Studies on the fluidization performance of a novel fluidized bed reactor for iron ore suspension roasting

A U-type reduction chamber (URC) is developed as the key component of the novel iron ore suspension roaster. It consists of a fluidization chamber (FC) and a supply chamber (SC), and functions dually as sealing valve and reduction chamber. This roaster has been applied successfully to iron ore reduction roasting, while only limited information is available on its working mechanism. The fluid dynamic behavior of solid particles within URC and effects of operating parameters, i.e., the fluidizing air velocity, aeration air velocity and delivery rate, on its performance were investigated in this study. Simulation experiments on the fluid behavior of feed ores were conducted in a cold operating URC apparatus using alumina particles with an average size of 147μm. It was found that the feeding particles descend in moving-bed mode in the supply chamber, while the particles move upwards in fluidization mode in the FC under suitable operating conditions. The differential pressure fluctuation reaches the maximum at the middle region of the FC, indicating vigorous gas-solid interactions at this area. The solids holdup presents an 'S' shape distribution along the height of the FC. The average solids holdup and axial nonuniformity index range from 0.35 to 0.50 and from 0.10 to 0.40, respectively, which are relatively higher than those found in conventional fluidized bed reactors, ensuring better gas-solids contacting and mixing.