Mass Transfer I

Syllabus

1. Mass Transfer by Diffusion (9 hours)
   1. Concept of diffusion; Fick''s law; Fick''s second law
   2. Molecular diffusion at steady state through a constant area within a binary fluid mixture: Molecular diffusion in gas; Molecular diffusion in liquids; Diffusivity of gases and liquids
   3. Diffusion in solids; Types of solid diffusion
   4. Mass diffusion with homogeneous chemical reactions
2. Mass Transfer by Convection (7 hours)
   1. Convective mass transfer and mass transfer coefficients; Types of mass transfer coefficient
   2. Theories of mass transfer: Film theory; Penetration theory; Boundary layer theory
   3. Inter-phase mass transfer: Equilibrium; Raoult''s and Henry''s Law; Mass transfer between two phases
   4. Momentum; Heat and mass transfer analogies; Dimensionless number in mass transfer
3. Gas-Liquid Contacting Equipment (5 hours)
   1. Tray or plate; Agitated vessel; Bubble column; Packed column; Spray tower
   2. Flooding in a packed tower; Comparison between packed and tray tower
   3. Cooling tower: Classification and design
4. Gas Absorption and Stripping (10 hours)
   1. Equilibrium in a gas-liquid system; Selection of solvent and stripping medium
   2. Minimum liquid and gas rate for absorption and desorption; Design of an isothermal absorption tower
   3. Design of a packed tower; Height equivalent to a theoretical plate (HETP)
5. Distillation (10 hours)
   1. Vapor-liquid equilibrium; Relative volatility; Computation of VLE data
   2. Deviation from ideality; Enthalpy concentration diagram; Flash distillation
   3. Batch distillation; Continuous multistage fractionation; McCabe-Thiele method; Ponchon-Savarit method; Comparison between azeotropic and extractive distillation
6. Multicomponent Distillation (4 hours)
   1. Multicomponent phase equilibria; Degree of freedom in multicomponent distillation; Key components
   2. Multicomponent flash and batch distillation

Practicals

1. Determination of the diffusion coefficient of an organic vapour in air
2. Heat and mass transfer process in cooling tower for different flow and thermodynamic conditions
3. Absorption of gas into a liquid using a packed column
4. Operation of sieve plate distillation column to obtain a desired separation of an alcohol water feed product
5. Determination of the vapour liquid equilibrium curve for any mixture
6. Mass transfer with and without chemical reaction