Ind. Eng. Chem. Process Des. Dev.

1982, 21 353-355
I 353

i Conclusions

t 5*ot
L.01
In the absence of catalyst the oxidation reaction is kinetically
controlled and it is first order in O2 and first order with respect
to mercaptide.
The reaction shifts from the kinetically controlled,regime to
the diffusion controlled regime in the presence of activated carbon

3*0t
/-
\
E, particles.
-
m:3*0;
Acknowledgment
P
a -
2 2.0
One of the authors (S.K.P.) wishes to thank the Univ-
ersity Grants Commission for financial support.
01
Nomenclature
a* 1 . 0
00 ,' 0.1
4
' 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6
a = effective interfacial area per unit volume of the liquid,
cm2/cm3
[A*] = solubility of the solute gas in the solution, mol/cm3
[Bo] x103, mole /cm' [Bo]= concentration of the nonvolatile reactant, mol/cm3
k2 = second-order rate constant, cm3/mol s
Figure 3. Effect of concentration of mercaptide on the rate of k L = liquid-side mass transfer coefficient, cm/s
absorption at 32 O C : speed of agitation = 1400 rpm; partial pressure kSL = solid-liquid mass transfer coefficient, cm/s
of O2 = 0.953 atm; ionic strength = 1.0 g-ion/L. m = order of the reaction with respect to the solute gas

c
n = order of the reaction with respect to the nonvolatile
reactant
RAa = rate of absorption of the solute gas per unit volume
0.10 of the liquid, mol/cm3 s
f I Literature Cited
Bird, A. J. private communication, Johnson Matthey Research Centre,
Blount's Court, Sonning Common, Reading, England, 1976.
Chandrasekaran, K.; Sharma, M. M. Chem. Eng. Scl. 1977, 32, 669.
0 Danckwerts, P. V. "Gas-Liquid Reactions"; McOraw-Hill: New York, 1970.
Evans, E.; Leigh, D. private communication, Engelhard, Gioucestershire,E n g
land, 1981.
f 0.04 Gislon, A.; Quiqerez, J. M.; L'Orcher, G. (to Compagnie Francaise de Raffin-
age), U S . Patent 2823173, Feb 11, 1958.

,
U
Mashelkar, R. A.; Sharma, M. M. I. Chem. E . Symp. Ser. No. 28 1968, 10.
Moulthrop, B. L. (to Socony-Vacuum Oil Co., Inc.), U.S. Patent 2651 595,
Sept 8, 1953.
Siedeil, A. "Solubllltles of Inorganic and Metal Organic Compounds"; D. Van

-
Nostrand: New York, 1940.
00 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5
Siggia, S.; Hanna, J. G. "Quantitative Organic Analysis Via Functional
Groups"; Wlley: New York, 1978.
Slesser, C. 0. M.; Allen, W. T.; Cuming. A. R.; Fawlowsky, U.; Shllds, J. In
[Bo] x lo3, mole /cm3 "Chemical Reaction Engineering", Proceedings of the Fourth European
Symposium, Brussels, supplement to Chemical Engineerlng Science,
Figure 4. Effect of concentration of mercaptide on the rate of 1968; p 41.
absorption in the pressure of carbon as catalyst at 32 O C : speed of Wallace, T. J.; Schriesheim, A.; Jonassen, H. B. Chem. Ind. (London) 1963,
agitation = 1400 rpm; partial pressure of O2 = 0.953 atm; ionic 734.
strength = 1.0 g-ion/L; loading of carbon = 0.1% w/w;average Wallace, T. J.; Schriesheim, A.; Hurwitz, H.; Glaser, M. B. Ind. Eng. Chem.
Process D e s . Dev. 1964, 3, 237.
particle size = 1.7 X lo4 cm.
Department of Chemical Technology Subodh K. Pal
80% when the activated carbon loading (carbon A) was University of Bombay Man Mohan Sharma*
varied from 0.02590w/w to 0.2% w/w. These conditions Matunga, Bombay 400019, India
are comparable to those employed in our work. Thus the
observed increase in RAa with catalyst loading appears to Received for review August 24, 1981
be essentially due to the increase in the value of kLa. Accepted December 31, 1981

Mass Transfer Characteristics of Multiple Impeller Agitated Gas-Liquid Contactors

The effect of superficial gas velocity, V,, on a and kLa for a multiple impeller agitated contactor was investigated.
It was observed that a and kLa values were independent of V, and varied linearly wkh impeller speed. It appears
that a and k,a values obtained from single impeller are representative of multiple impeller contactors, under
otherwise uniform conditions.

A multiple impeller agitated contactor can be advanta-
geously used for gas-liquid contacting because of favorable
residence time distribution of the gas phase as compared
to a single impeller agitated contactor of the same volume
(Sullivan and Treybal, 1970). Further, the power con-
sumption per unit volume decreases with an increase in
number of impellers (Nienow and Lilly, 1979). Thus, a
beneficial effect would accrue by using multiple impeller
0198-4305/82/1121-0353$01.25/0
agitated contactors. In this work, the values of the effective
interfacial area, a, and the liquid-side mass transfer
coefficient, kLa, were measured by the chemical method
for different number of impellers, superficial gas velocities,
and speeds of agitation.
The theory of gas absorption accompanied by fast
pseudo-zero-order reaction (absorption of oxygen from air
in aqueous alkaline sodium dithionite solution) was used
0 1982 American Chemical Society
354 Ind. Eng. Chem. Process Des. Dev., Vol. 21, No. 2, 1982

Table I. Mathematical Models for Multiple Impeller Agitated Gas-Liquid Contactor

effective interfacial area liquid-side mass transfer coefficient
plug flow model for dxldh = -V[XI(l + X)]”2[B,]’/2 dX/dh = -0 [XI(1 + X ) ]
gas phase u = [SU(~DA~,H*P)”~]/G’ p = kLaH*PS/G’
b.c: h = 0, X = X,; h = h,, X = X, b.c: h = 0 , X = X e ; h = h,, X = X,
d[B,]/dt = -cY(X, - X,) d[B,]/dt = -cY(X,- X,)
CY = G’Z/VT 01 = G‘Z/VT

b.c: t = 0, [ B o ]= [BO]i;t = t g , [Bo] = [Bo]f b.c: t = 0, [Bo] = [B,]i; t = t g , [Bo] = [B,]f

stirred tanks in series Xn3 + Xnz(l - 2Xn-1) + + Xn(Xn-1 Wn-1 - x,z + Xn(@- x n - l + 1)- xn-l= 0
model for gas phase 6’[B,] + xn-lz) =0 @ = kLaH*PV/G’;X,, = X e ; X n = ~=, X,
fi = ( V U / G ’ ) ( ~ D A ~ , H * P=)X,;
~ / ~ ; X ~ [Bolf
= ~ = [Boli-CYtB(Xe-Xo)
Xn=N, = x o
d[B,]/dt = -cY(X,- X,) CY = G’Z/VT

CY = G’Z/VT

b.C: t = 0, [Bo] = [BO]i;t = t g , [Bo] = [Bolt b.c: t = 0, [Bo] = [BO]i;t = t g , [ B o ]= [BO]f

to measure a; the theory of absorption accompanied by n

3

slow chemical reaction (absorption of lean carbon dioxide

I

in sodium carbonate-sodium bicarbonate solution) was

used for measuring kLa. The concentration of sodium
dithionite used in the runs was less than 0.08 M so that
the reaction is first order with respect to dithionite and
zero order with respect to oxygen. A small quantity of
tricresyl phosphate (1mL/6.28 L of the absorbent solu-
tion) was UBed in all the runs as an antifoamingagent. The
details of the chemical methods are discussed elsewhere *-----
-0-----
(Jhaveri and Sharma, 1968; Sharma and Mashelkar, 1968). 0

Experimental Section
The experimental setup consisted of a 20 cm i.d., 100
cm tall Perspex contactor with standard axial baffles and
six-blade stainless steel disk turbines (diameter 10 cm) as -
impellers. The impellers were arranged such that the
lowermost one was 10 cm from the vessel bottom and the
others were spaced at intervals of 20 cm. A maximum of
3 impellers was used. The gas was introduced at the
bottom of the contactor through two 0.4-cm orifices. The
shaft was fixed at the bottom with a ball bearing and
passed through a gland and stuffing box at the top. The
speed of agitation was varied by a set of pulleys.
Experiments were carried out essentially under atmos-
pheric pressure in a semicontinuous manner. A batch of
the absorbent solution of known volume and concentration
was taken in the reactor. The gas with the fiesired com-
position was passed continuously for a known period of
time and the final composition of the absorbent was de-
termined by chemical analysis. Most experiments were
carried out such that the average temperature was 29 “C -
and the maximum rise in temperature was 5 “ C . A min- Y
>
c1

imum of 3 min was used for each run.

Results and Discussion
The experiments in this study were carried out in a
semibatch manner, and hence the concentration of sodium
dithionite in the reactor decreases with time. This results
in an increase in the outlet partial pressure of oxygen from
the reactor. These factors have to be accounted for in the
model for the calculation of a and kLa. Hence, a simplified
model assuming an average dithionite concentration during
the run for the calculation of a and kLa is not justified.
The contactor was modeled assuming the liquid phase
to be completely backmixed (Geerlings, 1957). The gas
phase was assumed to be backmixed for each impeller
stage. However, for the sake of comparison, the model
based on the assumption of plug flow for the gas phase was
also used. Typically, the a values based on the stirred
tanks in series model were about 5% higher than those
Figure 2. Effect of impeller speed on the effective gas-liquid in-
terfacial area and the liquid-side mass transfer coefficient.
based on the plug flow model. kLa values differed by about
20 % . The values of a and kLa reported in this paper are
based on the stirred tanks in series model, as this model
appears to be more realistic. The mathematical equations
are given in Table I. The differential equations were
solved by the Runge-Kutta method and the algebraic
equations were solved by using the Newton-Raphson
technique.
The effects of superficial gas velocity on a and kLa were
studied at four different speeds of agitation. A typical plot
of a and kLa vs. V , at 1080 rpm is shown in Figure 1. It
can be seen that a and kLa are practically independent of
 Ind. Eng. Chem. Process Des. Dev. 1982, 21, 355-356
VG at 1080 rpm. Similar results were obtained at 255,530,
and 730 rpm. The effect of impeller speed on a and kLa
is shown in Figure 2. Values of a and kLa vary linearly
with the impeller speed in the range studied in the present
work (fitted by least squares criterion-correlation coef-
ficient >0.95).
The above results are in agreement with the earlier work
on single stage contactors (Westerterp et al., 1963; Mehta
and Sharma, 1971). The effect of VGon a and kLa depends
on the hydrodynamic regime of operation. Above a certain
speed of agitation, referred to as the critical speed of ag-
itation, the effect of superficial velocity on a and kLa is
negligible and below the critical speed of agitation, there
will be a significant effect. Further, in the case of non-
coalescing systems (as was the case in this investigation),
the critical speed of agitation will be substantially lower
than that in the case of coalescing systems. The speeds
of agitation in this work were higher than the critical speed
of agitation, and hence the insignificant effect of VG on
a and kLa is quite reasonable (Westerterp et al., 1963;
Mehta and Sharma, 1971). It can be seen from Figures
1 and 2 that a and kLa are not affected by the number of
impellers for the geometry considered in the present work.
This is an important observation, but this finding should
be considered as tentative and further work should be
carried out in, say, a 60 cm diameter contactor. It may
be stressed that even in the case of the single stage con-
tactors, there is need for data from contactors equal to or
greater than 60 cm diameter.
Conclusions
In the range of variables studied in the present work,
the following conclusions could be drawn for a multistage
gas-liquid contactor: (1) superficial gas velocity has
practically no effect on the values of a and kLa,above the
critical speed of agitation; (2) kLa and a vary linearly with
the impeller speed; and (3) it appears that the values of
a and kLa obtained from single impeller contactors are
representative of multiple impeller contactors, under
otherwise uniform conditions. This should be considered
as a preliminary finding.
Nomenclature
a = effective gas-liquid interfacial area cm2/cm3of clear liquid
CORRESPONDENCE
Comments on “Simple Conversion Relationships for Noncataiytlc Gas-Solid Reactions”
Sic En a recent paper (1980), Lee developed a simple
-
conversion relationship for noncatalytic gas-solid reactions
A(g) + bB(s) pP(g) + gG(s)in which the pore structure
undergoes a change due to the reaction. The conversion
relationship is a function of the physical parameters of the
solid reactant system and is given by
0196-4305/82/1121-0355$01.25/0
355
[Bo]= concentration of the reactive species in the liquid phase,
g-mol/cm3
DA = diffusivity of the solute gas in the liquid, cm2/s
G’ = molar flowrate of inerts in the gas phase, g-mol/s
h = height of the liquid column, cm
h, = height of clear liquid, cm
H* = Henry’s constant for the solute gas in the liquid, g-
mol/cm3 atm
k~ = true liquid-side mass transfer coefficient, cm/s
kl = first-order rate constant, s-l
N = impeller speed, rpm
N , = number of stages
P = operating pressure, atm
S = cross-sectional area of the column, cm2
t = time, s
tB = batch time, s
V = volume of each stage, cm3 of clear liquid
VG= superficialgas velocity at the inlet of the contactor, cm/s
VT = total volume of the reactor, cm3 of clear liquid
X = mole ratio of the solute gas, moles of solute gas/mole of
inert gas
2 = stoichiometric factor for the gas-liquid reaction
Subscripts
e = entrance
f = final
i = initial
n = stage number
o = outlet
Literature Cited
Geeriin@, M. W. Ph.D. Thesis, Darmstadt, Germany, 1957. (See Westerterp
et ai., 1963).
Jhaveri, A. S.; Sharma, M. M. Chem. Eng. Sci. 1968, 23, 1.
Mehta, V. D.; Sharma, M. M. Chem. €178.Sci. 1971, 26, 461.
Nienow, A. W.; Liily, M. D. Bbtech. B h n g . 1979, 27. 2341.
Sharma, M. M.; Mashekar, R. A., “MassTransfer with Chemical Reaction”,
Pirie, J. M., Ed.; Proceedings of a Symposium presented at the Tripartite
Chemical Engineering Conference, Montreal, Canada, 1968, Institution of
Chemical Engineers, U.K., p 10.
Sullivan, G. A.: Treybai, R. E. Chem. Eng. J . 1970. 7 , 302.
Westerterp, K. R.; Van Dierendonck, L.; Dekraaa, J. A. Chem. €47. Sci.
1963, 78, 157.
Department of Chemical K. A. Ramanarayanan
Technology M. M. Sharma*
University of Bombay
Matunga, Bombay-400 019, India
Received for review June 15, 1981
Accepted November 16,1981
where Z is the conversion, De is the effective diffusivity
of the gaseous reactant in the solid reactant, k is the rate
constant of surface reaction, y is the half-thickness of a
parallel pore, to is the porosity of solid reactant at time
zero, g is the stoichiometric coefficient, MG is the molecular
weight of solid products G, Co is the concentration of
reactant at the mouth of the pore, pG is the density of G,
EG is the porosity of G, qavBis the average effectiveness
factor, and y is the molal volume ratio defined by eq 4b
in Lee. It is convenient to rewrite this equation as
22+EZ=Ft (2)
0 1982 American Chemical Society