
:
m
AA

:
m
uf

:
m
fly

:
m
coarse

:
m
fine

:
m
sand
: 29
However, the analogous balance also holds for the particle size
class i
:
m
AA;i

:
m
uf;i

:
m
fly;i

:
m
coarse;i

:
m
fine;i

:
m
sand;i
: 30
4. Results and discussion
4.1. Determination of the attrited ash particle size distribution (AAPSD)
In the rst step the measurements of the solids mass ows and
corresponding particle size distributions, which have been described
in Section 2.1 in detail were used to calculate the attrited ash particle
size distribution. For this purpose both, the fractional and the integral
mass balances Eqs. (29) and (30) were solved. Fig. 13 shows the result
in comparison with the measured particle size distribution of the
various ows. The attrited ash particle size distribution is a very wide
distribution. It contains all particle sizes occurring in the system, from
the coarse ash particles, which end up in the bottom ash, to the very
ne particles in the micron range, which result from attrition
processes. The thus determined AAPSD is the starting point for the
population balance modeling of the CFB system.
4.2. Particle balance modeling with the AAPSD
To t the calculation results to measured values some adjustments
of the models had to be done. In the cyclone model the wall friction
coefcient of the brick-lined gas cyclone in the Neumnster plant was
set to
0
=0.0075.
In order to consider the entrainment of large particles into the
external heat exchanger, the elutriation parameter in Eq. (5) was set to
f
K
=0.4.
The population balance modeling gives a dynamic description of
the system behavior. In the present case the calculation was started
with only sand as the solid material in the system and ash with the
AAPSDwas added. Fig. 14 shows the development of the mean particle
diameter in the dense bottom zone, in the external heat exchanger
(EHE) and in the cyclone overow. We see that the bed material in the
dense bottom zone is getting coarser, while the inventory of the EHE
becomes ner and there is practically no change in the mean diameter
at the cyclone overow. It takes of the order of 100 h to reach a steady
state.
Fig. 15 shows the pressure prole and the prole of the solids
volume concentration under conditions of steady state. The compar-
ison with the measurements shows that the calculated steady state is
in quite good agreement with the actual situation in the Neumnster
plant.
The particle balancing model allows us now to calculate solids
particle size distributions and mass ows at any point inside the
uidized bed system. As an example Fig. 16 shows the comparison
between measured and calculated particle size distributions in the
bottom zone of the combustion chamber, in the EHE and in the
overow of the cyclone. The matching between measurement and
calculation is excellent. The same is true for the ash mass ows leaving
the plant, which are compared inTable 3. An interesting information is
the solids mass ow into the cyclone. We see that for an input of fresh
ash of 4.8 t/h a circulating mass ow of 1343 t/h is achieved. This
enormous solids circulation rate, which corresponds to a mass ow
rate of 11.7 kg/m
2
/s in the upper part of the combustion chamber, is
one of the characteristic advantages of circulating uidized bed
combustion systems, because it is responsible for the temperature
homogeneity.
Another interesting feature of population balancing modeling is
that it allows to followthe fate of individual particle classes. As a result
it is possible to calculate the average residence times of different size
classes, as it is shown in Fig. 17. We see that particle sizes below 80 m
have an average residence time of a few minutes only, whereas
particles between roughly 100 and 1000 m have residence times
Fig. 16. Measured (symbols) and calculated (lines) particle size distributions in the
combustion chamber, the external heat exchanger and in the cyclone overow for the
Neumnster plant, together with measured and calculated solids mass ows.
Table 3
Comparison of the measured and calculated ash mass ows at the Neumnster plant
Ash stream Measured Calculated
[kg/h] [kg/h]
Cyclone overow 2259 2259
Fine ash 1508 1535
Coarse ash 1390 1361
87 K. Redemann et al. / Powder Technology 191 (2009) 7890
Author's personal copy
between 2040 h. Larger particles have residence times below 5 h,
because they are accumulating in the bottom dense bed and are
withdrawnwith the bottomash. As a practical conclusion one can take
from Fig. 17 that, if supporting bed material is to be fed, one should
choose a size fraction between 200300 m because such a material
will be kept for a maximum time in the system.
4.3. Particle balancing modeling with consideration of attrition effects
When the attrition behavior of the bed material is known, the
PAPSDof the fuel ash can be calculated by utilizing the simulation tool.
The calculation is carried out with consideration of the particle
attrition, while the PSD of fuel ash fed is varied until the PSDs of the
solids discharged from the plant are identical to the measured PSDs.
The ash particle size distribution in the fuel feed is the identical with
the PAPSD.
The characteristic attrition parameters used for the calculation
were distinguished by tting the correlations discussed in Section 3.2
to the attrition rate measurements, shown in Figs. 57. The derived
attrition parameters are summarized in Table 4.
The PAPSD calculated by this procedure is depicted in Fig. 18. One
can see clearly that differences between the AAPSD and the PAPSD are
only observed for particle sizes below 200 m. Larger particles have a
limited entrainment rate fromthe combustion chamber and therefore
do not experience the cyclone attrition, which is the governing
attrition source here. The limited attrition the large particles are
facing, in combination with their comparatively short residence time
causes no distinct change to their particle size and thus they leave the
system almost unchanged. As it should be, the AAPSD contains more
nes than the PAPSD, since the former distribution contains the effects
of fragmentation and attrition.
Further calculations were carried out for an alternative operating
point with a recycled ash mass ow of 3360 kg/h instead of 840 kg/h.
Both conditions were simulated using either the AAPSD, not
considering the particle attrition in the plant, or the PAPSD under
consideration of the particle attrition. Fig. 19 shows the results of the
four simulation runs. First of all, it is obvious that the particle size
distributions in the cyclone overow and in the EHE vary to a minor
extent only, although the recycle feed rate was drastically changed.
In contrast, the particle size distribution in the dense bottom zone
of the combustion chamber becomes signicantly ner with the
higher recirculation rate. One can further see that the symbols,
representing the results of the calculations using the PAPSD are
concurrent with the lines, representing the results using the AAPSD.
This can be taken as a justication for simulating the plant behavior
under various operating conditions by using the AAPSD without
consideration of the ash comminution effects inside the plant.
5. Summary and conclusions
A dynamic simulation tool to model the particle population of a
circulating uidized bed combustor with external heat exchanger and a
recycling of a ne fraction of the bottom drain material into the
combustionchamber has beendeveloped. It considers the uiddynamic
processes in the combustion chamber and in the gas cyclone, as well as
the particle attrition. To handle multiple solids types simultaneouslyand
to fulll the mass balances, some of the uid dynamic sub-models taken
from the literature were modied. The model allows to calculate the
solids mass ows as well as the corresponding particle size distributions
at any point inside the combustion system.
Upon entering the combustion chamber the solid fuel particles are
heated and dried. The devolatilization follows and nally the char is
burning out, leaving the primary ash behind. The particle size
Fig. 17. Residence time of particles in the Neumnster plant.
Table 4
Attrition parameters of the refuse-derived fuel ash
Attrition source K
b/c/j
b
b/c/j
Bubble induced attrition 3.10E13 [] 54.9
Cyclone attrition
8:46E2
s
2
m
3
_ _
14.5
Jet attrition
2:58E2
s
2
m
3
_ _
37.7
Fig. 18. Measured ash particle size distributions and the AAPSD in comparison with the
PAPSD.
Fig. 19. Calculated PSDs for the operation with different ash recycle feed rates, carried
out using the AAPSD and the PAPSD, respectively, as feed PSDs.
88 K. Redemann et al. / Powder Technology 191 (2009) 7890
Author's personal copy
distribution of the primary ash, i.e. the primary ash particle size
distribution, is then undergoing fragmentation and attrited. These
processes have been considered in the model such that the population
balances can be calculated if the PAPSD is known. However, in the case
of a given industrial plant for RDF combustion it is very difcult to
determine the PAPSD with sufcient accuracy.
The measurements at the Neumnster plant have shown that the
average particle residence time in the system is of the order of 13 h,
while on the other hand, coal particles burn-out times in uidized bed
combustor are in the range of several minutes. Taking into account
that most of the fragmentation and attrition occurs with the fresh
particles and this also happens in a comparatively short time, ash
formation, fragmentation and attrition inuences are neglected in the
calculation of the particle population balances for the uidized bed
system. Instead a model is suggested, were the fuel enters with the
attrited ash particle size distribution (AAPSD) into the combustion
chamber. The AAPSD concept shift ash formation, fragmentation and
attrition effects out of the uidized bed system. For a given plant the
AAPSD can be calculated from the ash ows and their particle size
distributions leaving the plant.
The model has been applied to a refuse-derived fuel red plant of
Stadtwerke Neumnster. The results of the measured and calculated
mass ows and particle size distributions are in good agreement. It is
shown that the AAPSD concept is sufcient to simulate the operating
behavior of the plant. The particle balancing model provides new
insides into the operating behavior. In particular the calculations of
the residence time of different particle classes in the system reveal a
very broad residence time distribution, ranging from several minutes
to a maximum of roughly 40 h. A size fraction exists between 100 and
300 m with a maximum residence time of about 40 h.
The simulation provides a means for examining possibilities to
control the particle size distribution in the combustion system. It is
shown howrecirculation of a ne ash fraction can be used to achieve a
ner bed particle size distribution in the combustion chamber.
Acknowledgments
The help of the staff of the Neumnster plant during the mea-
surement campaigns and with supplying operating data is gratefully
acknowledged. One of the authors (K. Redemann) would like to thank
Stadtwerke Neumnster GmbH for nancial support.
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Glossary
: Sharpness of the separation efciency function of the cyclone strand,
m
e
: Mass owof solids entrained fromthe combustion chamber, entering the
gas cyclone, kg/s
m
v
: Mass ow of solids going to the inner vortex of the gas cyclone, kg/s
m
AA
: Mass ow of attrited ash fed into the combustion chamber, kg/s
m
coarse
: Mass ow of the coarse ash fraction of the bottom drain material, kg/s
m
ne
: Mass ow of the ne ash fraction of the bottom drain material, kg/s
m
y
: Mass ow of y ash, separated in the boiler and the multi-cyclone, kg/s
m
Ov
: Mass ow in the cyclone overow, kg/s
m
sand
: Mass ow of sand fed into the combustion chamber, kg/s
m
uf
: Mass ow of ultra ne ash, separated in the ue gas cleaning plant, kg/s
V

e
: Cyclone inlet gas volume ow, m
3
/s

F
: Separation efciency function of the inner vortex of the gas cyclone,

L
: Dynamic gas viscosity, Pa s
: Exponent for the calculation of exponential decay of the solids volume
concentration in the upper dilute zone,

e
: Gas loading in the cyclone inlet,

g
: Loading limit of the gas going to the inner vortex,

g
: Gas density, kg/m
3

s
: Solid density, kg/m
3
: Attrition history parameter,
a: Offset value for the separation efciency function of the cyclone strand,
A
w
: Sedimentation area of the cyclone strand, dened in [21], m
2
b
b/j/c
: Exponent for calculation of the bubble-induced, grid jet and cyclone
attrition rate (aterial property),
c
v
: Solid volume concentration,
c
v
: Solids volume concentration above the transport disengaging height,
c
vd
: Solids volume concentration at the surface of the dense bottom zone,
D: Modeling parameter for the separation efciency function of the inner
vortex of the gas cyclone,
d
p
: Particle diameter, m
d
v
*
: Particle size with force equilibrium on the radius with the maximum
cyclone vortex velocity, m
d
or
: Orice diameter of the grid jets, m
f
K
: Elutriation correction factor,
h: Height above surface of dense bottom zone, m
89 K. Redemann et al. / Powder Technology 191 (2009) 7890
Author's personal copy
h
f
: Total height of the upper dilute zone, m
h
i
: Distance between the vortex nder and the apex in the gas cyclone, m
k: Exponent for the calculation of the loading limit in the gas cyclone,
K
b
: Parameter for the calculation of the bubble-induced attrition rate
(material property),
K
g
: Model parameter for the calculation of the loading limit in the gas
cyclone,
K
i
: Elutriation rate, kg/m
2
/s
K
j/c
: Parameter for the grid jet and cyclone attrition rate (material property),
s
2
/m
3
m
0
: Solid mass before any attrition occurred, kg
m
att
: Total attrited mass, kg
n
or
: Total number of orices of the grid jets,
r
b
: Bubble-induced attrition rate, kg/kg/s
r
c
: Cyclone attrition rate, kg/kg
r
j
: Grid jet attrition rate, kg/s
T: Total separation efciency function of the cyclone strand,
T: Reduced separation efciency function of the cyclone strand,
u: Supercial gas velocity, m/s
u
i
: Maximum tangential gas velocity in the inner vortex of the gas cyclone,
m/s
u
t
: Terminal velocity, m/s
u
mf
: Minimum uidizing velocity, m/s
u
t,50,e
: Mean terminal velocity of the particles in the cyclone inlet, m/s
u
t,50,v
: Mean terminal velocity of the particles going to the inner vortex, m/s
w
s,50
: Terminal velocity of a particles having a probability of 50% to be separated
in the cyclone strand, m/s
90 K. Redemann et al. / Powder Technology 191 (2009) 7890