UNIVERSITY OF ZIMBABWE

July/August 2018 EXAMINATIONS

Faculty: ENGINEERING

Department: MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

Paper code and Title: ME 307 Process Engineering

Duration: 3 HOURS

Examiner: Eng. C. S. Shonhiwa

Authorized Materials: Calculator

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Answer any four (4) questions

2. Start each question on separate sheet
3. This question paper comprises 6 printed pages

NB: DO NOT TURN OVER THE QUESTION PAPER OR COMMENCE WRITING

UNTIL INSTRUCTED TO DO SO.

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Question 1.

a) When citing a processing plant state 10 factors your would consider [10]

b) In any one of processing company that you have visited state the utilities that are used during
the day to day operation of the plant [5]

c) State the different types of waste that is generated in an industrial processing pant in question
1(b) and briefly explain how each of the waste is managed/disposed [10]

Question 2

a) What is a fluidized bed? Briefly explain how it operates [4]

b) State and explain any two industrial applications of fluidization bed that you know. [6]

c) A fluidized bed consists of uniform spherical particles of diameter 3 mm and density

4200 kg/m3. What will be the minimum fluidizing velocity in a liquid of viscosity
3mNs/m2 and density 1100 kg/m3? [5]

Assuming a value of emf = 0.4

d) Oil, of density 900 kg/m3 and viscosity 3mNs/m2, is passed vertically upwards
through a bed of catalyst consisting of approximately spherical particles of diameter
0.1 mm and density 2600 kg/m3.
At what mass flow rate of per unit area of bed will
i) fluidization, and [5]
ii) transport of particles occur? [5]
Assume
K”= 5 e.=0.48

Alternatively see figure Q2 on list of formulae attached

Question 3
a) Glass particles of 4 mm diameter are fluidized by water at a velocity of 0.25 m/s.
What will be the voidage of the bed? [7]
Given that:
The density of glass = 2500 kg/m3, the density of water = 1000 kg/m3, and the viscosity of
water = 1mNs/m2.
b) What is leaching. [2]
c) What are the factors that affect the leaching process [5]
d) Give two examples of industrial leaching process that you know [2]
e) Seeds, containing 20 per cent by mass of oil, are extracted in a countercurrent plant,
and 90 per cent of the oil is recovered in a solution containing 50 per cent by mass of
oil. If the seeds are extracted with fresh solvent and 1 kg of solution is removed in the
underflow in association with every 2 kg of insoluble matter as shown in figure Q3.
Determine the number of ideal stages are required? [9]

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Figure Q3. Graphical representation of solvent extraction of vegetable oil

Question 4
a) The solution for solvent extraction in question 3(e) above is heated using hot water by
passing it through a shell and tube heat exchanger whose geometry is as follows:
Shell diameter (Ds) =0.635m
Number of tubes (n) = 532
Outside diameter of tubes (Do) = 0.019m
Inside diameter of tubes (Di) = 0.016m
Length of tubes = 4.88m
Spacing of tubes (triangular) 0.024m
Baffle spacing (B) = 0.241m

For the Tube side flow

Inlet temperature =293K
Flow rate (Q) = 226795kg/h, Cp = 2.1kJ/kg.K μ =0.5cP, ρ = 0.8 k= 0.13 W/m. K
For the Shell side flow
Inlet temperature = 533K
Flow rate (Q) = 90718 kg/h, Cp = 4.19kJ/kg.K μ =0.83cP, ρ = 1 k= 0.62 W/m.K
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 i. Calculate outlet temperatures for both counter current and parallel flow [5]
ii. Calculate LMTD for both counter current and parallel flow [5]
iii. Determine the overall heat transfer coefficient [5]
iv. Compare and contrast shell and tube heat transfer equipment and tube and pipe
heat transfer equipment. [10]
Question 5
a) Derive the energy equation for Bond, Kick and Rittinger from the energy equation of
dE
size reduction of a material  CLP [10]
dL
Where p represents a constant value for Bond, Kick and Rittinger’s numbers

b) Energy utilization during size reduction of a particle is distributed in five different

forms state them. [5]
c) State the size reduction equipment according to the size of the feed particle [4]
d) Describe a ball mill and explain how it operates. [6]
.
Question 6
a) Explain the difference between High Calorific Value (HCV) and Low Calorific Value
(LCV) of fuel [5]
b) A fuel oil consists of 85% carbon, 12.5 % hydrogen, 2 % oxygen and 0.5% residual
matter by mass.
i. Calculate the stoichiometric air required for complete combustion of
1kg of this oil. [6]
ii. Estimate the HCV and LCV of this fuel taking the specific enthalpy
of the water vapor formed by combustion to be 2442Kj/kg at 250C
and 1kg of carbon burning to CO2 liberates 35000kJ, and one kg of
Hydrogen liberates 143000 kJ, when the products of combustion are
cooled down to 250C. Air contains 23% Oxygen by mass. [14]

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 List of formulae
(Remf )emf=0.4 = 25.7(√(1 + 5.53 × 10−5Ga) – 1)
u = (1/K”)(e3/(S2(1 − e)2)(1/μ)(−∆P/l)
∆P = (1 − e)(ρs − ρ)lg
Gmf = ρu = (0.0055e3/(1 − e))(d2(ρs − ρ)g)/μ
Stokes’ law : u0 = d2g(ρs − ρ)/18μ

Figure Q2

S = surface area/volume, which, for a sphere,= πd2/(πd3/6) = 6/d.

For K= 5, S = 6/d and −∆P/l
umf = 0.0055(e3/(1 − e))(d2(ρs − ρ)g)/μ
Hence : Gmf = ρu = (0.0055e3/(1 − e))(d2(ρs − ρ)g)/μ
Ga = d3ρ(ρs − ρ)g μ2

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 0.0273cG BDs ( s  Do )
h ac 
Cp
2
3
DG 0.365 s
( ) ( )
k 
B 16 2k
ho  hF1 Fr  h0.8( ) hw 
Ds Do  Di

1 1 1 1 1
    W  10Wi ( P 0.5  F 0.5 )
U ho D hw hs
hi i
Do