5/17/2016

Mass Transfer Coefficient

Applications
Wetted Wall Column

©UST Ch.E. Department

Learning Outcomes
To identify a wetted wall column and
how it is used
To solve the mass transfer coefficients
using a wetted wall column for:
Evaporation of a liquid to a gas
Absorption of a pure gas by a liquid

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What is a Wetted Wall Column?

A falling-film column (or wetted-wall column)
is a chemical equipment used to achieve
mass and heat transfer between two fluid
phases (in general one gas phase and one
liquid phase).

©UST Ch.E. Department

Wetted Wall Column

have been used as absorbers for
Hydrochloric acid, Ammonia,
Acetone, Benzene and other
volatile liquids.
Height is excessive, thus is not
widely used where large quantities
of liquid or gas have to be handled
Used in Chem Engg Lab to find
the mass transfer coefficient
©UST Ch.E. Department

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Evaporation of a Liquid to a Gas

WETTED Gas Out
WALL
COLUMN • The column contains
one gas stream and
one liquid stream.
• The liquid forms a
Liquid In thin film that covers
the inner surface of
the column
• the gas stream is
normally injected
from the bottom of the
column, so the two
fluids are subjected to
a counter-current
Liquid Out exchange of mass and
Gas In heat

Evaporation of a Liquid to a Gas

Gas Liq’d Working Equations:
NA = kG (PAi – PA) = Mass flux at any section
PAi PAi = partial pressure of A at interface
= vapor pressure of A at T (at the interface
the gas is saturated with A
PA = partial pressure of A at the bulk
of the gas (increases from bottom
PA
NA to top of the column)
NAt = kGm (PAi – PA)LM
NAt = Net Flux across the column
= kgmoles/sArea
AT =  D L ©UST Ch.E. Department

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Evaporation of a Liquid to a Gas

In the equations: Point 1 = bottom Point 2 = top
(PAi – PA)1 - (PAi – PA)2
(PAi – PA)LM =
(P – P )
ln Ai A 1
(PAi – PA)2
kGm = mean MTC = 0.5(kG1+ kG2)
Gilliland & Sherwood Equation for kG: See Eq’n 14-171/14-83 Perry
kG RT D PBLM
= 0.023 NRe0.83 NSc0.44 = NSh
DAB P

NRe = D G NSc =  D Sherwood No.
 AB
Reynolds No. Schmidt No. ©UST Ch.E. Department

Exercise
A wetted wall column (Diameter = 50 mm) will be used
to evaporate water into air at 35oC and 1 atm. Dry air
enters the bottom at 10 kg/m2-sec and leaves the top of
the column with a partial pressure of water of 2 kPa.
Diffusivity of water in air at 0oC is 0.22 cm2/s.
Determine the mean mass transfer coefficient, kG.

©UST Ch.E. Department

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Solution
50
D P 1 R 0.08205 T 35 273 T  308
1000

2
G 10 Pa2 Pa1 0 Pa2  0.0197385 Mair 29
101.325

G   2  4
V' D V'  6.770673810
Mair 4

Pa2 Pa1
V'  5
E E  1.363337310
P Pa2 P Pa1

Ekgperh E 3600 18 Ekgperh  0.8834426

©UST Ch.E. Department

Solution

Mair
P 0.019 0.001   1.9 10
5
air air  1.1475423 
R T

1.75
T
2.58 10  
5 5
Dab Dab  2.719024410
298.9

DG  4 
Nre Nre  2.631578910 Nsc Nsc  0.6089362
 air  Dab

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Solution
Pb1 P Pa1 Pb1  1 Pb2 P Pa2 Pb2  0.9802615

23.756
Pai1 Pai2 Pai1 Pai1  0.0312579
760

Pbi1 P Pai1 Pbi1  0.9687421 Pbi2 P Pai2 Pbi2  0.9687421

Pbi1 Pb1 Pbi2 Pb2

Pb1m Pb2m Pb2m  0.9744905
Pbi1 Pbi2
ln ln Pb1m  0.9842883
Pb1 Pb2

©UST Ch.E. Department

0.023 Nre  Nsc

0.83 0.44
Nsh1 Nsh2 Nsh1 Nsh1  86.242044
Dab  P  Nsh1  3
kG1 kG1  1.885430410
R T  D  Pb1m
Dab  P  Nsh2  3
kG2 kG2  1.904387210
R T  D  Pb2m

kGm .5 ( kG1 kG2)  3

kGm  1.894908810

 Pa1 Pai1 Pa1  Pa2 Pai2 Pa2

 Pa1  0.0312579  Pa2  0.0115194

 Pa1  Pa2
 Pam  Pam  0.0197733
 Pa1
ln
 Pa2
E A
A A  0.3638608 L L  2.3164095

kGm Pam  D

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WETTED Gas Out

WALL
COLUMN Absorption
of Pure Gas
by a Liquid
Liquid In

Liquid Out
Gas In

Absorption of Pure Gas by a Liquid

Gas Liquid
NA = kL (CAi – CA) for any section
CAi
NAT = kLm (CAi – CA)LM for whole column
CAi = solubility at T
At bottom: CA2 At top: CA1
uy 
CA NAT = (CA2 – CA1)
L
NA

uy = film velocity = L =length

 = film thickness
 = mass rate/film thickness
©UST Ch.E. Department

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Absorption of Pure Gas by a Liquid

1/3
From Treybal: 3
 = 2 g Eq’n. 3-10

 = liquid density g= local acceleration of gravity

 = liquid viscosity
Evaluation of kL: Based on NRe = 4/
1. NRe less than 100: kL = 3.41 DAB/ Eq’n 3-18
2. NRe greater than 100:
1/2 Mass rate
6 DAB  Per wetted
Eq’n 3-19 kL =
L Perimeter

Example

Pure carbon dioxide will be absorbed in a

wetted wall column, 1 m long using water
at 25oC. The liquid film shall flow at
0.05kg/s-m wetted perimeter.
Determine the mass transfer coefficient of
CO2 in the liquid. Diffusivity of CO2 in water
is 1.96 x 10-9 m2/s

©UST Ch.E. Department

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Solution

Ca1 0 L 1  0.05 T 25 273

0.95 0.001 1.96 10

9
  997.05 g 9.81 Dab Ma 44

3 
3
 4 
   2.444766210 Uy Uy  0.2051237
 g
2  

©UST Ch.E. Department

Solution

4
Nre Nre  210.5263158 (greater than 100)

1

6  Dab  
2
kL 
k L  2.771000410
5
Cai 0.14725 g CO2/100cc
   L
Cai 
Cai 1000 Cai  0.0334659 mole/L or kmol/cu.m
Ma  100

©UST Ch.E. Department

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Example

Pure carbon dioxide will be absorbed in a

wetted wall column, 3 cm in diameter
and 1 m long using water at 25oC. The
liquid film shall flow at a rate of
0.0015kg/s. Determine the mass transfer
coefficient of CO2 in the liquid.

©UST Ch.E. Department

Group Assignment
Derive as many relations as you can that can
still be obtained from the remaining symbols.
Remember, you can relate MTC with Diffusivity
and between cases.
Surf the Handbook for MTC symbols and make
a table of comparison with those presented in
the lecture.

©UST Ch.E. Department

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Evaluation of
Mass Transfer Coefficients

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Wetted Wall Column Applications

Evaporation of a Liquid to a Gas

Equation for kG: See Eq’n 14-171/14-83 Handbook

kG RT D PBLM
= 0.023 NRe0.83 NSc0.44 = NSh
DAB P
Sherwood No.

NRe = D G NSc =  D
 AB
Reynolds No. Schmidt No.

©UST Ch.E. Department

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Absorption of a Pure Gas by a Liquid

1/3
From Treybal: 3
 = 2 g Eq’n. 3-10

 = liquid density g= local acceleration of gravity

 = liquid viscosity
Evaluation of kL: Based on NRe = 4/
1. NRe less than 100: kL = 3.41 DAB/ Eq’n 3-18
2. NRe greater than 100:
1/2
6 DAB 
kL = Eq’n 3-19
L
©UST Ch.E. Department

©UST Ch.E. Department

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BS
RR
Metal
PR
Plastic
PR

Ceramic IS
Plastic SIS
First and Second Generation Packings ©UST Ch.E. Department

Plastic
IMTP CMR

Third
Generation
Packings

Metal NR
Metal RSR ©UST Ch.E. Department

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Structured
Packing
Setup
(Flexipac,
Mellapak Plus)
Fourth
Generation

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Mass Transfer for Flow

Outside Solid Surfaces
TABLE 5-17 Mass-Transfer Correlations for a Single
Flat Plate or Disk (A to O cases)

NRe = Dvρ/μ , v is fluid velocity, and

NSc =μ/ρDAB ©UST Ch.E. Department

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Mass Transfer for Flow

Outside Solid Surfaces
TABLE 5-19 Mass-Transfer Correlations for Flow in
Pipes and Ducts

TABLE 5-20 Mass-Transfer Correlations for Flow

Past Submerged Objects

©UST Ch.E. Department

Online Assignments
1. Individual: Create a problem related with the mass
transfer equation, choose one from
a) Wetted wall column: evaporation of liquid to a gas
b) Wetted wall column: Absorption of a pure gas in a liquid

2. Team: one for each member: Create a problem to

find k or k’ using
a) Table 5-17/ handbook
b) Table 5-19/HB
c) Table 5-20/HB

©UST Ch.E. Department

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