REVIEW OF DIFFUSIONAL TRANSPORT STUDIED IN CL 203

Analysis of hydrogen transport through metals

• It is known that hydrogen diffuses through metals when exposed to them and makes them brittle
• We wish to analyze transport of hydrogen in a metal as shown
• Specifically, we want to know spatial and temporal variation of hydrogen concentration in the metal
• For this purpose, write a mass balance equation for hydrogen in metal
Gas with hydrogen
Hydrogen concentration at
𝑧=𝐿 surface = 𝑐𝑜

∆𝑧
𝑧=0
Consider a thin slice of thickness ∆𝑧 and write mass balance for hydrogen across this slice.
Hydrogen in
Hydrogen accumulation minus 𝜕𝑐 𝜕2 𝑐
= gives =𝐷
in ∆z hydrogen out, 𝜕𝑡 𝜕𝑧 2
both by diffusion
• This differential equation can be solved using appropriate boundary conditions to find 𝑐 𝑡, 𝑧
• Boundaries across which concentration varies is clearly defined;
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remember this point as we move forward
FAMOUS FICK’S LAW IS PROVEN BY EXPERIMENTS WHERE BOUNDARIES ARE KNOWN

Experiment 1 Experiment 2

water

Cross-sectional area Cross-sectional area

Distance across which salt diffuses changes
is constant
Salt crystals

• These experiments can be described by diffusional mass transport equations also

• Comparing predicted values of salt concentrations along the distance with measurements,
Fick proved his law of diffusion
• The space over which concentration varies is known

WHAT IF THE BOUNDARIES WHERE CONCENTRATION CHANGES CANNOT BE DEFINED EASILY?

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 WHERE ARE THE BOUNDARIES IN THESE EXAMPLES?
Dissolution of sugar (solid) in stirred water (liquid) Dissolution of oxygen (gas) in stirred water (liquid)

Air bubbles

Evaporation of water (liquid) from a lake

Into moving air (gas)
In examples such as these:
• Concentration of solute in bulk solution is same
everywhere at all times
• Boundaries over which concentration of solute varies
cannot be found easily
• Rate of mass transfer in such cases is described by an
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engineering approximation—using MASS TRANSFER COEFFICIENT3
 MASS TRANSFER COEFFICIENT CHARACTERIZES MASS TRANSFER RATE
OR MASS TRANSFER FLUX (rate per unit area)

Mass transfer rate across an interface into a well-mixed solution is proportional to:

• 𝑐1𝑖 − 𝑐1 𝑐1𝑖 is concentration of solute at the interface but in the solution

𝑐1 is concentration of solute in the bulk solution

• 𝑎
𝑎 is area across which solute is transferred; this area is referred to
as interfacial area

𝑁1 is mass transfer flux

𝑁1 = 𝑘𝑐 𝑐1𝑖 − 𝑐1 𝑘𝑐 is mass transfer coefficient
Multiplying 𝑁1 with 𝑎 gives mass transfer rate

What are the units of mass transfer coefficient?

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 CHECK YOUR UNDERSTANDING

• Can you define space over which concentration varies for evaporation of water from a pond?
• For this evaporation, would you use Fick’s law or convective mass transfer to find rate of evaporation
• Is the interfacial area for evaporation from a circular pond equal to 𝜋𝑅2 always? 𝑅 is radius of the pond
• Write equation for mass transfer flux for a drug dissolving in stomach. Define the variables in the equation
• For oxygen dissolution experiment discussed here, how can interfacial area be increased?