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Analysis of the Hydrogen Reduction Rate of Magnetite Concentrate Particles in a Drop Tube Reactor Through CFD Modeling

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Abstract

A computational fluid dynamics (CFD) approach, coupled with experimental results, was developed to accurately evaluate the kinetic parameters of iron oxide particle reduction. Hydrogen reduction of magnetite concentrate particles was used as a sample case. A detailed evaluation of the particle residence time and temperature profile inside the reactor is presented. This approach eliminates the errors associated with assumptions like constant particle temperature and velocity while the particles travel down a drop tube reactor. The gas phase was treated as a continuum in the Eulerian frame of reference, and the particles are tracked using a Lagrangian approach in which the trajectory and velocity are determined by integrating the equation of particle motion. In addition, a heat balance on the particle that relates the particle temperature to convection and radiation was also applied. An iterative algorithm that numerically solves the governing coupled ordinary differential equations was developed to determine the pre-exponential factor and activation energy that best fit the experimental data.

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Abbreviations

A p :

Surface area of particle (m2)

d p :

Geometric mean particle diameter (m)

D i,m :

Mass diffusion coefficient for species i in the mixture (m2 s−1)

h g :

Sensible heat of the gas mixture (J kg−1)

k :

Turbulent kinetic energy (J kg−1)

k eff :

Effective thermal conductivity (W m−1 K−1) = k g + k t

k g :

Gas thermal conductivity (W m−1 K−1)

m p :

Particle mass (kg)

p :

Pressure (pa)

T :

Gas phase temperature (K)

T iso :

Isothermal zone temperature (K)

T p :

Particle temperature (K)

T s :

Wall temperature (K)

u i :

Gas phase velocity components (m s−1)

u p :

Particle velocity (m s−1)

Y i :

Mass fraction of species i

Z :

Axial distance from the tip of injection tube (m) (See Figure 4(a))

\( \varepsilon \) :

Turbulence dissipation rate (J kg s−1)

\( \varepsilon_{\text{p}} \) :

Particle emissivity

\( \mu \) :

Gas phase viscosity (N m s−2)

\( \rho \) :

Gas phase density (kg m−3)

\( \rho_{\text{p}} \) :

Particle density (kg m−3)

\( \omega_{\text{o}}^{ \circ } \) :

The initial mass fraction of iron-bonded oxygen in magnetite

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Acknowledgments

Deep appreciations are attributed to Dr. Baoqiang Xu, Dr. Shenqing Zhang, Dr. Kai Xie, and Feng Chen in this laboratory for their helpful advice in building the model and contribution to the experimental work for the study. The support and resources from the Center for High Performance Computing at the University of Utah are gratefully acknowledged. The authors acknowledge the financial support from the U.S. Department of Energy under Award Number DE-EE0005751 with cost share by the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) and the University of Utah.

Disclaimer

This report was prepared as an account of work sponsored by an agency of the United States Government. Neither the United States Government nor any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, makes any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference herein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the United States Government or any agency thereof. The views and opinions of authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States Government or any agency thereof.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Metallurgical Engineering, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112, USA

    Deqiu Fan, Yousef Mohassab, Mohamed Elzohiery & H. Y. Sohn

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  1. Deqiu Fan
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  2. Yousef Mohassab
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  3. Mohamed Elzohiery
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  4. H. Y. Sohn
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Correspondence to H. Y. Sohn.

Additional information

Manuscript submitted on October 29, 2015.

Appendix

Appendix

See Table A1.

Table A1 Complete Experimental Data (Excess Hydrogen >500 pct)
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Fan, D., Mohassab, Y., Elzohiery, M. et al. Analysis of the Hydrogen Reduction Rate of Magnetite Concentrate Particles in a Drop Tube Reactor Through CFD Modeling. Metall Mater Trans B 47, 1669–1680 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11663-016-0603-3

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