Reduction of fines deposition in trickle-bed reactors via induced pulsing

A trickle-bed reactor was subjected to the flow of simulated suspensions (calcium carbonate (CaCO3) + water + dissolved iron(III) sulfate or chloride) and air to study the influence of elevated temperature and of induced pulsing on the deposition of fines in the bed. It was found that the induced pulsing strategy reduced the pressure buildup without reducing the specific deposit, suggesting either rapid re-deposition of re-entrained calcium carbonate deposits or shock waves loosing impetus during their flight down the bed. The results also indicated that increased temperatures yielded decreasing two-phase pressure drops despite the lack of dependence of overall specific deposits to temperature. These results highlight some advantages of a trickle-bed configuration combining CO2 capture with carbonates co-precipitation using brines within the same unit.