Ch.

E-220; Mass Transfer

Lecture 2 Mass Transfer Operations

Presented By Shahid Hussain Ansari Lecturer, Chemical Engineering Deptt. School of Chemical & Materials Engineering (SCME) National University of Sciences & Technology (NUST)
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Mass transfer

Mass transfer deals with the transfer of one or more components from one phase to another because of conc. gradient and caused by the application of a separating agent .

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Types of mass transfer operations

Mostly used mass transfer operations are : Distillation Absorption Liq-Liq extraction Leaching Ion-exchange Adsorption Desorption Membrane Separation Dialysis & electro dialysis
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Distillation
Distillation is a technique to separate by

vaporization a liquid mixture of volatile and miscible substance into individual components Separation of constituents is based upon difference in volatility Examples: Separation of the mixture of alcohol and water into its constituents Liquid air into nitrogen, oxygen and argon Crude petroleum into gasoline, kerosene, high quality diesel oil and lubricating oil etc
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Equilibrium Staged Operation

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Multiple Equilibrium Staged Operation

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An Ideal Stage
T2 T1

Purpose of a separation process is to increase product

purity and quality Flash distillation cannot always satisfy this purpose Pressure remains constant in each stage
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Multiple Stages

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Gas Absorption
In gas absorption, a soluble vapor is absorbed by

means of liquid Examples: Washing of ammonia from mixture of ammonia and air by means of liquid water Removal of gaseous hydrogen sulfide or carbon dioxide and mercaptans from natural gas or synthesis gas in fertilizer industry or thermal power plants
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Plate Absorption Column

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Two methods of contacting the gas and liquid are possible: SCME, NUST February 8, 2012 counter-current operation and co-current operation.

Liquid Liquid Extraction

Liq-liq extraction involves the treatment of a mixture

by a solvent that preferentially dissolves one or more of the components in the mixture Examples: Petroleum refining: removes heavy aromatic compounds Metallurgy: concentrating the metal Fats & oils processing: recovery of oil from residues by mechanical pressing.
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(a) Packed-tower extractor (b) Perforated-tray extractor SCME, NUST

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Leaching
In leaching soluble matter is dissolved from its

mixture with an inert solid by means of a liquid solvent Examples: Industrially used in the manufacture of instant coffee to recover the soluble coffee from grounds Extraction of oil from soya beans using hexane as solvent Recovery of uranium from low grade ores by extraction with sulfuric acid or sodium carbonate solution
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Selection criteria for mass transfer operations

When faced with the problem of separating components out of homogeneous mixture THE CHEMICAL ENGINEER should bring the following factors under consideration:
Phase characteristics Diffirence in properties of the mixture

Cost & availability of the process & construction

material Energy requirements

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Phase characteristics
The primary difference between the various stage

operations is the nature of the two phases involved in each operation When the initial phase is the liquid, then the possible MT operations are DISTILLATION & LIQ-LIQ EXTRACTION When the starting phase is a gas ,the most commonly used MT operation is ABSORPTION When the constituents of a solid are to be separated the simplest MT operation is LEACHING
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Difference in properties of a mixture

The various chemical and physical properties of the constituents of the mixture are examined to determine which properties offer the greatest difference among components, because greater difference in a property will generally permit an easier separation Distillation & LLE both can be used for separating components of the liquids. So when a choice is to be made b/w the two, consideration should be given to the diff. in physical & chemical properties SCME, NUST February 8, 2012

 If the diff. in relative volatility is well above unity ,the choice

is distillation. For close boiling liquids where diff in volatility is not appreciable LLE is preferred which makes use of the difference in solubility instead of volatility.
Substance which cannot withstand the temperature of

distillation even under vacuum, may be separated by extraction which utilizes chemical difference instead of vapor pressure differences.

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Economics
When either distillation or extraction may be used, the choice is usually distillation in spite of the fact that heating and cooling are needed. In extraction the solvent must be recovered for reuse (usually by distillation) and the combined operation is much more expensive than ordinary distillation.

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Equipment selection

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Stage concept
A stage may be defined as a unit of equipment in which dissimilar

phases are brought into intimate contact with each other separated
During

&

contact various diffusing components of mixture redistribute themselves b/w phases. The resultant phases are assumed to be at equilibrium therefore have diff compositions from initial phases the physical characteristics of the phases themselves, degree of separation possible and economic feasibility

Equipment for mixing and separating the two phases depend upon

Some industrial equipments may consist of a single stage but more

often multistage units are employed with countercurrent flow. Multistage operations permit greater changes in the composition of SCME, NUST two phases that can be accomplished in a single stage February 8, 2012

Distillation equipments

Distillation is mostly carried out in columns fitted with trays /plates. However, sometimes packed columns can also be employed for the distillation process

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Plate columns
Plate columns are used when: Have to operate over wide range of liquid flow rates Working under stressed conditions of temperature variations and pressure Working with dirty fluids having solid particles Plate towers are preferred if inter-stage cooling or heating is required Systems which contain sludge & fats, such systems must processed in plate columns For side stream removal and fluctuating feed loads, the plate columns are employed Problem of liquid distribution in a columns is usually avoided by using the tray towers
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Types of trays used in tray columns

Different types of plates/trays are used in tray columns for gas/liquid contact. Some of them are as follows: Bubble cap tray Sieve tray/perforated plates Valve trays

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Tray Comparison
Sieve trays Valve trays Relative cost Pressure drop Efficiency Vapor capacity 1.0 Lowest Lowest Highest 1.2 Bubble cap trays 2.0

Intermediate Highest Highest Highest Highest Lowest

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Packed Column
Packed columns are generally less expensive & have lower pressure drop than plate columns Packed columns are best option for distillation whenever: The separation is easy The required column dia. is not very large because packed columns tends to be less expensive than plate columns for small column diameter Corrosive chemical handling is required, using cheap ceramic packing material Handling of foaming liquids is desirable Vacuum operation is to be carried out Short delivery requirements
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Packing Material
The packing material increases the interfacial area

and considerably increase the mass transfer rate compared with that obtained in spray columns They are satisfactorily used in petroleum industry but cant be used in metallurgical processes bcoz of very high flow rates encountered

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Packed towers cant be used for:

Dirty fluids or suspensions

High viscosity fluids

High liquid flow rates

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Equipments for gas absorption

The same plate and packed towers are used for gas/liquid contacting in gas absorption .The merits and demerits being the same as for distillation operation

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Liquid-liquid extraction equipments

Essentially there are two types of design by which

effective multistage operation may be obtained. Stage wise contactors These equipment includes a series of physical stages in which the phases are mixed and separated. Differential contactors In which the phases are continuously brought into contact with complete phase separation only at the exit from the unit.
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Differential contacting equipments are:

Spray columns
Packed columns Perforated or sieve plate columns Centrifugal extractors

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Stage wise equipments include :

Mixing settler Baffle plate columns

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Spray columns
They are simple in construction There are two methods of operating spray columns: Lighter phase may be dispersed and heavier is

continuous. Heavier phase may be dispersed and lighter is continuous. The phase with higher flow rates may be dispersed to give a greater interfacial area, but if there is significant difference in viscosities, more viscous phase may be dispersed to give high settling rate.
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Disadvantages of spray columns:They are inefficient and poor in performance because of the reasons: Considerable recirculation of the continuous phase takes place and true counter current flow is not maintained Little turbulence in continuous phase and lack of interphase renewal Limit to the amount of dispersed phase that can pass through tower for given flow rate of continuous phase may cause flooding.
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Centrifugal extractors
If phase densities are nearly equal, settling is very slow so that

centrifuge may be needed.

Centrifuge supplies force that is much greater than the force of

gravity.
In this unit mixing and separation stages are contained in the

same unit which operates as a differential contactor.

Centrifugal extractors are expensive and find limited use. They have advantages of providing many theoretical contacts

in a small space and for very short hold-up times so that they are valuable in the extraction of sensitive products such as vitamins and antibiotic.
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Mixing settler
Mechanical mixers are used to disperse the phases more

thoroughly than is possible in a sieve tray column. after thorough mixing the two phase mixture is passed to a settling tank where the phases are allowed to separate by gravity settling.
The degree o f mixing is independently variable by changing

the speed and shape of the impeller ,although thorough mixing is desirable, an emulsion that cannot be separated by gravity settling may form if mixing is too vigorous.
Mixer settlers are used purification of uranium in nuclear

energy industry.
They are also successfully employed in metal extraction

processes. SCME, NUST

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Thank You
Shahid Hussain Ansari E-mail: [email protected] +923336175398

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