Effect of agitation on hydrodynamics and separation performance of gas–solid separation fluidized bed

Abstract Mechanical agitation was usually applied to improve the fluidization quality of the fluidized bed. This study aimed to explore the effect of agitation on the fluidization characteristics and separation effect of a gas–solid separation fluidized bed. On the basis of the multiple reference frame model, the fluidized bed under mechanical agitation was simulated, where the symmetrical motion pattern of the bed particles was identified. Furthermore, when the agitation speed w was below 75 rpm, the fluidization quality was improved gradually with the lower density fluctuation variance of 0.06 g/cm3. Finally, under the appropriate operating conditions (fluidization number of 1.2, w = 75 rpm), raw coal was separated in a fluidized bed, and the yield of cleaned coal was 41.30% with an ash content of 14.27%. Moreover, the probable error was as low as 0.105 g/cm3, indicating the strong separation performance of the gas–solid separation fluidized bed with an agitator.