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Lecture 10 (Mass Transfer Coefficients) New

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Keerthana D S
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UNIT II: Mass Transfer Coefficients

Introduction to mass transfer coefficients and


classification

Theories of mass transfer and dimensional analysis

Analogy between heat, momentum & mass transfer

Interphase mass transfer & concept of equilibrium

Concepts of material balance and operating line for


stage-wise and continuous mass transfer operations
Mass Transfer Coefficient
Kinetic theory of gases adequately explains
molecular diffusion in gases and predicts mass
transfer rates.

Similarly, the rates of molecular diffusion in liquids


can be adequately predicted using equation
derived by analogy with similar diffusion in gases.
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Well understood phenomena in stagnant fluid or


in laminar flow.

Molecular diffusion models are inadequate to


explain:
Mass transfer across interphase boundaries
Mass transfer in turbulent flow past solid
surfaces

Mass flux in such situations is expressed in terms


of mass transfer coefficients.
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Mass Transfer Coefficient
Mass transfer coefficients are used:
In complex situations such as interphase mass transfer (gas-liquid
contact in absorption and distillation columns)
In mass transfer involving turbulent flow (dissolution of a solid in a
mechanically agitated reactor)
In situations when simplifying assumptions yield unreliable results.

Hence, rate of mass transfer involving both molecular and eddy diffusion
can be represented in terms of mass transfer coefficient as:

(or)

Mass transfer coefficient has the dimension of mole/(unit time)(unit area)


(unit driving force)
Mass Transfer Coefficient
Mass transfer coefficient is the inverse of resistance to mass transfer and
is analogous to heat transfer coefficient.

The only difference between mass transfer coefficient and heat transfer
coefficient is that the driving force considered for heat transfer coefficient
is only temperature difference, whereas for mass transfer coefficient, it
may be concentration difference, or partial pressure difference or mole
fraction difference.

In situations involving both molecular and eddy diffusion, mass transfer


coefficients are used to estimate rates of mass transfer.

Definition: Mass transfer coefficient is the diffusion rate constant, that


relates mass transfer rate, mass transfer area and the driving force.

It assumes large changes in concentration near the boundaries and that


the solution is well mixed far from the boundaries.
Mass Transfer Coefficient
Consider that mass is transferred from an interphase into a well mixed
solution.

Thus the rate of mass transfer is given by:

Rate = k x Interfacial area x Concentration difference

Where, k is the proportionality constant called mass transfer coefficient.

Then, we have:

Where, NA is the flux at the interface


CAi is the concentration at the interface
CAb is the concentration at the bulk of the solution.

Units for k will be m/s if the concentration is expressed in kmol/m3.


Mass Transfer Coefficient
Consider a turbulent flow of water through a
circular pipe the inside of which is coated with a
thin layer of salt (slightly soluble in water).

The salt transfers from the wall into the water


stream.

In the region immediate to the wall, the flow is


laminar and mass transfer is due to molecular
diffusion.
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Outside the laminar flow region (major portion of the liquid cross section), a
turbulent core exists.

Here the solute diffuses primarily due to eddy diffusion which is the
movement of large aggregates of fluid moving rapidly from one position to
another carrying the solute with them.

Transfer of solute from the wall into the core is partly via molecular diffusion
(near the wall) and eddy diffusion (in the turbulent region).
Mass Transfer Coefficient
The rates of transfer are proportional to the concentration gradient and
hence the mass flux in turbulent transport can be written analogous to Fick’s
law of molecular diffusion as:

……………(1)

Where, DAB is the mass diffusivity (for molecular diffusion)


ED is the eddy diffusivity (in the turbulent zone)
is the concentration gradient in the radial direction

However, even though DAB is a constant at a given T and P, ED is a function


of T, P, nature of the constituents, position and flow patterns.

But it is very complex to mathematically describe flow patterns and hence Eq


(1) does not have practical use for the calculation of mass transfer rates.

Also, the relative contributions of eddy diffusion and molecular diffusion to


the overall rates are not well known.
Mass Transfer Coefficient
To overcome these difficulties, it is customary to express mass transfer in
turbulent flow in terms of mass transfer coefficients, defined as:

For equimolar counter diffusion:

Mass or molar flux = k’ x concentration difference

For diffusion of one component through a stagnant component:

Mass or molar flux = k x concentration difference

Different ways of expressing the driving force are:


Difference in molar concentration
Difference in partial pressure for diffusing gases
Difference in mole fractions of the diffusing components
Types of Mass Transfer Coefficient
• Mass transfer occurs in gas/liquid phase
• Choice of the driving force (concentration, partial pressure, mole fraction).
• Diffusion of A through non-diffusing B/ equimolar counter diffusion

For example, kc represents the mass transfer coefficient in gaseous systems


with molar concentration difference driving force, given by:

where, CAi is the molar concentration of A in the fluid-solid interface and CAb
is the concentration of A in the bulk of the fluid.

Units of kc can be found by substituting the units for NA (kmol/m2s) and C


(kmol/m3), which gives m/s as the unit for kc.

If the driving force is mole fraction , then ky is used


Similarly,

If partial pressure is the driving force , then kG is used.


Relationship between Mass Transfer Coefficients
For diffusion of A through stagnant B, we have:

Equating the three equations, we get:

For equimolar counter diffusion, we have:

Equating the three equations, we get:


Types of Mass Transfer Coefficient
Film Coefficient of Mass Transfer
Now consider mass transfer of solute A from the surface of a solid to a fluid
moving in turbulent flow past the solid surface.

Rapid decrease in concentration is observed as the distance from the wall


increases.

from CAi to CAb is assumed to be within the


In film theory, the entire concentration change

fictitious film of thickness Z.

Also, the mass transfer is in a steady-state i.e.,


the concentration change is linear with distance.

Extending the film coefficient concept to also


represent convective mass transport, the film
coefficient of mass transfer would be
Film Coefficient of Mass Transfer
For equimolar counter diffusion we have:

For this, mass transfer coefficient k’ is defined


as:

Therefore, …..means film coefficient of mass


transfer is the mass transfer coefficient.
Film Coefficient of Mass Transfer
For diffusion of A through stagnant B, we have:

For this, mass transfer coefficient k’ is defined as:

Therefore, …..means film coefficient of mass transfer represents the mass


transfer coefficient.

Comparing k’y and ky, we see that:

ky will represent the film coefficient of mass transfer only when yBM is unity or
in mass transfer in dilute solutions.

yBM is a correction factor to account for the bulk flow contribution to the
molar flux.

Therefore, when there is no bulk flow, we get:


Relationship between Mass Transfer Coefficients
Since we already know that:and

We can also derive the following relationships:

For gases:

(or)

For liquids:

(or)
Problem 11
Show that the mass transfer coefficients kx and kL for liquid phases are
related as
Solution to Problem 11
For diffusion of liquid A through stagnant liquid B, we have:

Therefore, …..(1)

The molar concentration is related to the density and molecular weight of the
solution as

Substituting C in Eq (1), we get:


Problem 12
Show that the mass transfer coefficients k’x, kx and kL for liquid phases are
related as
Solution to Problem 12
For diffusion of liquid A through stagnant liquid B, the molar flux is given by:

………(1)

In terms of mass transfer coefficient kx and kL, the molar flux is given by:

………(2)

Comparing Eqs (1) and (2), we get:

…….(3)

The film coefficient for liquid systems is given by:

Substituting in Eq (3), we get:


Thank you

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