Liquid–solid mass transfer for cocurrent gas–liquid upflow through solid foam packings

✍ Scribed by P. W. A. M. Wenmakers; J. van der Schaaf; B. F. M. Kuster; J. C. Schouten

• Publisher: American Institute of Chemical Engineers
• Year: 2010
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 692 KB
• Volume: 56
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0001-1541
• DOI: 10.1002/aic.12204

✦ Synopsis

This article presents the liquid-solid mass transfer characteristics for cocurrent upflow operated gas-liquid solid foam packings. Aluminum foam was used with 10, 20, and 40 pores per linear inch (PPI), coated with 5 wt % Pd on c-alumina. The effects of gas velocity (u g ¼ 0.1À0.8 m 3 g m À2 r s À1 ) and liquid velocity (u l ¼ 0.02 and 0.04 m 3 l m À2 r s À1 ) are studied using the Pd/Bi catalyzed oxidation of glucose. The volumetric liquid-solid mass transfer coefficient, k ls a ls , is approximately the same for 10 PPI and 20 PPI solid foams, ranging from 2 Â 10 À2 to 9 Â 10 À2 m 3 l m À3 r s À1 . For 40 PPI solid foam, somewhat lower values for k ls a ls were found, ranging from 6 Â 10 À3 to 4 Â 10 À2 m 3 l m À3 r s À1 . The intrinsic liquid-solid mass transfer coefficient, k ls , increases with increasing liquid velocity and was found to be proportional to u 0:98 l . Initially, k ls decreases with increasing gas velocity and after reaching a minimum value increases with increasing gas velocity. The values for k ls range from 5.5 Â 10 À6 to 8 Â 10 À4 m 3 l m À2 i s À1 , which is in the same range as found for random packings and corrugated sheet packings. V