Droplet velocity,size, and local holdup measurements in an extraction column by tri‐sensor optical probe

The tri‐sensor optical probe was applied to study the hydrodynamic characteristic in a pulsed sieve plate extraction column. Two immiscible liquids consisting of the dispersed phase (kerosene) and continuous phase (water) were introduced in countercurrent operation. Local parameters such as droplet velocity, drop size, and holdup of the dispersed phase were obtained. It was found that the tri‐sensor optical probe could be used as an efficient and convenient technique for measuring local hydrodynamic parameters inside the pulsed sieve plate extraction column. Furthermore, the results indicated that pulsation intensity imposed more influence on these hydrodynamic parameters than two‐phase superficial flow rates in the investigated ranges. Experimental results were found to be in good agreement with the empirical correlations reported in literature. © 2015 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 61: 3958–3963, 2015