Liquid–liquid extraction in microchannels with Zinc–D2EHPA system

• Liquid–liquid extraction experiments in microchannels using Zn–D2EHPA system
• Comparison of serpentine and split and recombine microchannels
• Correlations for overall volumetric mass transfer coefficient

Liquid–liquid extraction experiments have been carried out in two different types of microchannels using water (Zn) D2EHPA + dodecane system, a standard reactive extraction system recommended for evaluation of liquid–liquid extraction equipment. The microchannels used in the experiments are a t-junction serpentine microchannel and a split and recombine microchannel. Effects of O/A ratio and residence time on overall volumetric mass transfer coefficient have been studied and an attempt has been made to explain the experimental trends with the help of liquid–liquid flow patterns observed by using a high speed image acquisition system. Correlations relating overall volumetric mass transfer coefficients to O/A ratio and velocity are reported for both the microchannels.