METU Chem. Eng. Dept.

Ch.E. 410 Chem. Eng. Lab II

OBJECTIVES
 To learn the agitation of a non-Newtonian solution in a mixing tank.
 To understand the effects of baffles, impeller type and agitation speed on the power
consumption.

PRELIMINARY WORK
 Gather general information about fluid mechanics, especially mixing of Newtonian/
non-Newtonian fluids using impellers.
 Learn about flow regimes. Is there any effect of impeller type on the flow regime?
 Review basic dimensionless numbers related to mixing process.
 Learn about the most important geometrical parameters for mixing in stirred tanks.
 Learn about types of impellers – what type of impeller should be used for mixing of
non-Newtonian fluids with high viscosity?
 Explore mixing equipment other than stirred tanks.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Mixing takes place in almost all chemical process industries. It may be used for relatively
simple applications such as blending in a storage tank, or in the heart of the process such as in
pharmaceuticals, food, mineral processing, fine chemicals, drinking water and wastewater
treatment, where several streams and/or phases come into contact with each other.
Mixing objective depends on the process in operation. Some examples can be listed as:
 Suspending solid particles in liquid (mineral processing)
 Blending miscible liquids (ethyl alcohol and water)
 Dispersing a gas through the liquid in the form of small bubbles (biotechnology)
 Promoting heat transfer between the liquid and a coil (in a heat exchanger)
 Enhancement of mass transfer between liquid or vapour phases (in distillation
columns)
It is crucial to define the mixing objective and the phases that are present in the process

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for a proper mixing equipment design. The design will be significantly different for blending
in a storage tank and suspending solids in a catalytic reactor with gas entry and varying
viscosity throughout the process.

MIXING EQUIPMENT
Mixing, in general, is done in stirred tanks with impellers. It can; however, be done in stirred
tanks with jet or pulse mixers, in pipes with static mixers, in confined micro reactors such as
confined impinging jet reactors, in extruders and more.
Design of contents of a stirred tank is crucial in reaching the mixing objective. The flow is
generated by the rotation of the impeller. The type of the impeller - therefore the type of flow
it provides - is a very important parameter. Different types of impellers can provide axial,
radial, or mixed flow[1]. Axial flow impellers are very good for solids suspension. Radial flow
impellers are very good for gas dispersion and liquid-liquid dispersions. The mixed flow
impellers provide both axial and radial flow, and they are often preferred in industry.
Choosing the correct type of impeller is the first step to a good stirred tank design, but the
mixing objective and the phases present must be defined very well to make the choice.
The position and number of impellers installed are also determining factors in obtaining
“good mixing”. Presence of baffles is mandatory for most processes, but for some, it is
preferred not to install them. In pharmaceutical industry or in some food processing
operations baffles are not employed because of difficulty in cleaning. Also, for mixing of
highly viscous material baffles are often not preferred.
The power consumption is another very important parameter for engineering design. The
choices that are made on the contents of the stirred tank – they type and number of impellers,
where they are located, the presence of baffles, blade thickness of the impellers, liquid height,
etc. affect power consumption.

POWER CONSUMPTION IN AGITATED VESSELS

where P is the power consumption (W), ρ is the fluid density (kg/m3), Np is the power
number, N is the rotational speed (rps) and D is the impeller diameter (m). The power number
depends on the type of the impeller, the geometric properties of the impeller such as the
diameter and blade thickness, and the impeller Reynolds number.

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The flow regime is determined based on the impeller Reynolds number:
N D ρ 2
Re =
μ
where, μ is the fluid viscosity (kg/m.s).
If the impeller Reynolds number is smaller than 10 then the flow is laminar; if the Reynolds
number is larger than 2x104 then the flow is turbulent. When the Reynolds number is between
10 and 2x104 flow is in transitional regime.
For non-Newtonian fluids, viscosity is represented by the apparent viscosity, μa. It is defined
as

μ = m(γ ) 3

where n is the power law index, m is flow consistency index and γav is the average shear
rate[2].
To determine the flow regime through Reynolds number, viscosity must be defined. The
viscosity; however, depends on the shear rate, which varies within the vessel. An approximate
calculation is recommended for shear rate calculations for pseudo-plastic liquids:
γ = KN 4
where K is a constant that depends on the type of the impeller[1].
Table 1. Metzner-Otto constant for shear rate versus impeller speed[1]
Impeller Propeller Helical Ribbon Anchor Rushton
K 10 30 25 12

EXPERIMENTAL
Materials
1 wt% Carboxylmethyl cellulose (CMC) - distilled water solution is utilized during the
experiment.

Procedure
 Pour the CMC solution into the vessel.
 Insert impeller to the solution.
 Change the rotational speed for suggested intervals.
 Be sure to record rotational speed and the corresponding torque value.
 Insert baffles to the tank for the same impeller, and again record rotational speed and
corresponding torque value. While doing this, adjust the rotational speed same as the
previously specified values of the system working without baffle.

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  Change the impeller type and repeat the same procedure.

CALCULATIONS
1. Calculate power consumption using torque and agitation speed.
2. Plot Np vs Re for each set in log-log scale.
REFERENCES/SUGGESTED READING
1. Paul, E.L., Atiemo-Obeng, V.A., Kresta, S.M., 2004. Handbook of Industrial Mixing,
Science and Practice. John Wiley & Sons Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.
2. Kresta, S.M., Etchells, A.W. III, Dickey, D.S., Atiemo-Obeng, V.A., 2016. Advances
in Industrial Mixing, A Companian to the Handbook of Industrial Mixing, John Wiley
& Sons Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.
3. Metzner, A.B., Feehs, R.H., Ramos, H.L., Otto, R.E. and Tuthill, J.D., 1961.
Agitation of Viscous Newtonian and non-Newtonian Fluids, AIChE Journal, 7(1), 3-9.
4. McCabe, W.L., Smith J.C. & Harriott P., 2005. Unit Operations of Chemical
Engineering, 7th Ed., McGraw Hill, New York.

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