Numerical predictions on the influences of the air blast velocity, initial bed porosity and bed height on the shape and size of raceway zone in a blast furnace

A numerical model has been developed to predict the shape and size of the raceway zone (a void space) created by the force of the blast air injected through the tuyeres in the packed coke bed of a blast furnace. The model is based on the solution of conservation equations of both gas and solid phases as interpenetrating continua on a Eulerian–Eulerian frame. A modified k–ε model has been adopted for gas phase turbulence. The solid phase constitutive equation is characterized by the solid pressure, bulk viscosity and shear viscosity, which are evaluated from the kinetic theory of random motions of granular materials in a fluid flow. The influences of the air blast velocity, initial porosity of the coke bed and the bed height on the shape and size of the raceway zone have been predicted.