Flow and mixing characteristics in an agitated thin-film evaporator with vertically aligned blades.

Abstract

The flow structure and mixing characteristics of a high-viscosity fluid in an agitated thin-film evaporator with vertically aligned multiple blades were investigated by measuring the material exchange rate between the fillet and film using an electro-conductivity method. The optimum design of an agitated thin-film evaporator with multiple blades was studied. The results show that vertically aligned multiple blades can strongly promote the material exchange between the fillet and film compared with a conventional single blade. Furthermore, it is shown that the optimum distance between the vertically aligned blades can be determined by the mixing Reynolds number and the number of blades required can be estimated from the material exchange rate.