Simulation of a spray scrubber performance with Eulerian/Lagrangian approach in the aerosol removing process

In this study, a mathematical model has been developed to simulate the performance of a spray scrubber in an industrial ammonium nitrate plant. The model is based on the Lagrangian approach for the droplets movement and particle source in cell (PSI-CELL) model for calculating the droplet concentration distribution. Consequently, unlike former research, the emphasis is on the droplet dynamic behavior. In the current study, for approaching a realistic model, a droplet size distribution rather than average diameter, and also liquid film formation rather than uniform and constant droplet flow rate has been applied. Also, the Eulerian method has been used for the calculation of the particles removal efficiency and energy balance has been applied on the gas to estimate the droplet size distribution. In the experimental section, the concentration of particles and their size distribution in both inlet and outlet gas of the studied scrubber has been measured for the validation of the predicted particles collection efficiency. In addition, the temperature of the gas at inlet, outlet and in the middle of the tower has been measured for the confirmation of the predicted droplet size distribution in the tower. A good consistency between the model and data has been observed. After the model is validated, it is used to investigate the various variable profiles such as liquid film, total projected surface area of the droplets, velocity profile of the droplets and some of the other parameters in the spray scrubbers. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.