ABSTRACT
Fluidization is the unit operation by which fine solids are transformed into a fluidlike state through contact with a gas. At certain gas velocities, the fluid will support the particles, giving them freedom of mobility without entrainment. Such a fluidized bed resembles a vigorously boiling fluid, with solid particles undergoing extremely turbulent motion, which increases with gas velocity. Fluidized bed granulation is a process by which granules are produced in a single piece of equipment by spraying a binder solution on to a fluidized powder bed. This process is sometimes classified as the one-pot system. The fluid bed granulation process has received considerable attention within the pharmaceutical industry; however, other process industries, such as food, agro-chemical, dyestuffs, and other chemical industries, have adopted the fluid bed granulation process to address particle agglomeration, dust containment, and material handling. The fluidization technique, as it is known today, began in 1942, with the work of the Standard Oil Company (now known as Exxon, in the United States) andM.W.KelloggCompany, in an effort to produce the first catalytic cracking plant on a commercial scale (1).
