Oates, A orcid.org/0000-0002-2912-2365, Neuner, T, Meister, M et al. (4 more authors) (2020) Modelling Mechanically Induced non-Newtonian Flows to Improve the Energy Efficiency of Anaerobic Digesters. Water, 12 (11). 2995. ISSN 2073-4441
Abstract
In this paper, a finite volume based computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model has been developed for investigating the mixing of non-Newtonian flows and operating conditions of an anaerobic digester. A CFD model using the multiple reference frame has been implemented in order to model the mixing in an anaerobic digester. Two different agitator designs have been implemented: a design currently used in a full-scale anaerobic mixing device, SCABA, and an alternative helical ribbon design. Lab-scale experiments have been conducted with these two mixing device designs using a water-glycerol mixture to replicate a slurry with total solids concentration of 7.5%, which have been used to validate the CFD model. The CFD model has then been scaled up in order to replicate a full-scale anaerobic digester under real operating parameters that is mechanically stirred with the SCABA design. The influence of the non-Newtonian behaviour has been investigated and found to be important for the power demand calculation. Furthermore, the other helical mixing device has been implemented at full scale and a case study comparing the two agitators has been performed; assessing the mixing capabilities and power consumption of the two designs. It was found that, for a total solids concentrations of 7.5%, the helical design could produce similar mixing capabilities as the SCABA design at a lower power consumption. Finally, the potential power savings of the more energy efficient helical design has been estimated if implemented across the whole of the United Kingdom (UK)/Austria.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). |
Keywords: | anaerobic digester; computational fluid dynamics; hydrodynamics; mechanical mixing; non-newtonian flows |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Engineering & Physical Sciences (Leeds) > School of Civil Engineering (Leeds) The University of Leeds > Faculty of Engineering & Physical Sciences (Leeds) > School of Computing (Leeds) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 21 Oct 2020 10:23 |
Last Modified: | 25 Jun 2023 22:28 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | MDPI |
Identification Number: | 10.3390/w12112995 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:166869 |