Mass transfer coefficient prediction method for CFD modeling of riser reactors

2010 ◽  
Vol 203 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-39 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ronald W. Breault ◽  
Chris Guenther
Author(s):  
Mehran Nalband ◽  
Elham Jalilnejad

Abstract This paper documents CFD simulations of the gas hold-up (ɛg) and volumetric mass transfer coefficient (KLa) for three kinds of airlift reactors (ALRs) namely, conventional ALR, ALR with net draft tube (ALR-ndt), and packed-bed ALR with net draft tube (PBALR-ndt). The 3D two-fluid Eulerian-Eulerian model was adopted to predict the influence of superficial gas velocity on ɛg and KLa. The simulation results were consistent with the trends described previously in the experimental work regarding ɛg and KLa values and a good agreement was obtained (absolute error less than 20 %). Based on the simulation results, axial flow is the dominant flow in the conventional ALR while in ALR-ndt and PBALR-ndt radial flow streamlines are appeared in the reactors due to the presence of concentric net draft tube which improves their performance. The effective role of the net draft tube is proven since consequence of generation of small bubbles by passing through net draft tube is the entrainment of a larger percentage of gas bubbles from the riser into the downcomer which results in improvement of gas holdup and the KLa values. An exponential correlation is used for relating gas hold-up and mass transfer coefficient. Higher power obtained for ALR-ndt and PBALR-ndt (n ≈ 1.22) compared to ALR (n = 0.95) was indicative of high sensitivity of KLa value to gas hold-up in these reactors due to presence of the concentric net draft tube. The CFD modeling is considered to be an invaluable tool allowing us to analyze and visualize the impact of fluidic forces on hydrodynamic properties and consequently, reactor performance.


1986 ◽  
Vol 51 (10) ◽  
pp. 2127-2134 ◽  
Author(s):  
František Potůček ◽  
Jiří Stejskal

Absorption of oxygen into water and aqueous solutions of poly(acrylamides) was studied in an absorber with a wetted sphere. The effects of changes in the liquid flow rate and the polymer concentration on the liquid side mass transfer coefficient were examined. The results are expressed by correlations between dimensionless criteria modified for non-Newtonian liquids whose flow curve can be described by the Ostwald-de Waele model.


2021 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sher Ahmad ◽  
Gabriela Vollet Marson ◽  
Waheed Ur Rehman ◽  
Mohammad Younas ◽  
Sarah Farrukh ◽  
...  

Abstract Background In this research work, a coupled heat and mass transfer model was developed for salt recovery from concentrated brine water through an osmotic membrane distillation (OMD) process in a hollow fiber membrane contactor (HFMC).The model was built based on the resistance-in-series concept for water transport across the hydrophobic membrane. The model was adopted to incorporate the effects of polarization layers such as temperature and concentration polarization, as well as viscosity changes during concentration. Results The modeling equations were numerically simulated in MATLAB® and were successfully validated with experimental data from literature with a deviation within the range of 1–5%. The model was then applied to study the effects of key process parameters like feed concentrations, osmotic solution concentration, feed, and osmotic solution flow rates and feed temperature on the overall heat and mass transfer coefficient as well as on water transport flux to improve the process efficiency. The mass balance modeling was applied to calculate the membrane area based on the simulated mass transfer coefficient. Finally, a scale-up for the MD process for salt recovery on an industrial scale was proposed. Conclusions This study highlights the effect of key parameters for salt recovery from wastewater using the membrane distillation process. Further, the applicability of the OMD process for salt recovery on large scale was investigated. Sensitivity analysis was performed to identify the key parameters. From the results of this study, it is concluded that the OMD process can be promising in salt recovery from wastewater.


Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (14) ◽  
pp. 4329
Author(s):  
Radek Šulc ◽  
Jan Dymák

The gas–liquid hydrodynamics and mass transfer were studied in a concentric tube internal jet-loop airlift reactor with a conical bottom. Comparing with a standard design, the gas separator was equipped with an adjustable deflector placed above the riser. The effect of riser superficial gas velocity uSGR on the total gas holdup εGT, homogenization time tH, and overall volumetric liquid-phase mass transfer coefficient kLa was investigated in a laboratory bioreactor, of 300 mm in inner diameter, in a two-phase air–water system and three-phase air–water–PVC–particle system with the volumetric solid fraction of 1% for various deflector clearances. The airlift was operated in the range of riser superficial gas velocity from 0.011 to 0.045 m/s. For the gas–liquid system, when reducing the deflector clearance, the total gas holdup decreased, the homogenization time increased twice compared to the highest deflector clearance tested, and the overall volumetric mass transfer coefficient slightly increased by 10–17%. The presence of a solid phase shortened the homogenization time, especially for lower uSGR and deflector clearance, and reduced the mass transfer coefficient by 15–35%. Compared to the gas–liquid system, the noticeable effect of deflector clearance was found for the kLa coefficient, which was found approx. 20–29% higher for the lowest tested deflector clearance.


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