Faculty of Engineering Mass Transfer

Cairo University Fourth Year

Chemical Engineering Department Sheet 1: Diffusion

1- Calculate the mass diffusivity of a mixture of CO and O2 at 25°C 1 atm. using Gilliland
correlation, VO2 =25.6, VCO =34 cm3 /gmole

2- Calculate the diffusion coefficient of Methanol in Water at 30°C knowing that:

VM = 14.9 cm3 /gmole and VW = 8 cm3 /gmole

3- Determine the diffusivity of CO2 (1), O2 (2) and N2 (3) in a gas mixture having the next
composition (Mole Basis): 28.5% CO2, 15% O2 and 56.5% N2.
The gas mixture is at 273K and 1 atm., the binary diffusivities are given as follows:
D12 = 0.1874 m2/sec, D13 = 0.1945 m2/sec, D23 = 0.1834 m2/sec

4- Consider the case in which liquid (A) evaporates and diffuses through stagnant gas (B) as
shown in the figure. Assuming the process is carried out isothermally at 25 °C and the total
pressure is 1 atm. Calculate the molar flux when the level of liquid (A) is 0.05 m below the top
of the container.
Assume that DAB = 1.0E-5 m2 /sec. The mole fraction of A in the gas phase at the gas-liquid
interface is 0.2 and at the top of the container is 0.001

5- An open cylindrical tank 20 ft in diameter contains benzene at 22 oC which is exposed to the

atmosphere in such a manner that the liquid is covered with a stagnant air film estimated to be 5
mm thick. The concentration of benzene beyond the stagnant film is negligible. The vapour
pressure of benzene at 22 oC is 100 mmHg. If benzene is worth 30 cents per gallon, what is the
value of the loss of benzene from this tank, in dollars per day? Given that the specific gravity of
benzene is 0.88 and diffusivity of benzene in air at 22 oC is 1.0132E-4 ft2/sec

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 If a floating roof is used to decrease the losses, what diameter of the roof will be needed
to reduce the losses by 95%?
Note: 1gallon=0.1337 ft3

6- By what percentage would the rate of absorption be increased or decreased by increasing

the total pressure from 100 to 200 KN/m2 in the following cases:
a) The absorption of ammonia from a mixture of ammonia and air containing 10% of
ammonia by volume, using pure water as solvent. Assume that all the resistance to
mass transfer lies within the gas phase.
b) The same conditions as (a) but the absorbing solution exerts a partial vapour pressure
of ammonia of 5 KN/m2.
The diffusivity can be assumed to be inversely proportional to the absolute pressure.

7- Ammonia is absorbed with water from ammonia-air mixture using a column operating at
1 atm and 25°C. Resistance to mass transfer can be considered only through a thin film of
1 mm within the gas phase. At a point in the column, the partial pressure of ammonia is
50 mmHg; the backpressure of ammonia at the interface is negligible.
i- If the diffusivity of NH3 in air at these conditions is 0.236 cm2/sec, what is the
transfer rate per unit area at that point in the column?
ii- If the total pressure is 2 atm, how the transfer would be related?

8- A simple rectifying tower consists of a tube arranged vertically and supplied at the
bottom with a vapour mixture of Benzene and Toluene. At the top of the column a
condenser returns some of the product as a liquid reflux flowing in a thin film down the
inner wall of the tube. At one point in the column the Benzene concentration in the
vapour is 70 mol% and the adjacent liquid contains 60% by mol Benzene.
The temperature at this point is 365 K. Assuming the diffusional resistance in the vapour
phase is to be equivalent to a stagnant vapour layer of 0.2 mm thick.
Calculate the rate of exchange of Benzene between vapours and liquid if the diffusivity of
the vapour is 0.051 cm2/sec.
Constants of Antoine equation for toluene are: A=16.0137, B=3096.52 & C=-53.67

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9- H2 gas at 2 atm and 25°C flows through a pipe of rubber of 25 mm ID and 50 mm OD.
The solubility of H2 is reported to be 0.053 (cm3 H2 at STP/cm3 of rubber. atm), and the
diffusivity of H2 through rubber is 1.88E-6 cm2/sec. Estimate the rate of loss by diffusion
per meter of pipe length, knowing that the concentration of H2 at the outer surface = zero.

10- During a summer storm, a house owner forgot to close the windows. When the storm was
over, a 1.235 m3 water with uniform thickness of 0.3 cm was spread over the floor. Water
evaporating from this slop does so as if it were diffusing across an air film, which is 0.1
cm thick. The diffusion coefficient of water in 30°C air is about 0.28 cm2/sec. If the air
outside the film is 55% saturated, how long will it take until the floor is dry again?
Constants of Antoine equation for water are: A=18.3036, B=3816.44 & C=-46.13

11- An open cylindrical tank is filled with pure methanol within 2 ft from the top. The tank is
plotted shown in the figure below. The air within the tank is stationary but circulation of
air immediately above the tank is adequate to assume a negligible concentration of
methanol at 77°F and 1 atm. Calculate the rate of loss of methanol from the tank at steady
state.
Diffusivity of methanol in air at 77°F and 1 atm is 0.62 ft2/hr
Constants of Antoine equation for methanol are: A=18.5875, B=3626.55 & C=-34.29

Stationary air
4 ft

2 ft

Methanol

6 ft

12- A sintered solid of Silica 4 mm thick is porous with a porosity of 0.4 and tortusity of 3.
The pores of the Silica are filled with water at 25°C. At one face of the solid Silica the
concentration of KCl is held at 0.1 gmole/lit and pure water flows rapidly by the other
face. Calculate the diffusion flux of KCl at steady state given that the diffusivity of KCl
in water at 25°C is 1.87E-9 m2 /sec.

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Past Examinations Problems:

1- Mid-Term exam
A laboratory beaker measures 10 cm in diameter and 20 cm in height is filled to 90% of
its height with aniline. How long would it take to evaporate half of the amount of aniline
if the temperature in the laboratory is 35 oC and the thickness of the thin film is equal to
0.2 m? (Sp. Gr. of aniline=1.022, Diffusivity of aniline at 26 oC is equal to 0.74E-05
m2/sec). Vapour pressure of aniline is given by the following equation:
3857.52
ln (Pv )  16.67 
T  73.15
Where P is the vapour pressure in mmHg, and T is the temperature in Kelvin.

2- Mid-Term Exam, November 2001

A drop of liquid toluene is kept at a uniform temperature of 26 oC and is suspended by a
fine wire in a large room full of stagnant air. The drop can be considered as a sphere of
diameter 4 mm.
Calculate the time in seconds for complete evaporation of the drop.
The following data for toluene at 26 oC are available:
-  (viscosity) at 26 oC =0.5 cP
- Liquid specific gravity at 26 oC =0.866
- Surface tension at 26 oC =13.4 dyne/cm
- Vapour pressure at 26 oC=29 mmHg
- Diffusivity in air at 45 oC is 0.0943 cm2/sec

3- Mid-Term exam, November 2000

A flag plug 30 mm thick having an area of 4 cm2 and made of vulcanized rubber is used
for closing an opening in a container. The gas CO2 at 25 oC and 2 atm is inside the
container. Calculate the total leakage of CO2 to the outside at steady state. Assume the
partial pressure of CO2 outside is zero. The solubility of CO2 gas in vulcanized rubber is
0.9 m3 gas (at STP) per m3 rubber per atm pressure of CO2. The diffusivity is 0.11E-9
m2/sec.