Does the fluid elasticity influence the dispersion in packed beds?

Reasons are given why the axial dispersion in a gas flowing through a packed bed may be influenced by the elasticity - or compressibility - of the fluid. To support this hypothesis, experiments have been done in a packed column at pressures from 0.13 to 2.0 MPa. The elasticity E of a gas is proportional to the pressure P and the compressibility to 1/P. The axial dispersion coefficients as determined were found to be a function of the pressure in the packed bed in the turbulent flow region of 3 < Rep < 150 if the Bodenstein number is plotted as a function of the particle Reynolds number. This is shown to be an artifact. The pressure influence is eliminated, if Bom, ax is plotted versus the ratio of the kinetic forces over the elastic forces u2/E. Regrettably, Bom, ax seems to be independent of u2/E. For the moment we only can conclude that Bom, ax in the turbulent region is a unique function of the velocity of the gas which flows through the packed bed. Although the fact that a constant Bo value is obtained when plotted against u2/E, the experimental results are so intriguing we wanted to make them public already now. The experimental work proceeds

The preparation and properties of lanthanum-promoted nickel-alumina catalysts:Structure of the precipitates

Precursors of La-promoted Ni-alumina catalysts have been prepared by precipitation from their nitrate solutions at pH 7 using solutions of NH4HCO3, Na2CO3 or K2CO3. The preparation was carried out either by coprecipitation from a mixed salt solution or by sequential precipitation of Al3+, La3+ and Ni2+ in succession. In the absence of promoter, the precipitate with Ni/Al ratio of 2.5 is of the pyroaurite structure and has the composition Ni5Al2(OH)14CO3.4H2O. Two types of lanthanum-containing precipitate were made in which either extra La was added (Ni/Al kept constant at 2.5) or the proportion Ni/(Al+La) was kept constant at 2.5. The majority of these precipitates were single compounds which also had the pyroaurite structure. At high La contents, the series in which La is added gives separation of the compounds La2O(CO3)2 and LaONO3 in addition to the layer structure; with the series in which the La is substituted for Al, all the samples appeared to have the pyroaurite structure, even one in which no Al was present. The sequential precipitation route yields smaller crystallites than does coprecipitation. Materials precipitated with NH4HCO3 in all cases contained NH4NO3 while those precipitated with Na2CO3 gave inclusion of NaNO3. In both cases, the presence of the nitrates causes a decrease of crystallinity of the layer compound. Potassium is not included in the precipitate in any of the samples examined. A model is presented for the structure of the lanthanum-containing precipitates

Selective Hydrogenation of Acetylene in an Ethylene Stream in an Adiabatic Reactor

In earlier studies the behavior of single catalyst pellets of Pd on alumina has been investigated for the reaction of acetylene in an ethylene stream with hydrogen. Particle runaway, temperature over- and undershoots and chemically induced temperature oscillations have been observed. After that, the steady state and dynamic behavior of an adiabatic packed bed reactor has been studied experimentally. Temperature profiles of both the gas and solid phase as well as local temperature differences between the two phases were measured. Also here the temperature in the reaction zone exhibited oscillatory behavior. On addition of CO, the oscillations disappeared and the selectivity improved. For a given set of operating conditions, there existed a relatively small range of CO contents with good selectivity and satisfactory conversion. This range depends strongly on the inlet temperature. The dynamic response of the reactor to changes in the CO content showed a considerable wrong-way behavior. This high sensitivity to fluctuations in the CO content, found for our experimental reactor, indicates a probable cause for a thermal runaway in industrial practice. Recommendations for a stable reactor operation are given

Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation Targeting the Entire Motor Network Does Not Increase Corticospinal Excitability

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) over the contralateral primary motor cortex of the target muscle (conventional tDCS) has been described to enhance corticospinal excitability, as measured with transcranial magnetic stimulation. Recently, tDCS targeting the brain regions functionally connected to the contralateral primary motor cortex (motor network tDCS) was reported to enhance corticospinal excitability more than conventional tDCS. We compared the effects of motor network tDCS, 2 mA conventional tDCS, and sham tDCS on corticospinal excitability in 21 healthy participants in a randomized, single-blind within-subject study design. We applied tDCS for 12 min and measured corticospinal excitability with TMS before tDCS and at 0, 15, 30, 45, and 60 min after tDCS. Statistical analysis showed that neither motor network tDCS nor conventional tDCS significantly increased corticospinal excitability relative to sham stimulation. Furthermore, the results did not provide evidence for superiority of motor network tDCS over conventional tDCS. Motor network tDCS seems equally susceptible to the sources of intersubject and intrasubject variability previously observed in response to conventional tDCS