Mass transfer performance of structured packings in a CO2 absorption tower

This paper studies the mass transfer performance of structured packings in the absorption of CO2 from air with aqueous NaOH solution. The Eight structured packings tested are sheet metal ones with corrugations of different geometry parameters. Effective mass transfer area and overall gas phase mass transfer coefficient have been measured in an absorption column of 200 mm diameter under the conditions of gas F-factor in 0.38–1.52 Pa0.5 and aqueous NaOH solution concentration of 0.10–0.15 kmol·m?3. The effects of gas/liquid phase flow rates and packing geometry parameters are also investigated. The results show that the effective mass transfer area changes not only with packing geometry parameters and liquid load, but also with gas F-factor. A new effective mass transfer area correlation on the gas F-factor and the liquid load was proposed, which is found to fit experiment data very well.     

新型垂直板规整填料流体力学及传质性能

采用氧解吸实验,在直径190 mm的有机玻璃塔内,液相喷淋密度10～38 m³·m^-2·h^-1,F因子0.2～3.2 m·s^-1·（kg·m^-3）^0.5的实验条件下测定了一种新型垂直板规整填料的流体力学及传质性能。实验结果表明：垂直板填料的操作压降及传质性能均显著优于商业波纹填料。通过与几种经改进的250型波纹填料相比发现,两者泛点F因子整体上相当;在较高液体喷淋密度下,垂直板填料传质性能及压降均高于改进250型波纹填料;在低喷淋密度下,垂直板填料可实现压降低于改进250型波纹填料,而两者传质性能相当。此外,对填料结构改进对其性能的影响进行了单因素考察。     

Computational Fluid Dynamics Simulation of 13CO Distillation in Structured Packing

Physical 3D models were established for corrugated packing used in the enrichment of the isotope ¹³C. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation results indicated that common corrugated packing was not well wetted when used for isotope distillation. It is concluded that liquid misdistribution in the packed tower results from the structure of the packing rather than from the height of the packing beds. The existence of entrainment was also demonstrated by CFD simulation. It is proved that mass transfer equations based on the Nusselt theory are not suitable for distillation calculation in such a corrugated packing system. By comparison, the recently developed structured packing model with a corrugation geometry based on the right‐angled triangle, known as Zigzag‐pak, describes vapor‐liquid distribution properties well and has significant advantages over common corrugated packing due to its better liquid distribution character.     

液相流动方式对波纹规整填料性能的影响

根据液相在波纹规整填料片上呈现渗流、膜状流等不同的流动方式,选择5种不同的波纹规整填料对其流体力学和传质性能进行研究,以探究液相在波纹片上的流动方式对波纹规整填料性能的影响.研究结果表明,液相呈渗流流动的泡沫碳化硅波纹规整填料(SCFP型)有利于液体横向扩散和液膜均匀分布,当液相喷淋密度和气相F因子均较小时,其压降最低,传质效率最高;液相主要呈渗流流动、兼有膜状流动的双层错孔丝网填料(DMⅢ型)有利于波纹片两侧液体交换,强化液体在流动过程中的扰动,其压降及传质性能略逊于SCFP型填料;液相主要呈膜状流动的BX型、DMⅠ型及DMⅡ型填料波纹片表面液膜较厚,横向扩散能力差,其传质效率低于SCFP型和DMⅢ型填料.研究揭示了依靠渗流作用的波纹规整填料具有较好的应用性能,为波纹规整填料的进一步发展开拓了新思路.     

Direct numerical simulation of reactive absorption in gas–liquid flow on structured packing using interface capturing method

Direct numerical simulations are performed in order to study physical and reactive absorption in gas–liquid flow on structured packing. The volume of fluid method is used to capture the gas-liquid interface motion. The mass transport is computed by additional chemical species concentration transport equation with adequate modelling of solubility and chemical reaction. The numerical difficulties arise in imposing jump discontinuity for chemical concentrations at the interface due to different solubility. These difficulties are solved by an original method using a continuum mechanical modelling of two phases flow and Henry's law with constant coefficient. The present study shows how the mass transfer is affected by the complex geometry considered here and by the flow conditions. The results show firstly that the liquid side mass transfer is well predicted by the Higbie theory and the exposure time of a typical element of volume near the interface corresponds to ratio between characteristic length and velocity of the interface provided that the real velocity of the interface is used. For the considered geometry, the transfer is found to be increased compared to the transfer of a plane liquid film. Finally, for the case where the mass transfer is accompanied by second order irreversible chemical reaction in the liquid phase, the numerical results are compared to approximate solution presented by Brian et al. [1961. Penetration theory for gas absorption accompanied by a second order chemical reaction. A.I.Ch.E. J. 7, 226–231] and good agreement is observed.     

改性塑料规整填料的流体力学和传质性能研究

主要研究了不同比表面积和开孔率塑料规整填料表面处理前后的流体力学和传质性能。结果表明：经过表面改性后,传质性能可提高约20%～35%,开孔填料经表面改性后阻力不会增加,并且在低喷淋密度时传质效率提高显著。     

Transient state techniques for mass transfer characterization of a gas-liquid packed column

We designed and built a flexible gas-liquid pilot plant to evaluate the performances of different packings. Dynamic methods involving transferable and non-transferable tracers were used to achieve this goal. A model taking into account axial dispersions in both phases represented the packing mass transfer performances. Mass transfer coefficient, liquid and gas phases axial dispersions and holdup were estimated by performing a time domain fitting of the model response to experimental data. This method has been applied successfully to a commercially available packing (polypropylene Ralu flow 25 from Raschig).     

Mass transfer in structured corrugated packing

The performance of structured corrugated packing has been simulated by establishing mechanistic models for liquid distribution, liquid flow on the packing surface and mass transfer. The models were used to investigate the effect of packing height, liquid load, initial maldistribution as well as differing initial distribution and solid-liquid contact angle on the packed column performance. Wetted surface area is the primary value of interest and the simulated results compare very well with those predicted by Onda (1968). The results clearly demonstrate that the wetted surface area is a strong function of the solid-liquid contact angle. Other predicted values such as mass transfer coefficients and overall height of a transfer unit show reasonable agreement with published data.     

Hydrodynamik und Stofftransport in einem Perlschnurreaktor für Gas/Flüssig/Fest‐Reaktionen

In this work, a pellet string reactor was characterized with respect to hydrodynamics and mass transfer. The catalyst packing consists of a cylindrical channel with a diameter of 1.41 mm, which was filled with spherical catalyst particles, having an outer diameter of 0.8 mm. Under reaction conditions (liquid phase hydrogenation of α‐methylstyrene) overall (gas‐liquid‐solid) volumetric mass transfer coefficients for hydrogen between 0.8 and 5.5 s^–1 were computed. Due to high mass transfer rates and simple reactor geometry, pellet string reactors can be applied in industry as highly efficient reaction units.     

塑料花心球填料流体力学及传质性能研究

在φ600填料塔中。用空气-氨-水系统分别对φ30、φ40花心球形填料进行流体力学及传质特性实验研究。结果表明此种填料由于各向同性,对液体有良好的分散作用,其性能与同尺寸环矩鞍相当。     

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.     

塑料花环填料的流体力学及传质性能研究

本实验用空气-水-氨体系,在内径为φ600 mm的塔中,对塑料花环填料进行了流体力学及传质特性的测试。结果表明花环填料通量大、压降低、在高液体负荷下具有极好的传质性能,而且耐腐蚀、不易堵塞。实验测定的塔填料因子和传质系数有设计参考意义。     

立装规整填料的性能研究

以空气-水为工质研究了立装规整填料的流体力学性能;利用CO_2-空气-水体系研究其传质性能,并与相同试验条件下的平装规整填料进行对比。结果表明,在相同条件下,2者的压降没有明显变化,但立装填料比平装填料的壁流量和液相总传质单元高度分别降低了10.7%和17.4%,其流体力学和传质性能均优于平装填料。     

Investigation of multiphase hydrogenation in a catalyst‐trap microreactor

BACKGROUND: Multiphase hydrogenation plays a critical role in the pharmaceutical industry. A significant portion of the reaction steps in a typical fine chemical synthesis are catalytic hydrogenations, generally limited by resistances to mass and heat transport. To this end, the small‐scale and large surface‐to‐volume ratios of microreactor technology would greatly benefit chemical processing in the pharmaceutical and other industries. A silicon microreactor has been developed to investigate mass transfer in a catalytic hydrogenation reaction. The reactor design is such that solid catalyst is suspended in the reaction channel by an arrangement of catalyst traps. The design supports the use of commercial catalyst and allows control of pressure drop across the bed by engineering the packing density. RESULTS: This paper discusses the design and operation of the reactor in the context of the liquid‐phase hydrogenation of o‐nitroanisole to o‐anisidine. A two‐phase ‘flow map’ is generated across a range of conditions depicting three flow regimes, termed gas‐dominated, liquid‐dominated, and transitional, all with distinctly different mass transfer behavior. Conversion is measured across the flow map and then reconciled against the mass transfer characteristics of the prevailing flow regime. The highest conversion is achieved in the transitional flow regime, where competition between phases induces the most favorable gas–liquid mass transfer. CONCLUSION: The results are used to associate a mass transfer coefficient with each flow regime to quantify differences in performance. This reactor architecture may be useful for catalyst evaluation through rapid screening, or in large numbers as an alternative to macro‐scale production reactors. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry     

A new approach to fluid separation modelling in the columns equipped with structured packings

An analogy between the flow patterns in real separation columns equipped with structured packing and film flow is used to develop a new modelling approach. The packing is represented as a bundle of channels with identical triangular cross section. The dimensions of the channels as well as their number are derived from the packing geometry. The channel inner surface is wetted by a liquid flowing downwards, whereas the rest of the volume is occupied by a countercurrent vapour flow. Both phases are assumed to be totally mixed at regular intervals, determined by the corrugation geometry of the packing. The mathematical model is based on a set of partial differential equations describing hydrodynamics and mass and heat transport phenomena. These equations are complemented by the conjugate boundary conditions at the phase interface. A numerical solution of the model yields velocity profiles as well as concentration and temperature fields throughout the column. The model is verified using experimental data for a binary distillation in a column equipped with Montz-Pak A3-500.     

亲水无纺布PVC复合规整填料除湿性能实验

将亲水无纺布PVC复合规整填料作为溶液除湿塔芯体,开展亲水无纺布PVC复合规整填料除湿性能实验,分析在不同空气流量、溶液流量、溶液温度下,亲水无纺布PVC复合规整填料除湿率、除湿效率、传质系数和传热系数的变化。在实验条件下,除湿率、除湿效率、传质系数、传热系数最大值分别为11.05 g·kg^-1、86.7%、12.95 g·(m²·s)^-1、10.33 W·(m²·℃)^-1;与CELdek规整填料和塑料波纹孔板填料相比,亲水无纺布PVC复合规整填料除湿性能最优。对实验数据回归分析,得到亲水无纺布PVC复合规整填料除湿效率实验关联式。     

CFD Study on the Local Mass Transfer Efficiency in the Gas Phase of Structured Packing

Visualization of local mass transfer coefficients over the dry surface of corrugated‐sheet structured packing is essential for optimizing the existing geometry of structured packing and for improving mass transfer efficiency to develop new structured packing. The local flow patterns between packing sheets and the gas‐phase mass transfer coefficient at each point over the surface are illustrated by employing a wall‐surface reaction model. Different turbulence models are utilized, i.e., a standard κ‐? model and three different low‐Re‐κ‐? models. The numerical calculation results with the Lam‐Bremhorst low‐Re‐κ‐? turbulence model is found to agree well with experimental data. There are three similar regions with enhanced mass transfer efficiency in each mass transfer unit cell of structured packing.     

Effects of Gas‐Agitation and Packing on Hydrodynamics and Mass Transfer of Extraction Column

The effects of gas‐agitation and packing on hydrodynamics and mass transfer were investigated through experiments with air‐kerosene (benzoic acid)‐water system and corrugated‐packing of calendering plate with hole. The holdup of gas, holdup of dispersed liquid phase and mass transfer coefficient increase and the flooding velocity decrease with the increase in superficial gas velocity. Over‐agitation of gas causes over‐dispersion and emulsification of dispersed liquid phase, reduction of mass transfer performance and even flooding. The mass transfer performance of a packed column is far better than that of an unpacked column.     

Experimental and CFD Simulation Study for the Wetting of a Structured Packing Element with Liquids

The hydrodynamics of liquid flow in packed columns affects the column performance from the point of view of heat and mass transfer. The interfacial and the specific wetted areas are decisive in this case. The complex three‐dimensional liquid flow on a single structured and flat packing element of Rombopak 4M was investigated. It consists of four connected wavy inclined plates in an X‐shape configuration. The geometric characteristics of the packing were related to the fluid mechanics of the liquid distribution. CFD simulation results for different cell sizes and flow rates, obtained using the VOF (volume of fluid) model, are presented as being capable of describing this complex geometry. With the help of the CFD simulation and the experimental results from Rombopak 4M, correlations from the literature describing the interfacial and wetted area and liquid holdup in packed columns were adjusted to describe the hydrodynamic performance of Rombopak 4M.     

A study of mass transfer in a packed bed reactor by electrochemical technique

Electrochemical method was used to study the mass transfer between the solid particles and the flowing liquid in a packed bed. From the limiting current of a single active particle immersed in inactive glass particles of the same size and shape, the mass transfer coefficients can be derived.Various size and shape of packing particles were used. The experimental results indicate that smaller packing particles have higher mass transfer coefficient. In the meantime, spherical packing particles have higher mass transfer coefficients than cylindrical particles of the same equivalent diameter. However they approach each other when liquid flowing velocity is increased.The wall-effect of the reactor on mass transfer was also observed.