Imaging stirred‐vessel macromixing using electrical resistance tomography

Abstract

Abstract An 8‐plane 16‐sensor ring electrical resistance tomography (ERT) system was designed and installed within a 1.5‐m‐dia. plant‐scale stirred uessel. Results are reported for the unsteady dynamic macromixing of miscible liquids following a pulse addition of brine tracer. Acquired data, afier reconstruction, is conveniently represented as a stack of 2‐D tomograms and 3‐D solid body isosurjaces, thereby providing an equiualent of medical whole‐body scanning for a chemical process unit. The results demonstrate the ability of ERT to distinguish the different mixing patterns from two types of impeller in 3‐D and to monitor plant‐scale miscible liquid mixing processes aperimentally, with good resolution in both space and time.