Magnetic Resonance Imaging of fluidized beds

This paper reviews recent developments in Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) which enable it to follow particle motion in fluidized beds. Imaging with a spatial resolution of 400 μm and a temporal resolution of 1 ms is now feasible; particle velocities of order 1 m/s can be measured with good accuracy. The technique provides voidage fractions on a motion-picture basis and particle velocity fields. Limitations are: (i) the particles must contain appropriate atoms e.g. C or H; and (ii) currently the fluidized bed diameter cannot exceed 50 mm, though measurements from larger units will doubtless become available. MR studies on fluidized beds are described: results are reported for (i) air jets entering the bed (ii) bubbling and slugging beds and (iii) dispersion in a bubbling bed. The data are consistent with published measurements. Study (i) helps to resolve the longstanding puzzle about the behaviour of an air jet entering a fluidized or partly-fluidized bed, answering the question: does the entering air form bubbles or a continuous jet?