REPUBLIC OF IRAQ

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION & SCIENTIFIC

RESEARCH
SOUTHERN TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY
ENGINEERING TECHNICAL COLLEGE/BASRA
FUEL & ENERGY DPT

A Report On :

(MASS TRANSFER)

Submitted By :

ZAYN A. AHMED ADULKAREEM

Third Stage / under graduate Studies

As Requirement for:

" MASS" Subject

Engineering Technical College

Fuel & Energy Department

Basra

Supervisor:
Ms. ALAA JABER

July 2020
 Table of Contents:

Subject Page no.

INTRODUCTION OF MASS TRANSFER 1
MODES OF MASS TRANSFER 1
I- Mass Transfer by Diffusion (Molecular or Eddy 1
Diffusion)

II- Mass transfer by convection 2

III- Mass transfer by change of phase 2
Application of mass transfer in processing industries 2
Distillation 2

Adsorption 4

CONCLUSION 7

REFERENCES 8
INTRODUCTION OF MASS TRANSFER

In general, the transfer of mass is treated as a subject of mechanics.

The mass transfer that is associated with convection occurs on a
macroscopic level that is due to a change in momentum and is called
mass (fluid) transport. Mass transport is usually treated as a subject of
fluid mechanics. When a system contains two or more species
(components) whose concentrations vary from point to point, there is a
natural tendency for mass to be transferred to minimize the concentration
difference within the system. This transport of mass on a microscopic
level as a result of diffusion from a region of high concentration to a
region of lower concentration is called mass transfer.

MODES OF MASS TRANSFER

The mechanism of the mass transfer process can be classified as

I- Mass transfer by diffusion
II- Mass transfer by convection
III- Mass transfer by change of phase

I- Mass Transfer by Diffusion (Molecular or Eddy Diffusion)

Molecular diffusion is the transfer of mass on a microscopic level

as a result of the concentration gradient of one or more constituents
(species) in the system. The diffusion of mass from a constituent occurs
through a layer of stagnant fluid, and its occurrence may be due to
concentration gradients, temperature gradients, or pressure gradients.
Various examples of molecular diffusion can be taken from our day-to-
day experiences.
Some of these are:

• The dissolution of sugar or salt in hot water and its uniform

diffusion throughout

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 • The evaporation of water from a pond that increases the humidity
of a passing air stream
• The evaporation of petrol in the carburetor of a car’s engine
• The evaporation of moisture during the drying of clothes or wood
• The humidification of air in air coolers and cooling towers
• The spread of the fragrance of perfume or flowers to t surroundings
• The diffusion of smoke through a tall chimney to the atmosphere
When a diffusing fluid is in turbulent motion, eddy diffusion takes
place. Due to turbulence, the rate of diffusion increases, which
results in an increase in mass transfer. An example of the eddy
diffusion process is the dissipation of smoke from a smoke stack.

II- Mass Transfer by Convection

The mass transfer between a surface and a moving fluid or between

two immiscible moving fluids is called convective mass transfer. The
convective mass transfer depends on:
• The transport properties of fluid
• The dynamic characteristics (laminar or turbulent flow) of flowing
fluid

The evaporation of water by moving air in a desert cooler is an example

of convective mass transfer.

III- Mass Transfer by Change of Phase

A change of phase of a fluid can also cause mass transfer. Such mass
transfer is a combination of the processes of diffusion and convection.
Examples of mass transfer by phase change are:

• Hot flue gases rising from a chimney by convection and then

diffusing to the atmospheric air
• The mass transfer from boiling water to the air

APPLICATION OF MASS TRANSFER IN PROCESSING

INDUSTRIES

DISTILLATION
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 Distillation is applied to separate, by vaporization, a liquid mixture of
soluble and volatile substances into individual components, or in some
cases in a group of component (Kister, 1990). For instance, purification
of alcohol can be done
by distillation and FIG.1
extracting it from the
water and produce pure
alcohol as end product
of the process by
cooling down the
alcohol vapor. Refer to
Figure 1, a feed of a
liquid mixture is
provided continuously
to the tank. Once the
reboiler is heated up,
the liquid mixture is
vaporized partially by using the heat transferred by the reboiler. The
vapor stream from the low boiler (liquid mixture at the bottom of the
column) have to bring close-related countercurrent contact with a
downward liquid stream in order to rise the concentration of the low
boiler. The liquid must be concentrated enough in case that there is mass
transfer of the low boiler from the liquid to the vapor at each stage of the
column. It is known that such liquid can be get by condensing the
overhead product and returning it back to the column. It is called reflux.
which functions to elevate the purity of the overhead product with some
capital, since the vapor produced in the reboiler must be provided to both
reflux and overhead product

Usually, the reflux is entering the column at its boiling point.

Throughout the column, the liquid and vapor are at their boiling point and
condensing temperature respectively. Besides, the temperature will
increase when going down the column due to the increase of the boiler
concentration or in some cases, the rise of pressure.

At the top stage of the distillation column, the vapor coming to this
stage is less concentrated compared to the overhead product. At the same

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time, the reflux, which has the same composition as the overhead product,
will have a vapor equilibrium which can make the reflux richer than the
product. Hence, vapor that passing through the top stage will be enriched
due to the reflux liquid. This makes the reflux less concentrated in the
boiler. In the column, some low boiler diffuses into the vapor phase, and
a corresponding diffusion of high boiler also occurs at the same time. As
a result, the total flow rate of vapor up the column is almost constant.

The enrichment of vapor stream as it passes through all the stages of

the column in contact with reflux is called rectification. The reflux
originates, given its concentration in low boiler is enough to produce the
desired product, so it is immaterial. The common source of the reflux is
the condensate which will leave the condenser. The condensate will be
leaving as the final product partially and the leftover of the condensate
will be recycled and entered the column again as reflux. The reflux then
have different composition from the vapor leaving as overhead product.

From the reboiler, liquid which most of the components have higher
boiling point, is taken out due to the small amount of this component slips
with overhead product. This liquid is known as bottom product because
the equipment of the distillation has no provision to rectifying this stream.

ADSORPTION

Adsorption is the adhesion of atoms, ions, or molecules from a gas,

liquid, or dissolved solid to a surface. Adsorption takes place on the wall
of the pores or at specific sites inside the particle. The pores are small in
size which causes the surface area inside is greater in magnitude than
external area. Separation occurs due to the differences in molecular
weight. Sometimes, the absorbing component (adsorbate) is held strongly
enough to permit complete removal of that component from the fluid with
very little adsorption of other components. Then regeneration of the
adsorbent can be carried out in order to get the adsorbent in concentrated
or pure form.

4
 Adsorbent particles are placed in a bed 1 to 4ft deep supported on a
screen. From one bed to another bed, the feed gasses pass down while the
others are being regenerated. Down-flow is preferred by the gases
because if up-flow will cause
FIG2
the particles to fluidize,
which directly causes
attrition and loss of fines.
Valves will automatically
switch when the
concentration of solute
reaches a certain fixed value
or scheduled time. The gas
will be then directed to other
valve. Hot inert gases also
can be used to in
regeneration but usually
steam is preferred if the solve is not miscible with water. Temperature
increase due to the condensation of steam in the bed. The solution is
condensed, separated from the water and sometimes dried before being
used. The bed will be cooled and dried with inert gas. Besides that,
evaporation of water also helps in cooling down the bed and partially
offset the heat of adsorption.

The gas flow rate and the desired cycle time is the determining
factors for the size of the adsorbent bed. The cross sectional area is
always calculated in order to be small. Sometimes, for very large flow
rates, a rectangular bed will be installed in the middle of a horizontal
cylinder rather than using a vertical tank with a diameter much greater
than the bed depth.

5
CONCLUSION

As a conclusion, mass transfer is defined as the shift of chemical

substances with respect to the motion of other species. The relative
motion is one of the cause of this mechanism. Besides, some
consideration must be taken for specific issue before any solution is
applied to real problems. Such concerns are phase equilibria, convective
mass flux, mixture of the system and last but not least effect of latent
heat. Normally, most operations related to mass transfer are according to
turbulent flow which it is known to increase the rate of transfer the unit or
aid dispersion of one fluid in another and formations of interfacial areas.
On the other hand, film theory (mass transfer theory) is described as the
resistance to diffusion is equivalent to the stagnant film of certain
thickness. Moreover, molecular diffusion is referred as the movement
which take place due to the concentration gradient (influence of physical
stimulus). Furthermore, convective mass transfer include the transport of
material between boundary interphase and moving fluid, or between two
relatively immiscible fluids which are in motion. There are many
application of mass transfer in processing industries. Distillation and
adsorption are example of processing industries

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REFERENCES

✓ Asano, K. (2006). Mass transfer: from fundamentals to modern

industrial applications. Weinheim, Germany: Wiley-VCH.

✓ Kister, H. Z. (1990). Distillation operation. New York, United

State: McGraw Hill.

✓ McCabe, W. L., Smith, J. C., Harriott, P. (2005). Unit operations

of chemical engineering (7th ed.). United State: McGraw Hill.

✓ Seadar, J. D., Henley, E. J. (1998). Separation process principles

(2nd ed.). New York, United State: J, Wiley.