Fluid-borne entities in the impeller stream of a Rushton turbine

The breakage or disintegration of suspended entities by energetic fluid mot ions in stirred tanks is an essential aspect of many operations in the chem ical process industries. However, the hydrodynamic inhomogeneity of such ta nks makes it extremely difficult to characterize the stresses experienced i n any simple manner. This work provides a determination of both the locatio n and the frequency of interaction of spherical fluid-borne entities with t he discharge of a Rushton turbine, These data show how both particle size a nd impeller speed affect the severity of the exposure, setting the groundwo rk for improved descriptions of the dynamic behaviour of the particle size distribution in a wide variety of dispersed-phase processes.