Effect of viscosity on homogeneous–heterogeneous flow regime transition in bubble columns

Experiments were performed in a cylindrical 0.14m diameter bubble column with a metal perforated plate. Air and aqueous solutions of glycerol with viscosity 1–22mPa s were the phases. Gas holdup was measured and plotted against the gas flow rate. The critical point where the homogeneous–heterogeneous regime transition begins was determined by the drift-flux plot of the primary data. The homogeneous regime stability was expressed by the critical values of the gas holdup and gas flow rate. The results show that moderate viscosity (3–22 mPa s) destabilizes the homogeneous regime and advance the transition. The results indicate that low viscosity (1–3 mPa s) could stabilize the homogeneous regime. The destabilizing effect of the column height proved previously for air–water system applies also to viscous batches.Comissão Europeia (CE) - Marie Curie Training Site Fellowship Contract Number HPMT-CT-2000-00074.Grantová agentura České republiky (GA CR) - Grant No. 104/01/0547

Euler-euler simulation of gas-liquid and gas-liquid-solid airlift reactors : case study

The Czech Science Foundation / Grantová agentura České republiky (GACR) - GA104/07/1110, GA104/06/1418

Effect of surfactants on homogeneous regime stability in bubble columns

Grant Agency of the Czech Republic (GA CR) - Grant No. 104/01/0547.European Commission - Maria Curie Training Sites Project (MCTS)- Contract No. HPMT-CT-2000-00074

Effect of solids on homogeneous–heterogeneous flowregime transition in bubble columns

Experiments were conducted to study the effect of the presence of the solid phase on the homogeneous–heterogeneous flow regime transition in a bubble column 0.14m diameter. Air, distilled water and calcium alginate beads (2.1 mm, 1023 kg/m3) at concentrations c=0–30% (vol.) were the phases. The basic data were the voidage–gas flow rate dependences. The critical point, where the homogeneous regime loses stability and the transition begins, was evaluated by the drift flux model. The critical values of voidage and gas flow rate were the quantitative measures of the homogeneous regime stability. These were plotted against the solid phase concentration. It was found, that both the voidage and the critical values increased with the solid content at low solid loading, approx. c=0–3%, and decreased at higher loading, c>3%. The homogeneous regime was thus first stabilized and then destabilized. To explain this dual effect, possible physicalmechanisms of the solid phase influence on the uniform bubble bed were discussed

Effect of solids on flow regime transition in three-phase bubble columns

In bubble column reactors there are two principal flow regimes [1,2,3], the homogeneous (HoR) and the heterogeneous (HeR). These reactors have different behaviour in HoR and HeR, thus the dependences of the rates of mass, heat and momentum transfer on the design and operating parameters (such as reactor geometry, gas and liquid flow rates and properties of the contacting phases) are also very different. Therefore, for rational reactor design and operation it is of crucial importance to know the range of parameters over which a certain regime prevails and the regime transition conditions [4]. The effect of the presence of solids on gas holdup in bubble columns has been extensively investigated. Most of the published work reports that the gas holdup decreases with increasing solid concentration [5-14]. However, a favourable effect of solids on gas holdup has been also observed by Douek et al. [15]. In spite of all these efforts, information on the effect of solids on homogeneous-heterogeneous regime transition is very scarce. Krishna et al. [16] found that the transition gas holdup was significantly reduced due to the presence of silica particles. Xie et al. [17] reported that as pulp consistency is increased, the regime transition is delayed. The goal of this work was to examine the influence of solid particles on homogenous regime stability and regime transition in a three phase bubble column. For that, two studies were done, one focused on the regime transition and the other on visualization of bubbleparticle interaction. The regime transition experiments were performed in a cylindrical bubble column of 0.14 m diameter. Air, distilled water and calcium alginate beads (deq=2.1mm) at concentrations up to 30%(v/v) were the phases. The dependence of the gas holdup (e) on the gas flow rate (q) was measured. At low solid loading, the experimental data e(q) show a slight increase of gas holdup with solid concentration, which is not normally observed. At higher solid loading, a significant reduction of gas holdup with solid concentration is observed. This suggests that solid concentration could play a dual role in the homogeneous regime stability: low concentrations stabilize, while high concentrations destabilize. The critical point, where the HoR loses stability and the transition begins, was evaluated using the drift flux plot. The critical values of gas flow rate and voidage were the measures of the homogeneous regime stability. For low solid volume fraction, a stabilizing effect of the presence of solids is shown by an increase in the critical values, while for higher solids volume fraction ( φ s>3%) the critical values decrease, witnessing a destabilizing effect of the solids. The visualization study was performed in a 0.07 m diameter cylindrical bubble column, using a standard and high-speed cameras. This work shows important phenomena that result from the bubble-particle interactions, which partly explains the regime transition results. At low solid loading, bubble-particle collisions lead to reduction of bubble rise velocity that results in higher gas holdup and a delay of the transition. At higher solid loading, the bubble coalescence rate increases with the solid content that decreases the gas holdup and advances the transition.Commission of the European Communities for the Marie Curie Training Site - contract No. HPMT-CT-2000-0074

Effect of solid particles on flow regimes in bubble columns

Grantová agentura České republiky (GA ČR) - Grant No. 104/04/0827.Economic Community (EC) - BEMUSAC Project No. G1MA-CT-2002-04019.Institute of Chemical Process Fundamentals - Marie Curie Training Site Fellowship - Contract Number HPMT-CT-2000-00074