Article ID Journal Published Year Pages File Type
158667 Chemical Engineering Science 2007 10 Pages PDF
Abstract

This paper is focused on the experimental analysis of residence time distribution and phase hold-up in a mesh microreactor. A microreactor, where a finely weaved mesh is sandwiched between two flat plates with specific inlets for gas and liquid, is proposed. The microvolumes formed upon sandwiching the mesh are totally connected and thus it yields a view of several interconnected microvolumes. This system is easy to build and does not need precision micromachining. A high-speed photographic analysis yielded the phase distribution for different mesh types over a wide range of operating gas and liquid flow rates. The RTD was studied by measuring the liquid phase conductivity at the outlet of the reactor. Channeling prevailed for mesh with smaller open area. The ADEM was used for fitting the tracer curves with tailing ends. The RTD and the image analysis for all the mesh types showed hysteresis when the gas flow rate was maintained constant and the liquid flow rate was gradually increased and then decreased.

Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering Chemical Engineering Chemical Engineering (General)
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