Multiphase Mass Transfer and Phase Equilibrium in Chemical Processes

A special issue of Processes (ISSN 2227-9717). This special issue belongs to the section "Chemical Processes and Systems".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 January 2023) | Viewed by 20895

Special Issue Editors

Chair of Chemical and Process Engineering, ACK7, Technische Universität Berlin, Ackerstr. 76, 13355 Berlin, Germany
Interests: transport phenomena; mass transfer; fluid dynamics; rheology, multiphase systems; chemical reaction

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Guest Editor
Chair of Chemical and Process Engineering, ACK7, Technische Universität Berlin, Ackerstr. 76, 13355 Berlin, Germany
Interests: heat and mass transfer; chemical reaction engineering; multiphase flows; fluid dynamics; mixing

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Guest Editor
TU Hamburg, Institute of Multiphase Flow, Eissendorfer Str. 38, 21073 Hamburg, Germany
Interests: multiscale mass transfer; reactive flows; scale-up
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Contact apparatuses using a continuous liquid and two or more dispersed phases are common in chemical and biochemical engineering. The transfer of one or more components from one phase to another determines the types of processes and the components’ sizes. Research in this field regarding progressively more complex systems with increasingly sophisticated experimental and numerical methods is steadily gaining importance.

This Special Issue addresses researchers in the fields of chemical and bioprocess engineering, as well as thermodynamics. It aims to collect current work in the field of “Multiphase Mass Transfer and Phase Equilibrium in Chemical Processes”. The scope includes cases of, i.a., absorption (physisorption, chemisorption), desorption, extraction, and rectification, and ranges from basic cases of single fluid particles in contact with a continuous fluid phase to particle swarm investigations.

The methods include experimental work as well as numerical approaches such as CFD-based cases or compartment modeling.

texttext

Dr. Lutz Böhm
Prof. Dr. Matthias Kraume
Prof. Dr. Michael Schlüter
Guest Editors

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Published Papers (9 papers)

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Research

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23 pages, 8116 KiB  
Article
Simulation of Bubble Behavior Characteristics in a Rolling Fluidized Bed with the Addition of Longitudinal Internal Members
by Rongsheng Xu, Ruojin Wang, Banghua Wu, Xiaopei Yuan, Dewu Wang, Yan Liu and Shaofeng Zhang
Processes 2024, 12(6), 1130; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr12061130 - 30 May 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 702
Abstract
To address the effect of a ship’s rolling on the fluidization quality of fluidized beds, in this study, a simulation of a rolling fluidized bed with longitudinal internal members added (R-FBLIM) was carried out and compared with that of a rolling fluidized bed [...] Read more.
To address the effect of a ship’s rolling on the fluidization quality of fluidized beds, in this study, a simulation of a rolling fluidized bed with longitudinal internal members added (R-FBLIM) was carried out and compared with that of a rolling fluidized bed without internal members added (R-FBWIM). The transient motion, as well as the behavioral characteristics of the bubbles within the R-FBLIM, was analyzed; the variation patterns of the number of bubbles, as well as the equivalent diameter of the bubbles, were compared for different apparent gas velocities, oscillation periods, and amplitudes; and the mechanism of the action of the longitudinal internal members was investigated. The results show that the structural design of the longitudinal internal members can effectively improve the gas–solid fluidization quality of the rolling fluidized bed. The horizontal support plate and the cap hole structure can effectively break the air bubbles, the cap hole structure promotes the radial mixing of the gas–solid fluid, and the internal and outer rings of the curved surface plate roll in rows, which inhibit the aggregation behavior of the gas–solid fluid to the two sides of the oscillating planes, respectively, by cooperating with the cap hole structure. Compared with R-FBWIM, the gas–solid phase within R-FBLIM is more spatially distributed, with the number of bubbles increasing by about 2–4 times and the mean diameter decreasing by about 50–60%. The number of bubbles increases with the gas velocity but decreases with the rolling amplitude; the mean diameter decreases with the gas velocity but responds less to the rolling amplitude change. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Multiphase Mass Transfer and Phase Equilibrium in Chemical Processes)
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17 pages, 8258 KiB  
Article
Simulation of Multi-Phase Flow in Autoclaves Using a Coupled CFD-DPM Approach
by Bin Kou, Yanqing Hou, Weiqin Fu, Ni Yang, Junchang Liu and Gang Xie
Processes 2023, 11(3), 890; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr11030890 - 15 Mar 2023
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2483
Abstract
In this work, a numerical simulation study on the mixing characteristics of multiphase flow in an autoclave was carried out using CFD technology. The Eulerian–Eulerian model and discrete phase model (DPM) were employed to investigate the solid holdup, critical suspension speed, nonuniformity of [...] Read more.
In this work, a numerical simulation study on the mixing characteristics of multiphase flow in an autoclave was carried out using CFD technology. The Eulerian–Eulerian model and discrete phase model (DPM) were employed to investigate the solid holdup, critical suspension speed, nonuniformity of solid suspension, gas holdup distribution, bubble tracks, and residence time during stirring leaching in the autoclave. Experiments validate the accuracy of the numerical model, and the experimental values correspond well with the simulation results. The numerical simulation results show that the solid–liquid mixing is mainly affected by the axial flow, the best agitation speed is 400 rpm, and increasing the speed further cannot make the mixture more homogenous and buildup occurred above the autoclave. The calculated critical suspension speed is 406 rpm, which is slightly lower than that obtained from the empirical formula. The gas phase is mainly concentrated in the vortex area above the blade. When the gas phase is in a completely dispersed state (N = 300 rpm), the average residence time of the bubbles is 5.66 s. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Multiphase Mass Transfer and Phase Equilibrium in Chemical Processes)
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13 pages, 4596 KiB  
Article
Determination of Viscosity, Density and Interfacial Tension of the Carbon Dioxide–Isopropanol, Argon–Isopropanol, Sulphur Hexafluoride–Isopropanol Binary Systems at 313.15 K and 333.15 K and at Elevated Pressures
by Dragana Borjan, Maja Gračnar, Željko Knez and Maša Knez Marevci
Processes 2022, 10(11), 2275; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr10112275 - 3 Nov 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1813
Abstract
Viscosity, density, and interfacial tension of three binary systems (carbon dioxide–isopropanol, argon–isopropanol, and sulphur hexafluoride–isopropanol) were measured at temperatures of 313.15 K and 333.15 K and at pressures up to 100 bar for carbon dioxide, and for argon and sulphur hexafluoride up to [...] Read more.
Viscosity, density, and interfacial tension of three binary systems (carbon dioxide–isopropanol, argon–isopropanol, and sulphur hexafluoride–isopropanol) were measured at temperatures of 313.15 K and 333.15 K and at pressures up to 100 bar for carbon dioxide, and for argon and sulphur hexafluoride up to 500 bar. A vibrating tube densimeter method has been used for density measurements and a variable-volume high-pressure optical view cell with some modifications for the other measurements. The results showed that pressure does not have a high impact on viscosity. Density is found to be a linear function of pressure and temperature and the densities of the investigated binary systems increase with pressure and decrease with temperature. Interfacial tension decreased with the elevated pressure at a constant temperature for all the investigated systems. Accurate prediction of thermodynamic and mass transfer data is fundamental in various engineering and industrial operations to design processes with a higher yield of targeted compounds. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Multiphase Mass Transfer and Phase Equilibrium in Chemical Processes)
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19 pages, 5613 KiB  
Article
Characteristics of Gas–Solid Flow in an Intermittent Countercurrent Moving Bed
by Qingshuo Wan, Zhifeng Zhao, Ruojin Wang, Meng Tang, Dewu Wang, Shaofeng Zhang and Baisong Hu
Processes 2022, 10(10), 2116; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr10102116 - 18 Oct 2022
Viewed by 1408
Abstract
The calculation equations of pressure drop and solid flow rate are given in an intermittent countercurrent moving bed with multiple optimized structures. The flow fields are investigated by experimental methods under different conditions, e.g., ratio of position of the gas distributor to the [...] Read more.
The calculation equations of pressure drop and solid flow rate are given in an intermittent countercurrent moving bed with multiple optimized structures. The flow fields are investigated by experimental methods under different conditions, e.g., ratio of position of the gas distributor to the bed width (rp = 0.5~1.5), gas superficial velocity (ug = 0~0.1591 m/s), solid outlet diameter (Do = 5~25 mm) and cone angle (α = 0~60°). It is found that when rp ≥ 1.0, the flow field in the bed is little affected by rp. Flow patterns are divided into three modes: continuous discharging, intermittent discharging (synchronous, asynchronous) and particle bridging. During continuous discharging, the calculation formula of the solid flow rate, which is closely related to Do and gas–solid slip velocity vslip, is established by referring to the modified De Jong and Beverloo formulas, and its error ≤ ±12.5%. The pressure drop of the total bed consists of the pressure drops of the granular bed and the solid outlets, which are affected by Do, vslip and α; it is built by referring to the Ergun formula, and its error ≤ ±17.0%. As the solid flow rate and pressure drop influence each other through vslip, an iterative algorithm is proposed to enhance the computation accuracy. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Multiphase Mass Transfer and Phase Equilibrium in Chemical Processes)
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15 pages, 770 KiB  
Article
Accurate Effective Diffusivities in Multicomponent Systems
by William Q. Rios, Bruno Antunes, Alírio E. Rodrigues, Inês Portugal and Carlos M. Silva
Processes 2022, 10(10), 2042; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr10102042 - 9 Oct 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2527
Abstract
Mass transfer is an omnipresent phenomenon in the chemical and related industries for which effective diffusivities (Di,eff) constitute a useful and simple mathematical tool, especially when dealing with multicomponent mixtures. Although several models have been published for [...] Read more.
Mass transfer is an omnipresent phenomenon in the chemical and related industries for which effective diffusivities (Di,eff) constitute a useful and simple mathematical tool, especially when dealing with multicomponent mixtures. Although several models have been published for Di,eff they generally involve simplifying assumptions that severely restrict their use. The current work presents the derivation of accurate analytical equations for Di,eff, which take into account the nonideal behavior of multicomponent mixtures. Additionally, it is demonstrated that for an ideal mixture the new model reduces to the well-known equations of Bird et al., which are the exact analytical solution for ideal systems. The procedure for Di,eff estimation is described in detail and exemplified with two chemical reactions: the liquid phase ethyl acetate synthesis and the high pressure gas phase methanol synthesis. Relative to the Bird et al. ideal equations the effective diffusivities calculated with the new model show differences up to 38% for ethyl acetate synthesis when using UNIFAC model to evaluate activity coefficients. For methanol synthesis, deviations from −23% to 22% are found using PC-SAFT equation of state (EoS) and from −49% to 24% when applying the Peng–Robinson EoS to estimate fugacity coefficients. Comparisons are also performed with the models by Wilke, Burghardt and Krupiczka, Kubota et al., and Kato et al. The worst results are achieved by the Wilke and Kubota et al. equations for the liquid phase and gas phase reactions, respectively. Furthermore, it is shown that substantial errors in effective diffusivity calculations may occur when deviations from the ideal behavior are unaccounted for. This can be avoided by adopting the new rigorous approach here presented. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Multiphase Mass Transfer and Phase Equilibrium in Chemical Processes)
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17 pages, 6446 KiB  
Article
The Hydrodynamics of a Rod-Shaped Squirmer near a Wall
by Hao Ye, Jianzhong Lin and Zhenyu Ouyang
Processes 2022, 10(9), 1841; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr10091841 - 13 Sep 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1635
Abstract
The hydrodynamic characteristics of a rod-shaped squirmer swimming near a wall were studied numerically using the immersed boundary-lattice Boltzmann method in the swimming Reynolds number range of 0.1 ≤ Res ≤ 2.0, where the number of assembled squirmers was 2 ≤ i [...] Read more.
The hydrodynamic characteristics of a rod-shaped squirmer swimming near a wall were studied numerically using the immersed boundary-lattice Boltzmann method in the swimming Reynolds number range of 0.1 ≤ Res ≤ 2.0, where the number of assembled squirmers was 2 ≤ i ≤ 4 and the distance between two adjacent assembled squirmers was 0.75 ds ≤ 1.5 d (d is the diameter of a single squirmer). The effect of Res, i and s on the swimming mode of the squirmer was explored. The results showed that there are four swimming modes after the first collision between the rod-shaped squirmer and the wall. There are also four swimming modes when Res changes from 0.1 to 2.0. Puller, pusher and neutral squirmers showed different swimming modes when i changed, and the effect degree of the flow at the previous moment on the squirmer’s motion was different for different values of i. The change in s only affected the trajectory of the squirmer without changing its motion mode. Puller, pusher and neutral squirmers showed different swimming modes and velocity changes when s changed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Multiphase Mass Transfer and Phase Equilibrium in Chemical Processes)
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18 pages, 10381 KiB  
Article
Scale-Up Strategies of Jet Loop Reactors for the Intensification of Mass Transfer Limited Reactions
by Marc Maly, Steffen Schaper, Rafael Kuwertz, Marko Hoffmann, Joachim Heck and Michael Schlüter
Processes 2022, 10(8), 1531; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr10081531 - 4 Aug 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 4784
Abstract
For the purpose of the intensification of an industrial-scale gas-liquid process, the implementation in an alternative reactor concept is investigated at Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH) in cooperation with Ehrfeld Mikrotechnik GmbH. Existing process operation data from a bubble column hint at a [...] Read more.
For the purpose of the intensification of an industrial-scale gas-liquid process, the implementation in an alternative reactor concept is investigated at Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH) in cooperation with Ehrfeld Mikrotechnik GmbH. Existing process operation data from a bubble column hint at a mass transfer limitation of the gas-liquid reaction. In the project, a jet loop reactor (JLR) is chosen to increase the specific interfacial area between gas and liquid, and thus increase mass transfer, while keeping the reactor system mechanically simple and low-maintenance. For the investigation, a laboratory scale reactor has been designed on the basis of an existing industrial scale process and scaled according to a pilot scale reactor available at TUHH. For scaling, geometric similarity is desired, while specific energy dissipation rate and volumetric gas input are kept constant for the chosen scale-up strategy. Between the two different scales, the reactors are successfully characterised in a water-air system with regards to the important mass transfer, among other parameters. A pressure- and chemical-resistant twin of the laboratory-scale reactor is provided to the project partner for trials under real process conditions with the original material system. The presented work shows that the JLR concept can be transferred sufficiently well between different scales when suitable parameters are chosen, and offers a wide operating window. The investigations aim to provide a basis for a future scale-up of the chemical process in the JLR system to the industrial scale. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Multiphase Mass Transfer and Phase Equilibrium in Chemical Processes)
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13 pages, 3507 KiB  
Article
Phase Equilibrium of the Quaternary System LiBr-Li2SO4-KBr-K2SO4-H2O at 308.15 K
by Bin Li, Xinjun Jing and Junsheng Yuan
Processes 2022, 10(5), 823; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr10050823 - 21 Apr 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1758
Abstract
The phase equilibria of the reciprocal quaternary system LiBr-Li2SO4-KBr-K2SO4-H2O and its ternary sub-systems LiBr-Li2SO4-H2O and KBr-K2SO4-H2O at 308.15 K were studied [...] Read more.
The phase equilibria of the reciprocal quaternary system LiBr-Li2SO4-KBr-K2SO4-H2O and its ternary sub-systems LiBr-Li2SO4-H2O and KBr-K2SO4-H2O at 308.15 K were studied using the isothermal dissolution equilibrium method. Then, the solubility data of the equilibrium solutions were collected, and the phase diagrams were plotted. The phase diagrams of the ternary sub-systems at 308.15 K were compared with those at other temperatures. This study found that the phase diagram of the LiBr-Li2SO4-H2O system at 308.15 K consisted of an invariant point, two solid-phase crystallization regions of Li2SO4·H2O and LiBr·2H2O, and their corresponding solubility curves. The system generated two hydrated salts, which belonged to the hydrate type I phase diagram. The phase diagram of the KBr-K2SO4-H2O system at 308.15 K consisted of an invariant point, two univariant solubility curves, and two solid-phase crystallization regions of KBr and K2SO4, and no solid solution and double salts were formed. Thus, it belonged to a simple co-saturation type phase diagram. In the LiBr-Li2SO4-KBr-K2SO4-H2O system, K2SO4·Li2SO4 double salt formed at 308.15 K, and the phase diagram consisted of three invariant points, five crystallization regions, and seven univariant solubility curves. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Multiphase Mass Transfer and Phase Equilibrium in Chemical Processes)
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Review

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14 pages, 1489 KiB  
Review
Unified Approach for Prediction of the Volumetric Mass Transfer Coefficients in a Homogeneous and Heterogeneous Bubble Column Based on the Non-Corrected Penetration Theory: Case Studies
by Stoyan Nedeltchev
Processes 2022, 10(9), 1828; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr10091828 - 10 Sep 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1924
Abstract
A critical review on the improvement of penetration theory is presented in this work. The volumetric liquid-phase mass transfer coefficients kLa in seven different liquids (1-butanol, 2-propanol, anilin, decalin, nitrobenzene, tetralin, and ethylene glycol) aerated with air in a small bubble [...] Read more.
A critical review on the improvement of penetration theory is presented in this work. The volumetric liquid-phase mass transfer coefficients kLa in seven different liquids (1-butanol, 2-propanol, anilin, decalin, nitrobenzene, tetralin, and ethylene glycol) aerated with air in a small bubble column (BC) (inner diameter: 0.095 m) were measured at ambient conditions and further analyzed. It was found that the kLa values can be predicted satisfactorily on the basis of the classical Higbie’s penetration model. The gas–liquid contact time was defined as the ratio of the Sauter-mean bubble diameter to bubble rise velocity. Moreover, the experimental kLa values were well predicted, not only in the homogeneous regime, but also in the transition and heterogeneous regimes. This is a new finding, since to date, it was considered that the penetration theory needs a correction factor for a successful application to any liquid, even in the homogeneous regime. The predictions of the mass transfer coefficients kLa in the above-mentioned seven liquids imply that the mean bubble diameters are always ellipsoidal or spherical, which is the key condition for the applicability (without a correction) of penetration theory. In the presented (in this work) model-based kLa predictions, the Sauter-mean bubble diameters were estimated by means of the reliable correlation of Wilkinson et al., which always predicts a gradually decreasing bubble size at higher gas velocities. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Multiphase Mass Transfer and Phase Equilibrium in Chemical Processes)
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