Validation studies to assist in the development of scale and system independent CFD models for industrial bubble columns

Due to their widespread application there is substantial academic and industrial interest in modelling the hydrodynamics of bubble columns. To this end there is a need to develop and validate modelling approaches which are capable of being applied to industrial systems. In this paper we describe a model which is in good agreement with experimental data across a wide range of scales (columns from 0.19 to 3 m in diameter) and superficial velocities (0.03 to 0.25 m s-1). We have also developed an approach to account for the presence of surfaceactive compounds, which are frequently present in the liquid phase of industrial processes (e.g., water treatment or fermentation). Using this approach, it is possible to obtain computational predictions in good agreement with experimental measurements of hydrodynamic parameters (e.g., the overall hold-up) and oxygen transfer rates. Finally, to enable the validation work of others a substantial experimental dataset has been included with this work, and areas in need of further investigation have been highlighted. (c) 2021 Institution of Chemical Engineers. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

This paper presents a model that accurately simulates the hydrodynamics of bubble columns and shows good agreement with experimental data. The study also takes into account the presence of surface-active compounds in industrial processes, providing computational predictions in line with experimental measurements. Furthermore, a dataset has been provided to facilitate validation work by others and identify areas for further research.