Mass Transfer Fundamentals

Ch.E- 304

Muhammad Rashed Javed

2 Knudsen Diffusion

Mass Transfer Fundamentals

3 Knudsen Diffusion

Mass Transfer Fundamentals

4 Problem 1
 There is a 2mm thick layer of water on the floor of a room. The water
vaporizes and diffuses through a stagnant film of air of estimated
thickness of 2.5 mm on the water surface. Under the conditions of
evaporation, the water temperature is essentially equal to its wet-bulb
temperature. If the ambient temperature is 28 C, calculate the time
required for the water layer to completely disappear completely for the
following cases:
 a) the ambient air has a relative humidity of 60%
 b) the floor has micropores and water penetrates the floor at a constant rate of
0.1 kg/m2.h, the ambient air having humidity as in part a.
Wet bulb temperature is 22.5 C, diffisuvity of water in air is 0.853 ft2/h at 1 atm
and 0 C. Vapor pressure, Pv (in bar) of water is given by:
ln Pv = 13.8573 – 5160.2/T where T is temperature in K (Antoine Equation)

Mass Transfer Fundamentals

5 Problem 2
 Two large vessels connected by a tube 5 cm in diameter and 15 cm in
length. Vessel 1 contains 80% N2 and 20% O2. Vessel 2 contains 80% O2
and 20% N2. Temperature is 20 C and pressure is 2 atm Calculate:
 a) the steady state flux and rate of transport of N2 from vessel 1 to vessel 2.
 b) the same quantities for O2.
 c) the partial pressure of N2 and its gradient in the tube 5 cm from vessel 1.
 d) the net mass flux with respect to a stationary observer
Diffusivity of N2-O2 pair is 0.23 cm2/s at 316 K and 1 atm.

Mass Transfer Fundamentals

6 Problem 3
 Ammonia is absorbed in water from a mixture with air using a
column operating at 1 bar and 295 K. The resistance to transfer
may be regarded as lying entirely within the gas phase. At a point
in the column, the partial pressure of the ammonia is 7.0 kN/m2.
The back pressure at the water interface is negligible and the
resistance to transfer may be regarded as lying in a stationary gas
film 1 mm thick. If the diffusivity of ammonia in air is 236 x 10-5
m2/s, what is the transfer rate per unit area at that point in the
column? How would the rate of transfer be affected if the
ammonia air mixture were compressed to double the pressure?

Mass Transfer Fundamentals