A deep U-tube for treating drinking water is composed of a coaxial inner tube serving as an efficient concurrent down-flow ozone dissolver and an outer column carrying out reactions between ozone and organic substances dissolved in the water after sedimentation treatment. In the present study, we developed a novel simulation model of the U-tube reactor, assuming that the U-tube is composed of a plug flow section (inner tube) followed by a tanks-in-series section (outer bubble column) and taking into account the reactions involved, and the effects of the hydrostatic pressurization on the flow and absorption equilibrium for the ozone and inactive gases in developing the mass balance models. We constructed an algorithm to evaluate the U-tube reactor performance based on the mass balance models. The hydrodynamics and mass transfer characteristics in the inner tube were measured and their correlations were incorporated in the simulation model. Available literature data and correlations on the rates of reactions between ozone and organic substances, the gas-liquid equilibrium for the active and inactive gases and the fluid mixing properties are also incorporated in the simulation model. The simulation results well explained the available data on the ozone absorption efficiency and the removal efficiency of odorous material (2-MIB) in a pilot plant and a real U-tube reactor. It is found that the ozone absorption is practically a single function of the gas/liquid ratio, while the decomposition efficiency of 2-MIB is a single function of the ozone dose for the water quantity to be treated
