RELATION OF MECHANICAL POWER TO GAS HOLDUP AND MASS-TRANSFER IN AN AGITATED VESSEL

Two devices were developed, mechanical and electrical, to measure the mechanical power relative to superficial gas velocity and stirring spe ed in a mechanically agitated reactor. Two bubble regimes were demonst rated. The study of gas holdup, obtained from the residence time distr ibution, and the bubble size, determined by interfacial area measureme nt, confirm these two regimes of flow. Our results show that the gas h oldup, the interfacial area, and the liquid-side mass transfer coeffic ient are increasing functions of the energy dissipated in the solution .