An equation used to determine the pressure drop per unit length of a fixed bed of particles such as catalyst at incipient gas velocity, v:
where −Δp/L is the pressure drop over the depth of bed, e is the bed voidage, d is the mean particle diameter, ρ is the fluid density, μ is the fluid viscosity, and φ is the sphericity. The incipient point of fluidization corresponds with the highest pressure drop at the minimum fluidization velocity. It is named after Turkish-born American chemical engineer Sabri Ergun (1918–2006) who developed the equation in 1952.