Experimental Study of Ice Jam Thickening under Dynamic Flow Conditions

River ice jams are a common occurrence on northern rivers, and their formation can present a severe flood risk to nearby communities. As more and more river regulation projects are developed to provide an alternative to fossil fuels for electrical power-generating capacity, our need to understand the mechanisms associated with ice jam formation under variable flow conditions becomes more vital. This is because, at present, hydropeaking operations are often severely curtailed during the ice-affected seasons due to concerns that sudden flow fluctuations might instigate ice jams and associated flooding. Here, an experimental investigation explores the effects of rapid increases in discharge on ice jam formation and evolution. It is found that the thickness of ice jams formed under highly dynamic flow conditions tend to be slightly thinner than those formed during steady carrier flows for comparable discharges. Also, despite the highly dynamic nature of these consolidation events, the resulting ice thicknesses appear reasonably well approximated by steady flow theory.     

Bench-Scale Testing of Nanofiltration for Seawater Desalination

A dual-staged nanofiltration process is being evaluated as an alternative to reverse osmosis for seawater desalination. The primary goal of this system is to reduce energy consumption while producing potable water at an acceptable recovery rate. Investigation of this system at the bench-scale level focused on membrane surface characterization, ion rejection (including boron, bromide, and iodide rejection), and flux decline. Results from this study showed that two commercially available nanofiltration membranes can effectively desalinate seawater. Although fouling was apparent—and resulted in approximately 20% flux decline over 3 days—a critical flux was not identifiable. Operation of the system at different cross-flow velocities revealed the significance of hydrodynamic conditions on the polarization modulus, and hence on membrane performance.     

Hydrothermal Modeling Studies of Cooling Tower Alternatives

The Environmental Effects Committee of the ASCE Energy Engineering Division has been developing a report on “Energy Production and Reservoir Water Quality” for publication. The report covers the regulatory framework that dictates much of the procedures for studies related to this topic, the fundamental reservoir hydrodynamics and water quality modeling used in preparing studies, the kinds of studies that can be prepared at different levels of analysis, and a series of applications that illustrate the problems encountered and applications of the various techniques. This study of hydrothermal modeling as applied to examining cooling tower alternatives for an existing steam electric station on a moderately large reservoir is included in this report and is presented here as an illustration of the types of studies included. This particular study subtended the usual steam electric plant cooling water discharge studies that relate to specific regulatory thermal plume size standards, and had to be designed around developing plant and cooling tower operations that would meet specific fisheries requirements for a zone of passage and refuge for fishes throughout the receiving embayment. After being used in developing cooling tower and plant operating details for the designers to work with, it was required that the hydrothermal modeling results be verified under actual tower operating conditions. In addition, it was required that the impact of the combined operations on dissolved oxygen be examined in detail. This paper covers the background to setting up the study, the kinds of statistical comparisons used to verify the hydrothermal studies, and similar studies for the analysis of dissolved oxygen distributions.     

Modeling flotation separation in a semi-batch process

A model for a semi-batch flotation separation process has been developed, based on available microprocess probabilities, and compared to experimental data obtained using a WEMCO laboratory flotation cell. In general, the model predicts the correct experimental trends. In many cases, the model also predicts removal efficiency very well. Parametric studies reveal that the model predictions are sensitive to a stability parameter, the turbulent energy density in the flotation cell, the contact angle between the solid particle and fluid, and the ratio of initial-to-critical film thickness.     

A study of solid circulation rate in a circulating fluidized bed

An experimental investigation under cold condition was made to study the effects of some operating/design parameters and non-mechanical L valve configuration on the solid circulation rate in a 4.5 m tall, 0.15 m diameter circulating fluidized bed with riser flow rate varying from 1400 litres/min to 2000 litres/min and bed inventory from 15 kg to 25 kg of sand of average sizes 200 μm, 400 μm and 500 μm. Solid circulation rate was estimated by measuring velocity of sand particle travelling through a vertical Perspex tube section at the bottom of the return leg. It was found to be in the range of 2.8 to 12.3kg/m²s, 0.07 to 9.1kg/m²s and 0.12 to 2.23kg/m²s for sand sizes of 200 μm, 400 μm and 500 μm, respectively for a horizontal L valve. Two mathematical correlations have been developed from the experimental results to predict solid circulation rate as a function of riser flow rate, aeration flow rate, total bed inventory and particle size used.     

Improvement of oxygen mass transfer estimation from oxygen concentration measurements in bubble column reactors

An original procedure has been established for estimating the overall volumetric mass transfer coefficient using the oxygen concentration curves resulting from the usual gassing-in and gassing-out method. This procedure was applied to experimental data obtained in a small scale bubble column using both tap water and a coalescence-inhibiting liquid mixture that represents the coalescence behavior of biological media. It is based on the analysis of the characteristics times of the system, including those of the hydrodynamics of the two phases, the sensor dynamics and the system inertia when the gas composition is modified. A numerical procedure was developed to estimate the characteristic time of the system inertia t_i, using the assumption that this inertia is nearly independent of superficial gas velocity U_G. The calculations confirmed that the optimized t_i value was nearly independent of U_G and of the coalescence behavior of the liquid phase. Additionally, the resulting K_La_L values for tap water were closer to the correlation of Shah et al. [1982. Design parameters estimations for bubble column reactors. A.I.Ch.E. Journal 28, 353-379] than those of other conventional models. Finally, the original procedure was also reported to reduce significantly the square sum deviation between the predicted and the measured oxygen response curves.     

The Effect of Ozone Gas-Liquid Contacting Conditions in a Static Mixer on Microorganism Reduction

The effect of gas-liquid contacting conditions in a static mixer on ozone transfer efficiency and reduction of Bacillus subtilis spores was studied in an experimental ozone contactor. An empirical mathematical model was developed that related the transfer efficiency in the experimental system to the superficial liquid velocity in the mixer, the gas-liquid flow rate ratio and the height of the down-stream bubble column. Spore reduction was determined primarily by the dissolved ozone concentration-time (C_avgt_m) product in the reactive flow segment and was independent of the gas-liquid contacting conditions in the static mixer. In an integrated ozone contacting system, the static mixer should be designed to maximize ozone mass transfer while the reactive flow segment should be designed for efficient microorganism reduction.     

A Draft-Tube Conical Spouted Bed for Drying Fine Particles

A study has been conducted on the performance of a draft tube conical spouted bed for drying fine particles. Batch operation has been performed with nonporous, porous, and open-sided draft tubes in order to ascertain the optimum configuration of this internal device. The nonporous draft tube requires the lowest minimum spouting velocity. Nevertheless, the solid circulation rate and the drying efficiency of the open-sided draft tube are superior to any other spouted bed configuration. Moreover, it allows for reducing the height of the fountain and, consequently, the height of the drying equipment.     

Enhancement of hydrocyclone performance by controlling the inside turbulence structure

A new hydrocyclone was designed with a winged core fixed below the vortex finder in this study. With the winged core, the turbulence structure characteristics inside the hydrocyclone, including time-averaged pressure, pressure fluctuation, relative pressure fluctuation characteristics, and distribution characteristics of the probability density of the turbulence pressure, were all positively controlled. By controlling the turbulence structure, the performance of the new hydrocyclone was improved effectively. Compared with the common hydrocyclone, the new hydrocyclone was featured with lower energy loss coefficient, higher reduced separation efficiency, higher separation sharpness and larger capacity.     

Characteristics of the reactive distillation column with a novel internal

A new catalyst loading method, in which catalyst particles are packed in a reactor with a novel internal, has been studied by measuring pressure drop, RTD, liquid holdup and mass transfer. It can be inferred from experimental results that the internal changes the conventional gas and liquid counter-current flow into a new cross-current flow, so the problems of excessive pressure drop and “flooding” are avoided. When pressure drop, liquid holdup, RTD and mass transfer coefficient are similar, the catalyst loading fraction of the new method is much higher than that of conventional methods. Furthermore, the reactive distillation reactor with the novel internal has advantages such as simple structure, low operating cost, and convenience for installation and removal of the catalyst.