Flow patterns, liquid holdup, and wetting behavior of viscous liquids in a disk-distributor rotating packed bed

A novel disk-distributor rotating packed bed (DRPB) was developed in this study to promote the application of RPBs for high-viscosity processes. A rotating disk was used as a liquid distributor in the inner cavity of the DRPB to distribute a high-viscosity liquid, and the porous packing was anchored radially outside the disk to additionally disperse the incoming liquid. Three-dimensional Eulerian multiphase simulations were implemented to examine the liquid flow characteristics in the packing after experimental validation. With increasing viscosity (l) from 11 mPa.s to 59372 mPa.s, flow patterns were transformed from dispersive into continuous modes. Liquid holdup, which ranged from 0.0006 to 0.25, was proportional to mu(0.61). Wetting efficiency and wetting height varied in ranges of 0.0012-0.416 and 3.03-14.57 mm, respectively. At a viscosity of 3331 mPa.s, approaches involving the use of multistage DRPB and the installation of redistribution blades improved the axial utilization efficiency of the packing from 20% to 80% and 20% to 92%, respectively.(c) 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.