Characterization of liquid trickle flow in poor-wetting packed bed

A low coke rate operation of a blast furnace tends to cause deterioration of the gas permeability. The liquid iron and molten slag dripping under the melting zone influences the gas flow and permeability in the lower part of the furnace. A computational fluid dynamic model, using a particle-based simulation, is presented for characterization of the melt dripping behavior in a packed bed. In this work, the validity of the liquid passing conditions based on the gravity to surface tension ratio was confirmed. The melt shape produces an "icicle," "droplet," and "dome" forms based on the change of the surface tension and density absolute values. Even with an identical liquid volume passage, the form of the liquid flow changed by the pressure from the liquid's upper portion. Even if it has identical gravity and surface tension ratios, the liquid flow changes with the volume of the liquid phase and its form.