Bubble characteristics in a three-dimension gas-fluidized bed (FB) have been measured using noninvasive ultrafast electron beam X-ray tomography. The measurements are compared with predictions by a two-fluid model (TFM) based on kinetic theory of granular flow. The effect of bed material (glass, alumina, and low linear density polyethylene (LLDPE), d p $1 mm), inlet gas velocity, and initial particle bed height on the bubble behavior is investigated in a cylindrical column of 0.1-m diameter. The bubble rise velocity is determined by cross correlation of images from dual horizontal planes. The bubble characteristics depend highly upon the particle collisional properties. The bubble sizes obtained from experiments and simulations show good agreement. The LLDPE particles show high gas hold-up and higher bubble rise velocity than predicted on basis of literature correlations. The bed expansion is relatively high for LLDPE particles. The X-ray tomography and TFM results provide in-depth understanding of bubble behavior in FBs containing different granular material types.

The outflow of granular materials from storage containers with narrow outlets is studied by means of ultrafast x-ray computed tomography (UFXCT). The used acquisition speed of this tomograph is high enough to allow high-speed recording of two horizontal cross sections (each of them at a rate of 1000 images per second) of the container during the discharge of material. Analyzing space-time plots that were generated from the tomograms, we retrieve velocity profiles and packing structures in the container. We compare hard spherical grains with soft, low-friction hydrogel spheres. Their flow profiles are qualitatively different. While the hard spheres form stagnant zones at the container side walls, the hydrogel spheres with extremely low friction coefficient flow in all regions of the container. Moreover, a shell-like positional arrangement of the soft spheres induced by the container walls is revealed. The results obtained for the flow field structure confirm earlier conclusions drawn from sequences of x-ray tomograms of clogged states.

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