The effect of asphaltene content on solvent selection for bitumen extraction by the SESA process

Bitumen is a complex mixture, containing a high proportion of poorly soluble asphaltenes. Unpredictable precipitation of this component can cause process problems during bitumen extraction. Consequently, the selection of an appropriate solvent is an important factor in the optimization of bitumen separation by solvent extraction. This aspect is discussed in the context of bitumen extraction from oil sands using the solvent extraction spherical agglomeration (SESA) process. The SESA process is a solvent extraction method which utilizes concurrent particle aggregation in order to overcome difficulties normally encountered in solid-liquid separation in the presence of fines.     

Prediction of minimum velocity and minimum bed pressure drop for gas-solid fluidization in conical conduits

Experimental investigations have been carried out for spherical and non-spherical particles using beds comprised of single-sized particles and mixtures in the size and particle density ranges of 439 to 1524 μm and 1303 to 4948 kg/m³, respectively. Five conical fluidizers with varying apex angles of 8.86, 14.77, 19.60, 32.0 and 43.2 degrees were used. Experimental values of minimum velocity and bed pressure drop with air as the fluidizing medium have been compared with their respective values obtained from different models available in the literature. Deviations for each chosen model have been presented.     

Kinetics and mechanism of oligomerization of cardanol using acid catalysts

The kinetics and mechanism of oligomerization of cardanol over acid catalysts were studied. GPC results showed the formation of a mixture of oligomers such as dimer, trimer, tetramer, etc. IR spectra of the products of oligomerization showed a decrease in the intensity of the double bond absorption band at 1630 cm^?1 and the disappearance of terminal vinyl bands at 895 cm^?1 and 907 cm^?1. ¹H NMR spectra showed drastic changes in the unsaturated proton resonance signals at 5.5δ with respect to saturated protons at 0.2–2.5δ. The ratio of resonance integrals of unsaturated to saturated protons decreased from 1 : 6.5 to 1 : 20 after oligomerization. GPC studies showed that the rate of formation of the dimer, trimer, tetramer, etc. follow an identical path and that the individual oligomers are formed in the same weight percentage at any time during the reaction. A kinetic scheme is proposed to explain this phenomenon. Kinetic studies showed that the oligomerization reaction follows first order kinetics with respect to the monomer concentration and the rate constant is K = 6.6 × 10^?5s^?1. A probable mechanism for the oligomerization of cardanol is proposed.     

Acetylene Hydrogenation on Au-Based Catalysts

Hydrogenation of acetylene has been investigated on Au/TiO₂, Pd/TiO₂ and Au-Pd/TiO₂ catalysts at high acetylene conversion levels. The Au/TiO₂ catalyst (avg. particle size: 4.6 nm) synthesized by the temperature-programmed reduction-oxidation of an Au-phosphine complex on TiO₂ showed a remarkably high selectivity to ethylene formation even at 100% acetylene conversion. Au/TiO₂ prepared by the conventional incipient wet impregnation method (avg. particle size: 30 nm), on the other hand, showed negligible activity for acetylene hydrogenation. Although the Au catalysts showed a high selectivity for ethylene, the acetylene conversion activity and catalyst stability were inferior to the Pd-based catalysts. Au-Pd catalysts prepared by the redox method showed high acetylene conversions as well as high selectivity for ethylene. Interestingly Au-Pd catalysts prepared by depositing Pd via the incipient wetness method on Au/TiO₂ showed very poor selectivity (comparable to mono-metallic Pd catalysts) for ethylene. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy (TEM) studies coupled with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) showed that while the redox method produced bimetallic Au-Pd catalysts, the latter method produced individual Pd and Au particles on the support.     

A Parametric Study of the Gas Flow Patterns and Drying Performance of Co-current Spray Dryer: Results of a Computational Fluid Dynamics Study

A computational fluid dynamic study was carried out to investigate airflow pattern, temperature, and humidity profile at different levels in the drying chamber. Good agreement was obtained with published experimental data. The effects of operating pressure, heat loss from the chamber wall and inlet air conditions on the gas flow pattern, droplet trajectories, and overall dryer performance also were investigated. Results are presented and discussed in terms of the gas velocity, temperature, and humidity profiles within the chambers. The volumetric evaporation values, heat transfer intensity, and thermal energy consumption per unit evaporation rate were computed and compared for drying of a 42.5% solids solution in a spray chamber 2.215 m in diameter with a cylindrical top section 2.005 m high and a bottom cone 1.725 m high. Wall regions subject to formation of undesirable deposits are also identified.     

CORRELATION FOR ESTIMATING SOLUBILITY OF OXIDIZED COAL IN ETHANOLAMINE

The effect of reaction time in aerial oxidation of Assam coal on variation in moisture with wt% solubility in ethanolamine is presented. The effects of variation in helium density, specific energy, carboxyl acidity, and acid equivalent values on wt% solubilities of oxidized coal in ethanolamine are also highlighted. It is observed that progressive increase of oxidation time caused an increase in the moisture content and wt% solubility of oxidized coal in ethanolamine. The solubility of oxidized coal is found to correlate linearly with helium density, specific energy, acid equivalents, and carboxyl acidity on univariate basis with correlation coefficients of 0.88, 0.996, 0.992, and 0.995, respectively.     

Synthesis and properties of star-like wholly aromatic polyester fibers

Novel star-like wholly aromatic copolyesters having four arms based on a tetraamine star core, p- and m- hydroxybenzoic acids and 6-hydroxy-2-naphthoic acid have been successfully synthesized and spun into fibers for the investigation of the effect of the star-like structure on improving compressive properties of the fiber. The reactivity of the star core was demonstrated using a model compound with FTIR, ¹H and ¹³C NMR spectroscopy. The ¹³C NMR spectrum of the star-like terpolymer having a molar ratio of 10:1 of the monomers to star core showed a characteristic peak at around δ62 ppm which corresponds to a tetra-substituted carbon and thereby demonstrates that the star core was really incorporated into the polymer. The star-like copolyester exhibited a clear stir opalescence and liquid crystalline morphology in the temperature range of 150-280 °C. However, no transition was observed in the DSC thermogram except a clear T_g at 110 °C. The star-like terpolymer fiber, prepared from a polymer with a molar ratio of 500:1 for the monomers to imide core, was spun in the liquid crystalline state at 180 °C. Fiber structure and properties have been studied.     

Studies on high-performance blended/multiblended cements and their durability characteristics

Number of blends were prepared by intergrinding clinker, gypsum, fly ash, calcined clay, microsilica and limestone in laboratory ball mill in varying percentages, and their physical properties such as fineness, consistency, setting time and compressive strength have been determined. The durability tests on selected compositions were also conducted by exposing the mortar cubes separately in 5% Na₂SO₄ and 5% NaCl solutions till the age of 90 and 180 days. The performance was observed by compressive strength development criteria after various length of exposure. Results have been discussed and found that the durability of blended cement is higher than the ordinary Portland cement.     

A class of discontinuous dynamical systems IV. A laboratory air-water system

An air-water experimental system consisting of two inlets and one outlet is constructed and characterised. It reaches the state of sliding mode, or equivalently, two phase slug flow. The linear hydraulic model proposed in the literature is adequate to describe it. Experimental data are used to tune this model. The resistance to the flow of air through the outlet valve during the two phase flow is much larger than that when air alone flows out. At the operating range, the resistance to water flow is not affected by the presence of air.     

Rubber–clay nanocomposite by solution blending

Ethylene vinyl acetate rubber (45% vinyl acetate content, EVA‐45) and organomodified clay (12Me‐MMT) composites were prepared by solution blending of the rubber and the clay. A combination of X‐ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy studies showed that the composites obtained are on the nanometer scale. The measurements of the dynamic mechanical properties for different compositions over a temperature range (?100 to +100°C) showed that the storage moduli of these rubber–clay nanocomposites are higher above the glass to rubber transition temperature compared to the neat rubber. The tensile strength of the nanocomposites is about 1.6 times higher than that of the EVA‐45. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 87: 2216–2220, 2003