In this work, we employed a computational fluid dynamics (CFD)-based model with a Eulerian multiphase approach to simulate the fluidization hydrodynamics in biomass gasification processes. Air was used as the gasifying/fluidizing agent and entered the gasifier at the bottom which subsequently fluidized the solid particles inside the reactor column. The momentum exchange related to the gas-phase was simulated by considering various viscous models (i.e., laminar and turbulence models of the re-normalisation group (RNG), k-ε and k-ω). The pressure drop gradient obtained by employing each viscous model was plotted for different superficial velocities and compared with the experimental data for validation. The turbulent model of RNG k-Ɛ was found to best represent the actual process. We also studied the effect of air distributor plates with different pore diameters (2, 3 and 5 mm) on the momentum of the fluidizing fluid. The plate with 3-mm pores showed larger turbulent viscosities above the surface. The effects of drag models (Syamlal–O’Brien, Gidaspow and energy minimum multi-scale method (EMMS) on the bed’s pressure drop as well as on the volume fractions of the solid particles were investigated. The Syamlal–O’Brien model was found to forecast bed pressure drops most consistently, with the pressure drops recorded throughout the experimental process. The formation of bubbles and their motion along the gasifier height in the presence of the turbulent flow was seen to follow a different pattern from with the laminar flow.

Air gasification of Napier grass (NG) was studied with the target of producing combustible synthesis gas to be used in direct combustion for power generation. A small-scale autothermal bubbling fluidized bed gasifier was used to investigate the effect of reactor temperature, equivalence ratio (ER), and static bed height (SBH) on gasification performance and combustibility of the producer gas. The main generated species in syngas were identified through gas chromatography (GC) analysis. Minimum fluidization conditions were determined at different levels of SBH. Experiments carried out with two intentions of first, to achieve the highest composition of combustible species to ensure the maximum Lower Heating Value (LHV) of syngas and second, to obtain a high performance process with maximum yield of syngas and minimum residues. The results showed that the temperature and ER have significant effects on syngas yield and composition. SBH was found have a substantial effect on the production of H₂ and CO. The results from this study was compared to other gasification studies from literature which have evaluated biomass gasification in bubbling fluidized bed reactors with different scales but almost similar method of experimentation. The purpose of verification was to demonstrate the effect of different reactor scales and heating characteristics on the results.

The emission of untreated environmental harmful gases such as sulfur and nitrogen oxide (SOx and NOx) emissions is considered old fashioned, since industries are compelled by governments and legislations to meet the minimum threshold before emitting such substances into the atmosphere. Numerous research has been done and is ongoing to come up with both cost-effective equipment and regenerable catalysts that are adsorbent—or with enhanced sorption capacity—and with safer disposal methods. This work presents the general idea of a monolith/catalyst for environmental application and the technicality for improving the surface area for fast and efficient adsorption–desorption reactions. The chemical reactions, adsorption kinetics, and other properties, including deactivation, regeneration, and the disposal of a catalyst in view of environmental application, are extensively discussed.