Structured Packings in Liquid-Liquid Extraction

Abstract

Extractors equipped with structured packing are becoming more important in the chemical process industries. These devices provide high mass transfer efficiency and capacity relative to random packings and sieve trays. At the present time, many sieve tray extractors are being retrofitted with structured packings to enhance mass transfer efficiency and capacity. This paper will present a comparison of the performance of structured packing with sieve trays, some background on the commercial development of structured packings, and fundamental models required to design a liquid/liquid extractor equipped with structured packing.