The Sevilla Powder Tester: A Tool for Measuring the Flow Properties of Cohesive Powders at High Temperatures

Understanding the flowability of cohesive powders at high temperature is of great importance for many industrial applications where these materials are handled at harsh thermal conditions. For instance, the Calcium-Looping (CaL) process, involving the transport, storage and fluidization of limestone powders at high temperature, is being considered nowadays as a promising technology for thermochemical energy storage (TCES) in concentrated solar power plants (CSP). In this context, the High Temperature Seville Powder Tester (HTSPT) is presented in this work as a useful tool to analyze how the flow behavior of cohesive powders changes with temperature. The manuscript reviews the main results obtained so far using this novel apparatus. The change of powder cohesiveness and therefore of powder flowability as depending on temperature, particle size, material properties and nanosilica surface coating is illustrated.