Minerals Engineering 19 (2006) 13621372 This article is also available online at: www.elsevier.

com/locate/mineng

Comparison of gas hold-up distribution measurement in a otation cell using capturing and conductivity techniques
E. Sanwani
a

a,*

, Y. Zhu b, J.-P. Franzidis a, E.V. Manlapig a, J. Wu

Julius Kruttschnitt Mineral Research Centre (JKMRC), University of Queensland, Isles Road, Indooroopilly, Qld, Australia b The CSIRO Thermal and Fluids Engineering Laboratory at Highett, Vic., Australia Received 6 September 2005; accepted 26 January 2006 Available online 20 March 2006

Abstract This paper presents and interprets results of experimental measurements of the spatial gas hold-up distribution in a 3 m3 glass rectangular otation cell at the JKMRC using two dierent techniques. The gas hold-up device with the capturing technique was developed at the JKMRC and has been used widely in the P9 project1 while the one with conductivity technique was developed at the CSIRO Thermal and Fluids Engineering laboratory at Highett, Victoria, Australia. Measurements were conducted at more than 64 locations in the cell to determine the local gas hold-up distribution in the cell. Since the measurements using the two techniques were conducted at the same locations, the results may be compared with each other. The results indicate that the gas hold-up varies widely inside the otation cell. The gas hold-up distributions measured by the two techniques are relatively similar except in some locations which can be reasonably explained. 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Froth otation

1. Introduction Froth otation is a complex process whose performance depends upon the hydrodynamic conditions inside the cell where the separation process takes place. The dispersion of gas into bubbles in the otation cell is an important factor that determines the hydrodynamic conditions inside the cell. The dispersion of gas here is dened as the distribution of incoming air through the volume of the cell. A spatial distribution of gas dispersion parameters enables much more detailed and fundamental
Corresponding author. E-mail address: e.sanwani@uq.edu.au (E. Sanwani). 1 The P9 project is a collaborative mineral processing applied project running by project research teams from JKMRCUniversity of Queensland, University of Cape Town, and McGill University. The overall project is under coordination of The AMIRA International. The project is strongly industry driven and has been in continuous operation for over 40 years. 0892-6875/$ - see front matter 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.mineng.2006.01.006
*

descriptions of the ow patterns to be obtained, and, therefore, should provide a scientic basic for research and design. In recent years, the ows in agitated vessels including otation cells have been the subject of many studies particularly by numerical simulation. With the rapid development of computer capability and capacity, and the anticipated progress in computational uid dynamics (CFD), further developments in this eld are inevitable. Experimental data of the spatial distribution of the ows, and of the gas dispersion properties throughout the cell, will be required for model testing and validation. Even though this kind of information is very important, few experimental studies are available in the literature owing to a lack of appropriate measurement techniques. This paper presents measurements of the spatial distribution of local gas hold-up in a 3 m3 glass rectangular otation cell made using two techniques, namely capturing and conductivity probes. Gas hold-up is an important

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parameter of the performance and eciency in the otation process. Since the measurements using the two techniques were conducted at the same location, the results were compared with each other, to evaluate the strength and weakness of each technique. The results were also used to interpret the hydrodynamic ow condition in the cell. 2. Techniques to measure gas hold-up in otation cells Measurements of local gas hold-up in otation cells have typically been conducted using capturing (Gorain et al., 1995; Deglon et al., 2000; Power et al., 2000; Yianatos et al., 2001; Sanwani, 2001) and conductivity (Summers et al., 1993; Gomez et al., 1991, 2003; Marchese et al., 1992; Tavera et al., 1997; Tavera et al., 2001) techniques. The principle of the capturing techniques is to encapsulate a volume of aerated pulp in a sampler, consisting of a 4075 mm diameter cylindrical tube with two plungers 150300 mm apart attached to a central rod. The plungers have O-rings to avoid material leakage. The plungers are actuated by either using a vacuum pump (Gorain et al., 1995; Deglon et al., 2000) or manually (Yianatos et al., 2001). The pulp-air mixture encapsulated between the plungers is emptied into a measuring cylinder and the volume of the pulp is recorded. The volume of the space between the cylinders is determined by calibration with water. The volume of air in the aerated pulp is calculated as the dierence between the measured volume of pulp and the calibrated volume of water. Gas hold-up (eg) is then the volume fraction of air in each sample. The principle of the conductivity techniques to measure gas hold-up in otation cells is to measure the electrical conductivity of aerated and non-aerated pulp. The gas hold-up (eg) is then calculated based on Maxwells equation: eg 1
kd kp

3. Experimental 3.1. The otation cell The otation cell used in these measurements was a 3 m3 glass rectangular otation cell (163 cm in length, 163 cm in width, and 117.2 cm in height) tted with a Dorr-Oliver impellerstator mechanism (Fig. 1). The diameter of impeller and stator were 37.2 cm and 73.4 cm, respectively, while the diameter of the shaft was 7.3 cm. The height of the impeller and stator were 23.7 cm and 33.3 cm, respectively. The bottom clearance distance between the bottom of the tank and the impeller was 4.5 cm. The drive pulley was driven using V belts by a 3-phase 11 kW induction motor manufactured by Teco Elec. & Mach. Co. Ltd. in Malaysia. A variable speed (VS) drive was connected to the motor to facilitate changing the impeller speed. The VS drive was a Unidrive model UNI2403 manufactured by Control Techniques Australia Pty Ltd. The drive was operated with a 3-phase power supply capable of providing a wide range of frequencies to the motor, resulting in a wide variation in impeller speeds. The whole VS drive unit was located inside a protective casing for safety. A blower was installed to provide the air needed for the 3 m3 cell. It was connected to the cell through the air inlet pipe. The blower was a side channel type (Elektror SD72) with 3-phase 4.0 kW motor manufactured by Elektror in Germany. A digital air ow meter was installed on to the air inlet pipe to measure air ow rate in the 3 m3 cell. The air ow rate was varied with the help of a high precision globe valve. A downstream pressure gauge was used to measure the pressure at which air was delivered to the cell. 3.2. The gas hold-up devices 3.2.1. Capturing probe (JK sensor) The capturing probe developed at JKMRC, shown in Fig. 2, consisted of a 50 mm diameter cylindrical tube with a pinch valve at each end. Both valves were connected to compressed air through the same three-way valve, so that the pinch valves can be opened and closed simultaneously. The device was immersed in the pulp in a vertical position during measurement. The principle of operation was to let the aerated pulp pass through the tube, allowing a volume of aerated pulp to be trapped inside the tube in the space between the pinch valves when the pinch valves were closed simultaneously. The aerated pulp encapsulated between the pinch valves was emptied into a measuring cylinder where the air escaped into the atmosphere. The total volume of pulp contained in the sample is determined. The volume of the space between the cylinders was determined by calibrating with water. The volume of air in the aerated pulp was calculated as the difference between the measured volume of pulp and the calibrated volume of water; the gas hold-up (eg) was then the volume fraction of air in each sample.

1 0:5 kd kp

where kd and kp are the conductivities of aerated and nonaerated pulp, respectively. Measurement of gas hold-up in otation cells based on the conductivity approach was initiated by the Mineral Processing group at McGill University more than 10 years ago (Gomez et al., 1991, 2003; Marchese et al., 1992; Summers et al., 1993; Tavera et al., 1997; Tavera et al., 2001). The sensor was developed based on the use of two so-called ow conductivity cells, an open cell and a syphon cell. The open cell measures the conductivity of the aerated pulp, while the syphon cell measures the conductivity of the non-aerated pulp, which requires the exclusion of bubbles. The open cell is a vertical cylinder open at both ends to allow a relatively free ow of bubbles and pulp. The syphon cell, also a vertical cylinder open at the top, ends in a conical bottom with a small orice.

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AC oscillator capturing probe

compressed air

conductivity probe laptop computer froth (thin) layer

air flows

impeller shaft

rectangular glass tank

stator

impeller

support arm for the cell

Fig. 1. Schematic drawing of the experimental rig for the measurement of gas hold-up (eg).

holder

signal wires, to data acquisition system stainless steel support arm

three-way valve compressed air the atmosphere

plastic

air line cylindrical rubber pinch valve

=1.09 mm

wire insulation

stainless steel needle

cylindrical plastic tube pinch valve

= 0.25 mm

silver plated copper wire

cylindrical rubber

Fig. 3. Conductivity probe head assembly (not to scale).

Fig. 2. The gas hold-up device: capturing probe (JK sensor).

3.2.2. Conductivity probe (CSIRO sensor) The conductivity (or resistivity) probe, shown in Fig. 3, was developed at CSIRO Thermal and Fluids Engineering

laboratory at Highett, Victoria, and was modied at the JKMRC during the experimental measurement. It consisted of a needle and support arm. The needle had two electrodes at the tip. The probe was connected to an inhouse AC oscillator developed at CSIRO that powers the probe and supplies an output signal.

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The principle of measurement was based on the dierence in electrical resistance between air and water. When the probe was submerged in water, the voltage between the two electrodes was very low due to the low resistance of water. In the otation cell, the probe was submerged in aerated pulp in a vertical position. When a bubble was passing, the probe tip was suspended in air and a high voltage was read due to the high resistance (Fig. 4). Over a period of sampling, the ratio of the total time when voltage was high to the total sampling duration was interpreted as the gas hold-up, i.e., eg
in X i1

15

24

71.5

12

5 21

40.5

4 9 B 14 11 8 7 3 18

16.5 0.0 17 16 20 23 -16.5

Ti T total

During the measurements in the 3 m3 cell, the signal from the probe was logged into a PC via a National Instrument data acquisition board. Labview-based software was used to count the bubble numbers and calculate the gas hold-up value. 3.3. Experimental program Gas hold-up (eg) was measured using both the capturing and conductivity probes in a two-phase system of waterair with Dowfroth 250 as a frother. The measurements of eg were taken at many dierent points in the cell at the following operating conditions: frother dosage: 10 ppm impeller speed: 255 rpm air ow rate: 950 l/min The points at which measurements were made in the cell are depicted in detail in Figs. 5 and 6. Measurements were made at 104 dierent locations at ve horizontal levels using conductivity probe. These were 20 and 30 cm (16 measurement points each), and 45, 70, and 95 cm (24 measurement point each) from the bottom of the cell, respectively. Due to the size of capturing probe, measurements using this probe were made at only 64 dierent locations at three horizontal levels. These were 20 cm (16 measurement points), and 45 and 70 cm (24 measurement points each, respectively) from the bottom of the cell, respectively. The sampling period of the measurements were about 10 s using capturing probe and 30 s using conductivity probe allowing around 1000 bubbles passing the probe
C

10

19

-40.5

13 -71.5 -40.5 -16.5

1 0.0 A 16.5 40.5

22 71.5 (cm)

-71.5

Fig. 5. Points of measurement at each horizontal level.

95

70

45

30 20

-71.5

-40.5

-16.5

0.0

16.5

40.5

71.5

(cm)

Fig. 6. Points of measurement in the vertical plane and liquid ow patterns (circles show the locations of measurement using both capturing and conductivity probes while stars show the ones using conductivity probe only).

Gas

T1

T2

T3

Ti

Tn

Liquid T total

Fig. 4. Schematic drawing of the conductivity probe signal. A low voltage indicates the probe is submerged in the water whereas a high voltage reects the presence of air bubbles.

tip. A sampling period of 10 s is enough time for the measurement using capturing probe, after 10 s it does not give any eects on the results of the measurement. For conductivity probe, it is needed a longer sampling period i.e. 30 s to have a stable result of the measurement. After 30 s the reading of gas hold-up is relatively constant. At each measuring locations, the measurement of gas holdup using both the capturing and conductivity techniques were repeated at least ve times, respectively, and the

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Table 1 Reproducibility of gas hold-up measurement at some dierent locations in the cell by capturing probe Measurement location Gas hold-up (%) Run 1 Level 20, position 19 Level 45, position 14 Level 70, position 3 6.15 7.82 8.38 Run 2 5.87 7.54 8.38 Run 3 6.42 6.42 7.82 Run 4 6.42 6.98 8.10 Run 5 5.87 6.42 8.66 Average 6.15 7.04 8.27 0.28 0.64 0.32 Standard deviation

Table 2 Reproducibility of gas hold-up measurement at some dierent locations in the cell by conductivity probe Measurement location Gas hold-up (%) Run 1 Level Level Level Level Level 20, 30, 45, 70, 95, position position position position position 19 6 14 3 1 5.70 10.29 6.55 7.94 9.33 Run 2 6.31 10.95 7.90 8.23 9.31 Run 3 6.26 10.06 7.11 7.92 9.71 Run 4 6.94 10.65 7.57 8.04 9.27 Run 5 5.93 10.70 7.47 8.45 8.90 Average 6.23 10.53 7.32 8.12 9.30 0.47 0.35 0.51 0.22 0.29 Standard deviation

average was considered as the gas hold-up value at that location. 3.4. Reproducibility An important measure of any experiments is the reproducibility of the results. Tables 1 and 2 show the results of the reproducibility tests carried out with capturing and conductivity techniques respectively, for some locations of measurement. Five measurements were made at each of measurement locations in the cell, and the average and standard deviation of each location were calculated. The standard deviation at each location of measurement is an indication of how widely the value of gas hold-up spread over the mean value at that location. The reproducibility of the eg measurements by capturing and conductivity techniques was found to be very good for both of them. At all measurement locations, the standard deviations were mostly around the overall average of 0.51 and 0.46 for capturing and conductivity techniques respectively, which are very good.

4. Results and discussions 4.1. Comparison of the two techniques The results of measurements using capturing and conductivity probes are presented in Figs. 7 and 8 as local gas hold-up maps. At the level of 95 cm from the bottom of the cell (near the surface), measurements were only taken using conductivity probe due to the size of capturing probe. Measurement using capturing probe were only able to be taken up to the level of 70 cm from the bottom of the cell. The gas hold-up maps of Figs. 7 and 8 show that eg varies widely inside the otation cell. The ow eld in the cell

is composed of three principal regions, viz. the circulation region above the impeller (quiescent zone), the circulation region below it (turbulent zone-1), and the impeller discharge stream (turbulent zone-2). This ow pattern was observed visually from top, side, and bottom views of the glass cell when the cell was running (under gas sparging or with liquid only). Measurement of ow pattern in a 0.95 m3 cylindrical Outokumpu otation cell in a singlephase of liquid system using a TSI 2D optical bre LDV system by Zhu et al. (2004) conrmed this observation. In the circulation region above the impeller (above the level of 35 cm), it can be seen that the gas hold-up values resulting from the two measurement techniques are relatively similar except at some points e.g. at the level of 45 cm and about half-way between the impeller shaft and the wall, and at some points in the corners of the cell. In the corner region, it is harder to circulate the bubbles, and consequently there is a sharp decrease of gas hold-up as the corner is neared. In this region, the point measurement from the conductivity probe will be dierent from that obtained using the capturing technique since the latter technique has a capturing area diameter of 50 mm, much larger than the conductivity probe tip, and is therefore less sensitive to changes occurring over a small distance, i.e. the gas hold-up value is averaged over the whole area. In the impeller discharge stream (about at the level of 30 cm), the gas hold-up measured by conductivity probe are greater than in any other regions in the otation cell. In this region, the radial velocity of the liquid is very high resulting in a very high bubble passages frequency and, consequently, a very high gas hold-up. The gas hold-up reduces considerably away from the impeller, as reected in the conductivity probe data at z = 30 cm and both measurements at z = 20 cm. This decrease is not surprising, as (ignoring jet stream dispersion and recirculation of gas

E. Sanwani et al. / Minerals Engineering 19 (2006) 13621372

6.31 10.23

1367

5.70 11.28

8.49 8.91

5.81 6.21

5.70 11.11

5.75 8.84

8.66 8.44

8.44 8.30

8.60 8.79

7.65 3.32

7.99 3.59

8.04 5.10

8.44 8.24 7.88 7.85 8.38 7.17 8.55 8.34 8.77 7.48

8.88 7.47

8.66 6.64 8.10 7.14 8.27 8.12 8.38 7.96 8.10 6.74 7.32 6.38

7.65 8.50 7.04 7.32 7.77 2.95 8.66 5.61 8.60 5.61

8.21 8.43

7.71 5.06 7.99 6.96 7.88 3.48 7.77 7.04

7.82 6.83

7.60 6.13

7.82 8.44 5.59 10.60

8.49 7.83 8.49 7.43

7.77 7.67 5.98 5.92

7.71 3.50 5.53 10.00

7.82 3.26 6.70 8.25

7.82 4.36 5.87 7.11

(a)
5.18 4.27 7.38 5.64 5.03 2.83
__-___ ___-___

(b)
__-___

9.58

10.53

8.62

7.04 5.24

6.42 8.08

5.98 4.94

___-___

___-___

___-___

12.64

14.61

11.03

7.07 4.94

6.03 9.51

6.09 7.71

6.03 5.05

___-___

__-___ ___-___ ___-___

11.32

8.64

14.07

13.94

6.76 5.39 5.08 2.44

6.42 7.92 7.06 4.72

6.15 6.23 5.08 1.95

__-___

___-___

___-___

___-___

11.43

13.63

11.57

__-___

__-___

8.40

9.70

6.93

(c)
___-___ __-___ __-___

(d)

10.87

8.71

7.01

___-___

__-___

__-___

10.29

9.67

9.18

__-___

__-___

__-___

9.43
__-___ __-___ ___-___

8.57

7.66
__-___ __-___ __-___

6.72

8.70
__-___ __-___

9.01
__-___

7.43

10.29

9.10

8.70

9.54

8.77

___-___

__-___

__-___

10.37

9.13

9.22

___-___

___-___

__-___

10.34

9.30

6.89

(e)
Fig. 7. eg (%) values at dierent horizontal level of measurements from the bottom of the cell (italicsmeasured by capturing probe; normalmeasured by conductivity probe): (a) level of z = 70 cm; (b) level of z = 45 cm; (c) level of z = 20 cm; (d) level of z = 30 cm; (e) level of z = 95 cm.

bubbles into the jet stream) mass conservation requires that the gas hold-up should be the function of 1/r (r is the radius

from shaft axis). The magnitude of the gas hold-up data is in reasonably agreement with the trend.

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_-__ 8.71

_-__ 9.67

_-__ 8.57

_-__ 9.54

_-__ 9.13

_-__ 9.30

_-__ 7.43

_-__ 9.10

_-__ 9.01

_-__ 8.70

__-__ _-__ 10.29 6.72

8.49 8.91

8.44 8.30

8.88 7.47

8.27 8.12

8.49 7.83

8.49 7.43

7.32 6.38

8.10 6.74

8.10 7.14

8.55 8.34

8.38 7.17

7.88 7.85

6.31 10.23 __-__ __-__ 10.53 14.61 7.38 5.64 6.42 8.08

7.99 3.59

8.21 8.43

7.82 6.83

7.82 3.26

6.70 8.25

7.07 7.04 _-__ 8.64 6.03 5.05 __-__ 13.94 6.09 7.71

7.88 3.48

7.99 6.96

8.66 5.61

7.77 2.95

7.04 7.32

__-__ _-__ 13.63 9.70 6.42 7.92 7.60 4.72

__-__ __-__ 14.07 11.32 6.03 9.51 7.77 4.94

(a)

(b)

_-__ 7.01

_-__ 9.18

_-__ 7.66

_-__ 8.70

__-__ 10.37

__-__ 10.34

__-__ 10.87

__-__ 10.29

_-__ 9.43

_-__ 8.77

_-__ 9.22

_-__ 6.89

5.81 6.21

8.60 8.79

8.66 6.64

8.77 7.48

7.82 8.44

5.59 10.00

5.70 11.28

8.66 8.44

8.44 8.24

8.38 7.96

7.77 7.67

5.98 5.92

5.75 8.84 _-__ 8.62 5.03 2.83

8.04 5.10 __-__ 11.03 5.98 4.94

7.71 5.06

8.60 5.61

7.71 3.50 __-__ 11.43 6.76 5.39

_5.53 10.00 _-__ 8.40 5.08 2.44

5.70 11.11 _-__ 9.58 5.18 4.27

7.65 3.32 __-__ 12.64 7.04 5.24

7.65 8.50

7.60 6.13

7.82 4.36 __-__ 11.57 6.15 6.23

5.87 7.11 _-__ 6.93 5.08 1.95

(c)

(d)

Fig. 8. Distribution of eg (%) values at vertical plane of measurements (italicsmeasured by capturing probe; normalmeasured by conductivity probe): (a) vertical plane A; (b) vertical plane B; (c) vertical plane C; (d) vertical plane D.

Near the wall, the gas ows upwards with the circulating liquid at high velocities, whereas near the impeller shaft the buoyancy of the gas acts in an opposite direction to the downward owing uid. At the level of 45 cm and about half-way between the wall and the impeller shaft, gas hold-up measured by capturing probe is always bigger than that measured by conductivity by about 23 fold, and this phenomenon is consistent at every quadrant of the otation cell. This location is believed to be the location of a vortex where liquid and gas velocities are very low resulting in very low gas hold-up. This vortex is not able to be detected using the capturing probe due to the size of the probe, since the vortex occupy only a small volume inside the cell. In the circulating region in the lower part of the otation cell, the hold-up measured by conductivity probe decreases consistently towards the wall, with very low values near the wall, in general, especially at the corners of the cell. These locations are probably the locations of a second vortex of the circulating loop. In general, it can be said that the measurement of gas hold-up using conductivity probe is more localized than

the capturing probe due to the relative size of the probes. The detector of the conductivity probe is very small, with diameter of 0.25 mm, whereas the diameter of capturing tube is about 50 mm and 200 mm in high. Therefore, the conductivity probe can detect a rapid change of gas holdup over a very small distance or, in other words, conductivity probe is more sensitive than capturing probe. Where the gas hold-up is uniform over a large volume, the results of the two techniques are comparable. The conductivity probe is easier to handle than the capturing probe, and to move from one point to another than capturing probe. It can also be operated on line. In addition, it can measure gas hold-up in more locations of measurement in a otation cell, even in the locations which are very close to the pulp-froth interface. Gas hold-up measurements using the two techniques were only made in a two phase airwater system. While the capturing probe has been used widely in the real three phase system on industrial otation plants (Zheng, 2000; Power et al., 2000; Sanwani, 2003), the conductivity probe needs to be tested in these systems. Because the con-

E. Sanwani et al. / Minerals Engineering 19 (2006) 13621372

100 90 100 90
Diagonal #1 Diagonal #2 Diagonal #3 Diagonal #4

1369

Vertical Position (Cm)

Corner #1

Vertical Position (Cm)

80 70 60
#3

Corner #2 Corner #3 Corner #4

80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0
#3

#4

50 40 30 20 10 0 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16
#1 #2

#4 #2

#1

10

12

14

16

Gas Hold up (%)

Gas Hold up (%)

(a)

(b)
Diagonal #1 Diagonal #2 Diagonal #3 Diagonal #4

100 90

Vertical Position (Cm)

80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 0

#3 #4 #1 #2

10

12

14

16

Gas Hold up (%)

(c)
Fig. 9. Vertical proles of gas hold-up at the diagonal positions: (a) outer or corner, (b) middle, and (c) inner (see inset).

100 90
Side #1

100 90
Side #1 Side #2 Side #3 Side #4

Vertical Position (Cm)

Side #3

Vertical Position (Cm)

80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 0 2
#4

Side #2 Side #4

80 70 60 50 40 30

#3 #2 #1

#3

20 10 0 0

#4 #1

#2

10

12

14

16

10

12

14

16

Gas Hold up (%)

Gas Hold up (%)

(a)
100 90

(b)

Vertical Position (Cm)

80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16
#4 #3 #1 #2 Side #1 Side #2 Side #3 Side #4

Gas Hold up (%)

(c)
Fig. 10. Vertical proles of gas hold-up at the side positions: (a) outer, (b) middle, and (c) inner (see inset).

ductivity probe is principally based on bubble passed frequency, and does not directly measure the gas hold-up

itself, the eect of solid particles on the tip of the probe during the measurement needs to be investigated.

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4.2. Proles of gas hold-up In order to make easier in reading and understanding the proles of gas hold-up in a mechanical otation cell, the data that have been shown in Figs. 7 and 8 are presented in the form of graphics as will be shown below. The proles shown here are the data of gas hold-up measurement carried out using conductivity probe. This is because the measurement was carried out in the more locations in the cell than using capturing techniques. 4.2.1. Vertical proles The vertical proles of gas hold-up are presented graphically as shown in Figs. 9 and 10. Fig. 9 shows the vertical proles of gas hold-up at the diagonal positions, while Fig. 10 shows the proles at the side positions. As can be seen from Figs. 9 and 10, the proles at each quadrant are generally comparable except at the corner (Fig. 9a)

where left side shows bigger values of gas hold-up than right side, and at the side near the wall (Fig. 9b) where the proles at each quadrant are slightly dierent. These anomalies are dicult to explain. Maybe the condition or position of the probe tip against the impeller during the measurement at the corner and near the wall can cause the dierent, especially at the corner. The gas hold-up at the location near the bottom (at 20 cm from the bottom of the otation cell) is very low. This shows that only little gas exist in this region. At 30 cm from the bottom, the gas hold-up increases rapidly. In this region, the gas hold-up reaches highest values. As explained earlier in the previous section, the radial velocity of the liquid is very high resulting in a very high bubble passages frequency, and, consequently, a very high gas hold-up. It is expected that maybe attachment between particles and bubbles take place more intense in this region than others.

16
Diagonal #1

16
#1 #3 #4 #2 Diagonal #2 Side #3 Side #4

14

14

Gas Hold up (%)

12 10 8 6 4 2 0 -1 -0.5

Gas Hold up (%)

12 10 8 6 4 2 0
Diagonal #1 Diagonal #2 Side #3 Side #4 #2 #1 #3 #4

0.5

-1

-0.5

0.5

Radial Position

Radial Position

(a)
16 14
Diagonal #1 Diagonal #2 Side #3 Side #4 #1 #2 #3

(b)
16 14
Diagonal #1 Diagonal #2 Side #3 Side #4 #1 #2 #3 #4

Gas Hold up (%)

Gas Hold up (%)

1

#4

12 10 8 6 4 2 0 -1

12 10 8 6 4 2 0

-0.5

0.5

-1

-0.5

0.5

Radial Position

Radial Position

(c)
16 14

(d)

Gas Hold up (%)

12 10 8 6 4 2 0 -1 -0.5 0 0.5 1
Diagonal #1 Diagonal #2 Side #3 Side #4 #2 #1 #3 #4

Radial Position

(e)
Fig. 11. Horizontal proles of gas hold-up: (a) 20 cm, (b) 30 cm, (c) 45 cm, (d) 70 cm, and (e) 95 cm from the bottom of the otation cell (see inset).

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At the location of 45 cm from the bottom (right above the impeller) and about halfway between the impeller and the wall, the gas hold-up shows a very low in value. It is very clear that this location is believed to be the location of a vortex. The possibility of attachment between particles and bubbles is expected to be very low in this location. As the surface of the otation cell is neared, the gas hold-up increases gradually toward the surface. 4.2.2. Horizontal proles The horizontal proles of gas hold-up at various distance (20 cm, 30 cm, 45 cm, 70 cm, and 95 cm) from the bottom of the otation cell are presented graphically in Fig. 11. As can be seen from this gure, the proles at each level are dierent. At the levels 20 cm and 30 cm, the proles are similar but the magnitudes are very dierent. At the level 20 cm, the gas hold-up is quite low and this is an indication that only little gas exist in this region. On the other hand, the highest values of gas hold-up are reached at the level of 30 cm (impeller discharge region). This region is rich in air and is expected to have highest possibility of attachment between particles and bubbles. At the level 45 cm from the bottom of the otation cell (right above the impeller), the proles are not the same horizontally. It can be seen from Fig. 11c, the lowest gas holdup is at the location about the halfway of distance between the impeller and the wall. Once again, this location is the location of vortex where liquid and gas velocities are very low resulting in very low gas hold-up. At the level 70 cm and 95 cm from the bottom of the otation cell (above the impeller and close to the surface), the proles of gas hold-up are similar. The gas hold-up at these levels are relatively uniform, except at some locations in the corners. The magnitudes are also not too dierent between these two levels with the values increase slightly toward the surface of the otation cell. 5. Conclusions Maps of local gas hold-up in a two phase airwater system in a 3 m3 rectangular glass otation cell, measured by capturing and conductivity probes, have been presented. The results show that eg varies widely inside the otation cell. In the circulation region above the impeller (the quiescent zone), local gas hold-up values measured by the two techniques are relatively similar except at some points which are believed to be the locations of vortex. In the circulating region in the lower part of the otation cell, the gas hold-up measured by conductivity probe always decrease towards the wall, with very low values near the wall, in general, especially at the corners of the cell. These locations are probably the locations of the second vortex of the circulating loop. In the impeller discharge stream, the gas hold-up values measured by the conductivity probe are greater than other

regions in the otation cell. The values decrease with distance away from the impeller. The conductivity probe has a number of advantages compared to the capturing probe as follows: it can be operated on line it is easier to handle it can detect a rapid change of local gas hold-up over a very small distance (more sensitive) it can be used to measure the gas hold-up in more location in the otation cell, even those close to the pulpfroth interface However, the conductivity probe has been used only in a two-phase system of airwater and still needs to be tested in real three-phase otation systems. The proles of gas hold-up both vertically and horizontally are also presented graphically. In general, the proles show similar trend at each quadrant, except at some location where anomalies found. Vertically, the proles show similar trends from the bottom of the otation cell toward the surface but with dierent magnitudes depending on the distance from the impeller. On the other hand, the horizontal proles show a dierent trend at each level from the bottom of the cell. Acknowledgements The authors would like to thank the JKMRC pilot plant sta, especially Bob Marshall, Mick Kilmartin, Leo Koeleman, and Jon Worth for their help during the construction of the 3 m3 cell and during the test work, and the JKMRC instrumentation laboratory sta, Graham Sheridan and Kurt Russel, and Bon Nguyen of CSIRO for their help in commissioning the conductivity probe. Edy Sanwani would like to thank PT Freeport Indonesia for nancial support of his doctoral studies, and the sponsors of the AMIRA P9M project, without whom this work would not has been possible. References
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