Assume

Ap : area of the cylinder swept out by the tips of the impeller blades
Therefore the Volumetric flow rate

K is a constant that allows for the fact that the radial velocity is
not actually constant over the width of the blade

For geometrically similar impellers W α Da

K, k and β2 are approx. constant

Flow number
 NQ is constant for each type of impeller

For a standard flat-blade turbine, in a baffled vessel NQ = 1.3

For flat blade turbines, The total flow estimated from the
average circulation time for particles or dissolved tracers
 Velocity patterns

Scalar magnitude of flow

velocity as fractions of
the velocity of the tip of
the impeller blade
Power Consumption

q: Flow produced
P= q.Ek Ek : kinetic energy per unit volume of the fluid

=
 In dimensionless form

Power number analogous to drag coefficient

(flow of momentum associated with the bulk liquid)

For a standard six bladed turbine Nq = 1.3 If α = 0.9

 Power Correlation

Empirical correlation of power with other variables of the system

Ignoring shape factors

According to dimensional analysis

By considering shape factors

Reynolds Froude

Power
NFr
 Power Correlations for Specific Impellers

Shape factors

Specified no of baffles
impeller blades
For Baffled Tanks A,B,D: vertical C: pitch
blade curved bladed
turbine Turbine

S4=W/Da
For UnBaffled Tanks

For a Three bladed propeller centrally mounted in a baffled tank

 Clarifying filters
• To remove small amount of
solids or liquid droplets from
either liquids or gasses

The particles are trapped inside

the filter medium or on its
surfaces

Pores in the filter medium are larger than the particles

Particles adhere by surface forces with in the flow channels

 Liquid clarification

Polishing materials such as beverages, Pharmaceutical,

fuel oil, lubricants etc

Ex:

Gravity bed filters, Disk and plate presses, Cartridge clarifiers

Feed to such units should not be more than 0.1% solids

Cross flow filters for liquid clarification

 Batch mode operation:

Filtrate and solid removal efficiency are almost constant for a

considerable period of time

Eventually solid contents rise to an unacceptable “breakthrough”

value,

Back washing of filter element is required

Disk Filter

Gauge pressure < 345 KPa

Gas Cleaning:

Pad filters for atmospheric dust

Bag Filters for Process Dust

Pads of cellulose pulp, Cotton, Felt,

Glass fiber or metal screening
Principles of Clarification

Direct sieving: solid particles completely plug the pores of the

filter medium
: Rate of Plugging is constant with time
: Very rare

Standard Blocking: particles partially block the pores

: Gradual reduction in the pore size
Impingement of solid particles against a solid surface placed in
the flowing stream

Because of Inertia, Particles are expected to cross the stream

line of fluid and adhere to the solid
Target Efficiency:

Fraction of the particles in the gas stream directly

approaching the separator element that strike the solid

Separation Number:

Ut: Terminal velocity of particle in a still fluid

Uo: velocity of the fluid approaching solid
Db: width of ribbon or
the diameter of sphere or cylinder
The terminal velocity of a falling object is the velocity
of the object when the sum of the drag force (Fd) and
buoyancy equals the downward force of gravity (FG)
acting on the object.
Since the net force on the object is zero, the object has
zero acceleration.

an object is moving at its terminal velocity if its speed

is constant due to the restraining force exerted by the
fluid through which it is moving

Buoyancy is an upward force exerted by a fluid that

opposes the weight of an immersed object.
Cross Flow filtration

Concentrate suspensions of fine particles, colloidal material

Micro filtration : for particle size : 0.5 to 10 micro meters

Ultra filtration : 0.5 to 0.001 micrometers
Nanofiltration : Small molecules and ions
Reverse osmosis : when osmotic pressure has effect on the flux
Types of membrane:

High porosity, narrow pore size distribution, with the largest

pores slightly smaller than the particles or molecules to be
retained.

Asymmetric membrane: a thin selective skin supported on a

thicker layer with large pores to decrease the hydraulic
resistance

For Ultra filtration polymers used are: cellulose acetate,

Polyacrylonitrile, Polysulfone, Polyamide and poly imide.
Ultrafiltration membranes have a range of pore sizes in the
selective layer

They are characterized by a molecular weight cutoff based on

measurements of fraction rejected vs molecular weight

Fraction rejected for a given

molecular weight varies with :

•Molecular shape
•Solvent permeation rate
•Shear rate near the surface
•Extent of membrane fouling
For Laboratory or commercial applications
Separations based on the Motion of particles through Fluids

Gravity settling process

Clarifier: A settler that removes virtually all the particles from a liquid

Classifier: separates the solids into two fractions

Gravity Classifiers:

Relatively course particles: Sands

Fine particles: Slimes
In a crystallizer
In metallurgical operations
 In a typical mechanical classifier: vessel is semi cylindrical
with angle 12 degree

Liquid over flow at the lower end

Slurry is fed to the middle of the through
Flow rate should be adjusted so that fines have no time to settle

Units are connected with Ball or Rod mills

Sorting Classifiers : separates particles of different densities

They use the techniques: sink and float

differential settling

Sink- and –Float:

A liquid medium of density intermediate between the light and

heavy material

Separation is based on difference in densities but not on

particle size
Also called Heavy-fluid separation
Used for relatively Corse particle : > 10-Mesh

Specific gravity of the medium must be in 1.3 to 3.5

Heavy , cheap, non toxic and non corrosive

Ex: halogenated hydro carbons, CaCl2 solutions

A pseudoliquid: suspended fines of heavy metal (Magnatite,

ferrosilicon etc ) in water

Applications: Cleaning of Coal, Concentrating ores

Differential settling method

Uses the difference in the terminal velocities of substances of

different Densities.

Medium density is less than both the substances

Disadvantage due to the particle size distribution in both the

substances
 If the particles are spheres of diameter Dp

Consider particles of two materials A and B settling through a

medium of density ρ

Material A his heavier than B

Terminal velocity for Material A

Terminal velocity for Material B

For equal settling particles ut,A = ut,B
Thickeners (clarifiers): Gravity separation under hindered settling
Conditions is used to convert a dilute slurry of fine particles into a
Clarified liquid and a concentrated suspension

Carried out in a large open tanks called thickners

Flocculation : If the particles are of few micrometers in diameter
Gravity settling rate is very low for practical applications

Particles form agglomerates either naturally or by addition of

Flocculating agents

Strong electrolytes: reduce the repulsive forces between charged

particles
Polymeric Flocculants : cationic, anionic or nonionic
Inexpensive materials: lime, Alumina, sodium silicate

Thickener design is based on settling rate measurements from lab

Sedimentation
Rate of sedimentation

Interface height
between zone A and
B vs settling time, t

Early stages rate of

settling is constant

After zone B
disappears , rate of
settling starts do
decrease and drops
until the ultimate
height reached
For lime stone of certain concentration
 The initial rate is a function of the feed concentration

Later stages settling rate depends on

Feed concentration and
the initial height Z0 (compression effect)

Mechanically agitated thickeners : typically 10-100 m in diameter,

2.5 – 3.5 m deep
RPH for rakes : 2 (once every 30 min)

Feed pump: at the centerline at depth of 1m/ below the surface of liquid

Above feed level Clarified zone

Below the feed zone: hindered settling zone
Clear liquor produced : proportional to the cross sectional
area available for settling
: independent of liquid depth
High capacity per unit floor area achieved via Multiple tray
thickener
Centrifugal Sedimentation Process

A particle in a fluid settles under gravitational force at a fixed

maximum range.

Industrial applications : requires high rate of settling

Gravity is replaced by centrifugal force

More effective for fine drops and particles for given capacity
Separation of solids from gases: Cyclones
 Separation factor

Fc/Fg = (m.utan2/r.gc) / (m.g/gc ) = utan2/r.g

Direct calculation of efficiency is very difficult

By some empirical correlations

Diameter vs Separation factor

Flowrate vs separation factor

(high pressure drop,

Efficiency loss in larger

cyclones is mainly due to
decrease in centrifugal
force
 Decrease in efficiency with decrease in particle size

For small particles

radial velocity & the collection efficiency = f(Dp2)

Agglomeration may rise the efficiency

Due to low size: dust leaving with the gas

have much smaller average size than the
entering dust

Hence overall efficiency =f(particle size distribution of feed)

cannot be predicted from average size
 Collection efficiency increases with particle density
decreases as the gas temperature increse
(increase in gas viscosity)

dependent on flow rate => utan2

If two cyclones are in series:

efficiency of first cyclone is always higher than the second

Pressure drop:
proportional to gas density
to utan2
does not depend on the
density of the solid particles
 Liquid-Solid Separation : Hydrocyclones

Some times as thickeners most of the times classifiers

Large and heavy particles separate to the wall and

pushed downward

Go out of cyclone as slurry or paste

A variable discharge orifice controls the under flow

Liquid leaves by vortex finder

In a hydrocyclone it is not possible to have both good solid removal and
a high under flow concentration

For slurries of lime and coal

Hydrocyclones in Thickening: under flow concentration < 12% by

volume

Hydrocyclones in Classifying: under flow concentration <= 50% by

volume

Applications:

Degritting operations in alumina production

removing carbon in upgrading gypsum for phosphoric

acid production
Classifying pigments and crystal magmas.
Centrifugal classifiers
Centrifugal Decanters: Immiscible liquids are separated industrially

Main types : Tubular centrifuges, Disk centrifuges

 Tubular centrifuges

100-150 mm : diameter
15000: rpm
Disk-Type Centrifuge
Disk-Type Centrifuge 200-500mm in diameter
Due to the shearing at the liquid-liquid inter phase

Many industrial application : breaking certain type of emulsions

: Removal of cream from milk
: concentration of rubber latex

Uses of both decanters:

Trace solid removal from lubricating oils, ink, Process liquids
and beverages
Gelatinous solids can be removed
Nozzle-Dischare centrifuges
Principles of centrifugal sedimentation: If proper time is given to the solid to reach the wall
Particle of given size can be removed by centrifugal force

Assume : all the time particle is moving radially at its terminal velocity,
The diameter can be calculated

Feed point at the bottom

Liquid discharge at the top

Liquid is moving upward with constant

Velocity along with the particle
 ut = rω2dp2(ρp- ρ)/18μ

But ut= dr/dt

Integrating in limits at r=ra t=0 and at r=rb t=tT

tT = volume of liquid in bowl (V) / volumetric flow rate (q)

V= πb(r22-r12)
Volumetric flow rate

qc : volumetric flow rate corresponing to the cut diameter

At this flow rate most particles larger than DPC will be removed by
the centrifuge
Rate of filtration = driving force/resistance

Where
1 dV −∆p A = area of cross-section [m2]
=
A dt R V = volume of slurry/suspension [m3]
( −∆p )= pressure drop across filter cake and
medium [Pa]
R = Resistance of filter cake and medium
[1/m]
 Specific surface of bed & voidage (porosity)

Specific surface is the surface area per unit volume of the bed
when the particles are packed in a bed. Therefore, its unit would
be [m-1]

Voidage or porosity (ε) is the fraction of volume not occupied by

the solid material. It is dimensionless quantity. Thus fractional
volume of the bed occupied by the solid material would be (1-ε).

The specific surface of a spherical particle can be given by following

expression
πd2 6
S= =
π ( d 6) d
3
Thus the specific surface of bed
S B = S (1 − ε )

the average velocity of the fluid in a circular tube

D 2  ∆p 
U= −  Hagen-Poiseuille equation
32µ  L 
 For a packed bed, the equivalent expression for
average velocity
Dm2 ε  ∆p 
Up = − 
Kµ  L 
Dm = mean diameter of voids in the bed
K = Kozeny constant

fraction of voids ε ε
Dm = = =
wetted surface area S B S (1 − ε )

substituting the expression of Dm

3
1 ε  ∆p 
Up = 2 2 − 
K S (1 − ε ) µ  L 
this equation is known as Carman–Kozeny equation
 most commonly accepted value for K is 5
K is dependent on porosity, particle shape, and other factors

1 ε3 1  ∆p 
Up = 2 2 − 
5 S (1 − ε ) µ  L 
Above Eq. can be modified to estimate the rate of filtration.

Clearly, the underlined term in the eq is function of

porosity (ε) and the specific surface (S) of the particle and
this is termed as specific resistance.

(1 − ε ) 2 S 2
R = specific resistance of the bed = 5
ε3
When the cake resistance (R) is constant, it is known as
incompressible cake

it is also possible that the porosity of the bed may change

due to applied pressure drop and this, in turn, leads to
variable cake resistance. Therefore, it is the so-called
compressible cake.

Q 1 dV −∆p
Up = = =
A A dt µ RL
 Let us say ϑ is the volume of the filter cake deposited
by per unit of volume of filtrate

L× A
ϑ=
V

rate of filtration can be given by following expression

Q 1 dV −∆p 1 dV −∆pA
Up = = = =
A A dt µ RL A dt µ RϑV
Incompressible filter cake 1 dV −∆pA
=
A dt µ RϑV
Case 1: For a constant rate of filtration

dV
= constant
dt
dV V
dt t

t Rµϑ
= 2 V
V A (−∆p)
Case 2: For a constant pressure filtration

1 dV −∆pA
=
A dt µ RϑV
be integrated in the limit of t = 0; V = 0

t Rµϑ
= 2
V
V 2 A (−∆p )
 It is often seen that in many chemical and process industries
constant pressure filtration is usually adopted followed by the
constant rate filtration
at time t = t
1 the volume of filtrate V = V is already being collected.
1

2
1 dV −∆pA 1 2 A ( −∆p )
=
A dt µ RϑV 2
(V − V1 ) =
2

Rµϑ
( t − t1 )
Consider the thickness of filter medium is Lc
and thus rate of filtration is given by as follow Total length = (L+Lc)

1 dV −∆p
Q 1 dV −∆p =
Up = = = L × A A dt  ϑV 
ϑ = µR  + Lc 
A A dt µ RL V
 A 
 Rate of filtration is
1 dV −∆p
=
A dt  ϑV 
µR + Lc 
 A 

the volume of the filter cake the volume solid in the filter cake
deposited by per unit of volume of per unit volume of the filtrate (V) is
filtrate

L× A
ϑ= ϑ’= ϑ (1-ε)
V

Rm = R*Lc
Consider
Mass of solids in the filter at time t : mc = V* ϑ’ * ρs

Rm = R*Lc ; c=mc/ V Specific cake resistance α = R/(1-ε)ρs

for a constant pressure filtration