Absorber

S Sindhu
 Absorber
• Absorption is a diffusional mass-transfer
operation. Soluble gaseous component is
removed from a gas stream by dissolution in a
solvent liquid.
The driving force for mass transfer:
concentration difference
• Most commonly used
devices
Packed and plate columns
• Two main factors:
The height: determined by
the rate of mass transfer
The diameter: determined
by the quantity of gas
passing up the tower
ray towers (plate columns).
5.Centrifugal contactors.

3. Spray towers. 4. Bubble columns.

 Absorber - packing
•Packing should always be considered for small diameter
columns, say less than 0.6m,where plates would be
difficult to install.
•Two major types of packing:(1) Random
(2)Structured
•The choice of material will depend on the nature of the
fluids and the operating temperature.
•Two of the most popular shapes are rings and saddles.
•Packings are ceramic, metal, or plastic, dependent upon the
service.
•Ceramic materials will withstand corrosion and are
therefore used where the resultant solutions are aqueous
and corrosive.
 Absorber - packing
•Metals are used where no corrosive
organic liquids are present.
•Plastic packing may be used in the case
of corrosive aqueous solutions and for
organic liquids which are not solvents for
the plastic of which the packing is made.
•Next slide (Fig. 9-34)
Common packing materials
• Recommended design values, mm water per m packing, are:
• The capacity of structured packing is very high compared to the
random packing
• Low pressure drop in structured packing
• The cost of structured packing is high
 Determining Tower Diameter-Random
Dumped Packing
• Next slide (Fig. 11.12)
Use a modified Sherwood flooding correlation
to determine tower diameter
• Second slide (Table 11.2)
The definition of terms used in Fig. 11.12
• Packing size – 25 to 75 mm
• The packing factor, F, is a characteristic of a
particular packing size and shape.
Originally it was defined as a/ε3 where a is the
interfacial area per packed volume and ε is the
void fraction.
• However, this definition for F did not adequately
predict the packing hydraulic performance.
Therefore, Table 11.3 (next slide) presents
packing factors which have been calculated from
experimentally determined pressure drop.
 Design of absorber
1. Convert mole fraction into mole ratio. X=x/1-x and
Y=y/1-y
2. Material balance for minimum liquid flow rate Gs(Y1-
Y2) = Lmin(X1max-X2)
Where Y1 and Y2 are the mole ratio of entering and
leaving gas
X1 and X2 are the mole ratio of entering and leaving liquid
Lmin – minimum liquid flow rate in kmol/hr
Gs - flow rate of inert gas in kmol/hr
 Design of absorber
3. Lop= Lmin*(1.5 to 2.5)
4. Find the value of X1 using the material balance
Gs(Y1-Y2) = Lop(X1-X2)
Draw Y Vs X equilibrium diagram
From graph, calculate the value of Ye1 using X1
value.
 Design of absorber
5. Calculation of NTU:
NTU = Y1-Y2/(Y1-Ye1)-(Y2-Ye2)
ln((Y1-Ye1)/(Y2-Ye2))

6. Calculation of HTU:
HTU = Hg+m(Gm/Lm).Hl

7. Packed height (Z)= NTU * HTU

 Design of absorber
8. Calculation of tower diameter:
FLG = (L*/G*)(ρG/(ρL- ρG))0.5
Where L*= Lop in kg/hr
G* - gas flow rate in kg/hr
ρG = PMavg/RT
Assume the value of ΔP. From the graph, obtain the value of C s Fp0.5 ϒ0.5
Assume suitable packing, their packing size and F p. Calculate the value of ϒliquid. From this,
calculate the value of Cs.
9. Flooding velocity = Cs/ ((ρG/(ρL- ρG))1/2
10. Operating or Actual velocity = 0.66 * Flooding velocity
11. Cross-sectional area = Volumetric flow rate of gas mixture / operating velocity
where volumetric flow rate = mass flow rate of gas mixture / density of gas
Calculation of diameter = (4A/π)0.5
 Important points
• If operating liquid flow rate is given in the problem,
directly take that value and substitute in the material
balance equation to get the X1 value.
 Problem
• It is desired to absorb 96% of the acetone in a 2
mol% mixture of acetone –air in a continuous
counter current absorption tower using 20% more
than the minimum liquid rate. Pure water used as
solvent is introduced at the top of the tower and
the gas mixture is blown into the bottom of the
tower at 450 kg/hr. Find the height and diameter
of the tower at 25oC and 1 atm.
• y=2.5 x
Where y and x are mole fraction of acetone in air acetone
mixture and acetone water solution respectively.Hg=0.54 m
and HL=0.32m
Average molecular weight of a gas mixture X
Y2
= 0.02*58+0.98*29 = 29.58 kg/kmol 2

Gas rate(Gb) = 450/29.58 = 15.21 kmol/hr

Inert gas rate(Gs) = 15.21(1-0.02)
= 14.90 kmol/hr 96%

Y1 = y1/(1-y1) = 0.02/0.98 = 0.0204

Y2 = (1-0.96) Y1 = 0.0008
Equilibrium relation is y=2.5 x X Y1 = 0.02
Y/(1+Y) = 2.5X/(1+X) 1

Gs(Y1-Y2) = Lmin(X1max-X2)
Gs(0.0204-0.0008) = Lmin(0.0089-0)
Lmin = 36 kmol/hr(X1maxfrom the graph)
• Lop= Lmin*(1.2) = 43.3 kmol/hr
• Gs(0.0204-0.0008) = Lop(X1-0)
• X1 =0.00674
Ye1 = 0.0173 Y Y
NTU  1 2
Y  Y   Y  Y 
1 e1 2 e2

ln
 Y Y 
1 e1

Y  Y 
2 e2

(0.0204-0.0008)
= (0.0204-0.0173)- 8*10-4
ln(3.1*10-3/8*10-4)
= 11.5
• HTU = Hg+m(Gm/Lm).Hl
= 0.54+2.5(15.21/43.3)*0.32=0.82
Z= NTU*HTU = 11.5*0.82 =9.43 m
Calculation of tower diameter:
FLG = (L*/G*)(ρG/(ρL))0.5
= 0.0599
Assume 0.25 to 1 in. water/ft
Cs Fp0.5 ϒ0.5 = 1.6
ϒ - 1.0038 cS
For 50 mm packing size, 150 m-1
Cs = 0.034 ft/sec
Flooding velocity = Cs/ ((ρG/(ρL- ρG))1/2 = 1 ft/sec
10. Operating or Actual velocity = 0.66 *
Flooding velocity = 0.66 ft/sec = 0.2 m/sec
11. Cross-sectional area = Volumetric flow rate
of gas mixture / operating velocity = 0.52 m2
where volumetric flow rate = mass flow rate of
gas mixture / density of gas
Calculation of diameter = (4A/π)0.5 = 0.81m