Mass transfer in multiphase systems

Heat and mass transfer, especially mass transfer, in multiphase systems are problems commonly encountered in processing units in the chemical, petrochemical, and many other process industries. Because transfer rates significantly affect the efficiencies and technical-economic indexes of the processes, the enhancement of transfer has been a continuing topic of interest in chemical engineering since the late 1930s. A vast number of theoretical and experimental investigations have been carried out in the search for new methods of enhancing transfer between phases. 

Chemical engineers intuitively work under the assumption that to improve the mass-transfer characteristics of a gas-liquid reactor, more energy must be dissipated in the fluids to effect a more vigorous contacting of the fluids. For singlephase flow in turbulent systems, this concept has become known as the Chilton-Colburn analogy. Another example of the coupling of hydrodynamics and mass transfer in multiphase systems is the common correlation of the mass transfer and the power input for stirred-tank reactors. 

Endre, N., 2011. Mass transfer through catalytic membrane reactor, in Mass transfer in multiphase systems and its applications. InTech. 

Briens CL, Del Pozo M, Chiu K, Wild G. Modeling of particle-liquid heat and mass transfer in multiphase systems with the fihn-penetration model. Chem Eng Sci 48 973 979, 1993. 

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