EFFECT OF TURBULENCE ON VOLATILIZATION OF SELECTED ORGANIC-COMPOUNDS FROM WATER

Volatilization of selected organic compounds, with Henry's law constan t larger than 10(-3) atm-m3/mole, from water under turbulent condition s has been studied. Surface area:volume ratio and water-bulk turbulent intensity were the two major parameters that varied in the experiment s. A model based on idealized surface renewal process is proposed. Bas ed on this model, an equation incorporating the surface area:volume ra tio and turbulent intensity (expressed in terms of the velocity gradie nt, G) is derived by solving appropriate mass-transfer differential eq uations. The derived model has been calibrated and verified with the e xperimental results. Both the theoretical model and the experimental r esults confirm that the volatilization of high-volatility compounds fr om water into air follows first-order kinetics with respect to the che mical concentration in water-bulk phase. The volatilization rate const ant is found to be proportional to the surface area:volume ratio. It i s also observed that the turbulent intensity in the water phase is an important parameter in controlling the volatilization of chemicals fro m the water.