Transport Phenomena - Mass Transfer Exercises

1. A device has been proposed that will serve as a ‘‘blood oxygenator’’ for a heart–lung bypass
machine. In this process, blood (which is mostly water, species B) containing no dissolved
oxygen (O2 species A) enters the top of the chamber and then falls vertically down as a liquid
film of uniform thickness, along a surface designed to appropriately wet blood. Contacting the
liquid surface is a 100% O2 gas phase.
Oxygen is soluble in blood, with the equilibrium
solubility described by Henry’s law, C A*= pA/H, where pA
is the partial pressure of oxygen (atm), the Henry’s law
constant, and CA is the solubility concentration limit of
oxygen dissolved in blood (mmol/L) at p A. In analyzing
the mass transport of dissolved oxygen into the falling
film, you may assume the following:
(1) the process is dilute with respect to dissolved oxygen
in the fluid
(2) the falling liquid film has a flat velocity profile with
velocity Vmax
(3) the gas space always contains 100% oxygen
(5) the width of the liquid film, W, is much larger than
the length of the liquid film, L.

a) Simplify the general differential equation for O2 transfer. If your analysis suggests more than
one dimension for flux, provide a simplified flux equation for each coordinate of interest.
b) List boundary conditions associated with the oxygen mass transfer process.

2. A hemispherical droplet of liquid water, lying on a flat surface, evaporates by molecular diffusion
through still air surrounding the droplet. The droplet initially has a radius R. As the liquid water
slowly evaporates, the droplet shrinks slowly with time, but the flux of the water vapor is at a
nominal steady state. The temperature of the droplet and the surrounding still air are kept
constant. The air contains water vapor at an infinitely long distance from the droplet’s surface.
a) After drawing a picture of the physical process, select a coordinate system that will best
describe this diffusion process, list at least five reasonable assumptions for the mass-
transfer aspects of the water-evaporation process and simplify the general differential
equation for mass transfer in terms of the flux NA.
b) What is the simplified differential form of Fick’s equationfor water vapor (species A)?

3. An ethanol/water vapor mixture is being distilled by contact with

an ethanol/water liquid solution. The ethanol is transferred from
the liquid to the vapor phase and the water is transferred in the
opposite direction. The condensation of water vapor provides the
energy for vaporization of ethanol. Both components are diffusing
through a gas film 0.1 mm thick. The temperature is 368 K and the
 pressure is 1.013x105 Pa. At these conditions, the pure component enthalpy of vaporization of
the ethanol and water are 840 and 2300 kJ/kg, respectively. Develop the flux equation for
ethanol vapor. Then develop the flux equation assuming that the components have equimolar
heats of vaporization.
4. A tank with its top open to the atmosphere contains liquid methanol (MeOH, molecular weight
32g/mol) at the bottom of the tank. The tank is maintained at 30°C. The diameter of the
cylindrical tank is 1.0 m, the total height of the tank is 3.0 m, and the liquid level at the bottom
of the tank is maintained at 0.5 m. The gas space inside the tank is stagnant and the MeOH
vapors are immediately dispersed once they exit the tank. At 30°C, the vapor pressure exerted
by liquid MeOH is 163 mmHg and at 40°C the MeOH vapor pressure is 265 mmHg. We are
concerned that this open tank may be emitting a considerable amount of MeOH vapor.
a) What is the emission rate of MeOH vapor from the tank in units of kg MeOH/day when the
tank is at a temperature of 30°C? State all assumptions and boundary conditions.
b) If the temperature of the tank is raised to 408C, what is the new methanol emission rate?

5. Consider one of the cylindrical channels that run through an isomerization catalyst as shown
below. A catalyst coats the inner walls of each channel. This catalyst promotes the isomerization
of n-butane (n-C4H10) species A to isobutene (i-C 4H10) species B. The gas phase above the
channels contains mixture of A and B maintained at a constant composition of 60 mol %n-C 4H10
(A) and 40 mol%i-C4H10 (B). Gas phase species A diffuses down a straight channel of diameter d
=0.1 cm and length L = 2.0 cm. The base of each channel is sealed. This is rapid reaction so that
the production rate of B is diffusion limited.
The quiescent gas space in the channel consists of only species A and B.
a. State three relevant assumptions for the mass transfer process.
b. Based on your assumptions, simplify the general differential equation for the mass transfer of
species A, leaving the equation in terms of the flux N A.
c. Using equations for the flux of A in your determined equation, express the general differential
equation in terms of the concentration CA
d. Specify relevant boundary conditions for the gas phase concentration C A.

6. One way to deliver a timed dosage within the human body is to ingest a capsule and allow it to
settle in the gastrointestinal system. Once inside the body, the capsule slowly releases the drug
to the body by a diffusion-limited process. A suitable drug carrier is a spherical bead of a
nontoxic gelatinous material that can pass through the gastrointestinal system without
disintegrating. A water-soluble drug (solute A) is uniformly dissolved within the gel, has an initial
concentration, CA0 of 50 mg/cm3. The drug loaded within the spherical gel capsule is the sink for
mass transfer. Consider a limiting case where the drug is immediately consumed or swept away
once it reaches the surface, i.e., @ R, C A= 0.
a. In analyzing the process, choose a coordinate system and simplify the general differential
equation for the mass transfer of the drug in terms of the flux.
b. What reasonable assumptions were used in your simplifying of the general differential
equation.
c. Simplify Fick’s equation for the drug species and obtain a differential equation in terms of
concentration, CA.
7. Two very large tanks, maintained at 323 K and 1 atm total system pressure, are connected by
a 0.1m diameter circular duct which is 5 m in length. Tank 1 contains a uniform
gas of 60 mol% acetone and 40 mol% air, whereas tank 2 contains a uniform gas of 10 mol%
acetone and 90 mol% air. Determine the initial rate of acetone transfer between the
two tanks. The gas diffusivity of acetone in air at 298 K and 1 atm is 0:093 cm2/s.