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Packing

Packed towers use structured packing materials like rings or saddles to increase the contact area between the gas and liquid phases. The Pall ring is a common packing material that resembles an open basket structure to disrupt flow while minimizing volume. Regular packings like Raschig rings are economical for large towers. Woven wire screens provide a large surface area with low pressure drop. The choice between a packed tower and tray tower depends on factors like the range of flow rates needed, fouling potential, corrosion resistance, cost, and inventory requirements. Packed towers generally have lower costs for small diameters and are better for foaming liquids.

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Opayan Sarkar
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72 views20 pages

Packing

Packed towers use structured packing materials like rings or saddles to increase the contact area between the gas and liquid phases. The Pall ring is a common packing material that resembles an open basket structure to disrupt flow while minimizing volume. Regular packings like Raschig rings are economical for large towers. Woven wire screens provide a large surface area with low pressure drop. The choice between a packed tower and tray tower depends on factors like the range of flow rates needed, fouling potential, corrosion resistance, cost, and inventory requirements. Packed towers generally have lower costs for small diameters and are better for foaming liquids.

Uploaded by

Opayan Sarkar
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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1.

4 Packed towers
3) Berl Saddle

(Chemical stoneware or plastics) 6 to 75 mm diameter


4) Intalox saddle

(Chemical stoneware or plastics) 6 to 75 mm diameter


5) Tellerette

(Plastics & metals)


6) Pall ring
The Pall ring attempts to increase the useful aspects of packing, by giving an increased number of edges to
disrupt flow, whilst also reducing the volume taken up by the ring packing medium itself. Rather than
using a solid-walled tube, the Pall ring resembles an open basket structure of thin bars. These form both a
tube and also a radial structure of cross bars . Pall rings may be injection moulded of plastics, moulded of
ceramics or press-formed from metal sheet. In order to prevent the breakage of ceramic or carbon packing
, the tower may first be filled with water to reduce the velocity of falling object.
1.4.2.2 Regular or Structured Packing

Advantage of low pressure drop for gas side flow and greater fluid flow but on the other side requires
more cost for installation.
Stacked Raschig rings are economically practical in very large size only.
Wood grids or hurdles are inexpensive and frequently used where large void volume is required.
Woven wire screen rolled as a fabric into cylinders provide a large interfacial surface for contacted
liquid and gas , and very low pressure drop.
1.4.3 Tower shell

These may be of wood , metal , chemical stoneware, acid proof brick , glass , plastic , glass-plastic
lined metal or other material depending upon the corrosion condition.
For ease of construction and strength they are circular in cross section.
1.4.4 Packing support

Every packed bed will need a support. Two critical factors to be considered in the design of a packing
support are:
It must physically retain and support the packed bed under operating conditions in the column
including but not limited to packing type and size, design temperature, bed depth, operating liquid
holdup, material of construction, corrosion allowance, material build up in the bed and surge
conditions.
It must have a high percentage of free area to allow unrestricted counter current flow of down
coming liquid and upward flowing vapour .
A bar grid which we have seen in above can be used but the support which have
different passage way for liquid as well as gases can be used.
It may be made up of metal , expanded metal ,ceramic , plastic etc.
1.4.5 Liquid distribution

Function: Uniformly distribute the liquid on the surfaces of packings.


Spray Nozzles
Ring of perforated pipe in small towers

Annular tubes with multi-holes

Shower nozzle type Overflow pipes


Dry packing is ineffective for mass transfer . Therefore it is required to wet the packing . The
importance of adequate distribution of liquid is shown in fig.
1.4.6 Liquid redistributor

Function: Reducing the non-uniform distribution of liquid, and reducing the wall flow.
To maintain the uniform contact between the liquid and gas throughout the tower , it is provided at
various length interval of tower depending upon the length and diameter of tower . e.g weir trough
liquid redistributor.
1.4.7 Packing restainers

These are necessary when gas velocities are high and they are generally desirable to guard against
lifting of packing during a sudden gas surge . heavy screens or bars may be used . For heavy ceramic
packing , heavy bar plates resting freely on the top of the packing may be used . for plastics and other
light weight packings , the restrainer is attached to tower shell.
1.4.8 Entrainment eliminator

Function: Eliminating the entrained liquid drops in the gas stream at the outlet.
During high gas velocity the gas may carry away liquid droplets . To remove the liquid droplets from
outgoing gas mist eliminator is provided above the liquid inlet.
1.5 Choice of Tray tower vs. Packed tower

The choice between a tray and packed tower for a particular application can only be made with
complete assurance by costing each design. However, this will not always be worthwhile, or
necessary, and the choice can usually be made, on the basis of experience by considering main
advantages and disadvantages of each type; which are listed below:
Plate towers can be designed to handle a wider range of liquid and gas flow-rates than packed towers.
Packed towers are not suitable for very low liquid rates.
The efficiency of a tray can be predicted with more certainty than the equivalent term for packing
(HETP or HTU).
Plate towers can be designed with more assurance than packed towers. There is always some doubt
that good liquid distribution can be maintained throughout a packed tower under all operating
conditions, particularly in large towers.
It is easier to make provision for the withdrawal of side-streams from tray towers; coils can be
installed on the trays.
If the liquid causes fouling, or contains solids, it is easier to make provision for cleaning in a tray
tower; man ways can be installed on the trays. With small diameter towers it may be cheaper to use
packing and replace the packing when it becomes fouled.
For corrosive liquids a packed tower will usually be cheaper than the equivalent plate tower.
The liquid hold-up is appreciably lower in a packed tower than a plate tower . This can be important
when the inventory of toxic or flammable liquids needs to be kept as small as possible for safety
reasons.
Costs: packed column tends are less expensive than plate column for small column diameter (<0.6
m).
For foaming liquid: handling of foaming liquid in packed column is more appropriate because of the
relatively low degree of agitation by the gas.
Working under stressed conditions of temperature variations and pressure: the packing elements
are easily breakable.

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