Proposal Number: CTS-9526149 Koch The overall aim of this project is to obtain a better understanding of packed bed performance at moderate Reynolds number through theoretical and numerical analysis. The equations of fluid flow through periodic and random arrays of spheres and cylinders will be solved using the lattice-Boltzman cellular automation approach. This will be a collaborative effort between Professor Donald L. Koch and Dr. Anthony J.C. Ladd of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories. The proposed approach is a rigorous one, which can readily be expected to produce new insight and a considerable body of reliable data for future benchmarking and qualitative comparisons. The proposed efforts are both theoretically interesting and of considerable practical relevance. Packed beds are the most common type of reactor used in the chemical industry. The design of these reactors is influenced by pressure drop, heat and mass transfer from particles in the flow and the heat and mass diffusion within the fluid phase. While an extensive body of experimental data is available for these phenomena, there is a dearth of theoretical analysis on the fluid flow and transport processes in packed beds at non-zero Reynolds numbers. A graduate student will be supported for three years with the expectation that a Ph.D. thesis will result from this support. Roger E.A. Arndt Date: February 1, 1996
