Engineering Commons^™

University Of Missouri--Rolla Wood Energy Research, Yildirim Omurtag, V. J. Flanigan, Nathan E. Welch

UMR-MEC Conference on Energy / UMR-DNR Conference on Energy

The overall objective of this project is to conduct a research and development program which will lead to the early commercialization of wood gasification technology to process wood residues typical of those found in the Ozark region.

Concentrated Organic Separations By The Cyclic Indirect Freezing Process, Jeffrey Carl Miles

Chemical and Biological Engineering ETDs

This study demonstrates the technical feasibility of purifying concentrated organic solutions by the cyclic indirect freezing process with in-situ washing and in-situ melting operations. The key to a successful purification in the freezing process is a near plug flow displacement of unfrozen liquor from the bed in an in-situ washing operation. To be successful, a freezing step has to be initiated uniformly and a high permeability bed has to be formed uniformly throughout the freezing conduits. In the study, a nucleation technique based on pressure induced supersaturation has been used to accomplish a uniform initiation and a pressure induced freezing …

Separation Technologies Reviewed, Guna S. Selvaduray, R. N. Anderson, M. Goldstein

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion By Using A Solidification Melting Cycle, Wen Liang Lin

Chemical and Biological Engineering ETDs

An OTEC (Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion) power plant uses warm surface seawater (24° C - 28° C) as a heat source and deep cold seawater (4° C - 7°C) as a heat sink. With this temperature difference, a heat engine which delivers either mechanical or electric power can be con­structed. There are some limitations and problems of evaporators and condensers to be used in a closed Rankine cycle OTEC plant which have seriously limited the applicability of this concept. This study proposed a process using the S/L engine---a heat engine that utilizes a working medium undergoing solidification and melting operations. …

The Fracture Toughness Of Steel-Aluminum Deformation Welds, Charles Ellis Albright Jr

Chemical and Biological Engineering ETDs

A study of the fracture toughness (in this case, Gic) of steel-aluminum deformation welds using a specially developed double cantilever beam fracture toughness specimen is presented. Welds made at 350C were heat treated at 360, 380, 400, 420 and 440 C.

An intermetallic reaction product layer of Fe2Al5 is formed at the steel-aluminum interface with increasing heat treating temperature and time by a process of nucleation and growth of discrete particles. A transition in toughness from a higher average Gic value (6097 N/m) to a very low average Gic value (525 N/m) is observed. The decrease in toughness is accomplished …

The Continuous Non-Equilibrium Parametric Pump: A Theoretical And Experimental Study, John Lawrence Rak

Dissertations

A continuous parametric pump in which the feed and product streams flow steadily both in upflow and downflow (hot and cold temperatures, respectively) is examined theoretically and experimentally. The model system is Sodium Chloride-Water-Bio Rad AG11A8 Ion Retardation Resin, a physical system characterized by relatively slow interphase mass transfer rates. For short half-cycle times, where interphase equilibrium is not approached, separation of the salt from water is found to be enhanced by longer half-cycle times, smaller reservoir displacements, and longer adsorbant columns. In most cases, separation improves with increasing number of cycles. However, steadily degrading separation is found to exist …

The Slow Settling Of A Sphere In A Viscous Fluid In The Proximity Of A Corner, Joseph Kisutcza

Theses

Experimental settling velocities for three different sizes of Delrin spheres in Ucon lubricant were determined at 20.2 degrees Celsius in order to confirm the validity of a theoretically derived equation for the settling of a sphere in the proximity of a corner. The experiments were conducted in a wedge shaped column with a circular sector base, filled with the viscous fluid, where the angle of the wedge was varied for experimental purposes. The distance from the wedge apex to the particle was also changed for the different runs.

The experimental data gave a good approximation of the values evaluated by …

Semicontinous Ph-Parametric Pump : Experimental Study, Hsien-Chih Lee

Theses

Voidage of SP Sephadex (C-50) ion exchanger at different aqueous buffer concentration and the pH have been estimated from draining the interstitial aqueous. Experimental results of the SP Sephadex (C-50) voidage at pH cycling zone are in quantitative agreement with previous test method, so the voidage estimated from draining the interstital aqueous can be used in pH-parametric pumping. The optional displacement volume in semicontinuous pH-parametric pump of different buffer concentration can be predicted from voidage. A semicontinuous pH-parametric pump for separating proteins has been experimentally investigated using the model system haemoglobin and albumin on a. SP Sephadex (C-50) ion exchanger. …

Possible Efficiency Improvements In Residential, Gas Fired Furnances, Philip Louis Rinaldi

Theses

This project examines the problem of how to improve energy utilization in a residential space heating environment. Techniques for lowering unit energy consumption are developed and the feasibility of their implementation is discussed.

The project development first establishes the magnitude of the energy wastage problem for the individual consumer and its impact on the national scale. It must be emphasized that these represent two, sometimes distinctly different justifications for reducing energy use in the home. What may be considered only a small personal waste of $50 to $100 per year may indeed--when viewed in aggregate--represent a significant burden on the …

The Countercurrent Multistage Desorption Of The Acetic Acid/Water Solution With An Inert Vapor, Michael John Danko

Theses

The desorption of a acetic acid and water solution with an inert gas was experimentally investigated using a perforated plate distillation column having 17 actual trays. An inert air stream flowing countercurrent was used to strip the water from the acetic acid and water solution.

The feed composition was 0.2509 mole fraction acetic acid. The experimental results showed the best obtainable separation to be 0.16118 and 0.3965 mole fraction acetic acid in the overhead condensate and bottoms respectively, at an average column operating temperature of 56.0 degrees centigrade. The concentration of acetic acid predicted by calculation is 0.003917 and 0.9860 …

A Kinetic Study Of The Reactions Of Poly-L-Lysine With 1-Halo-2, 4-Dinitrobenzenes, Raymond K. Rakowitz

Theses

The kinetics of the reactions of poly-L-lysine with 1-Fluoro, 1-Chloro, 1-Bromo, and 1-Iodo-2,4-Dinitrobenzenes have been studied. The investigation was done at 25°C as a function of pH and concentration. In all cases the rate of reaction increased as pH increased. In the reactions of Chloro, Bromo, and Iododinitrobenzenes with Polylysine the reaction rate is the composite of two rates; one associated with the random coil and one associated with the helical conformation. For the reaction of Fluorodinitrobenzene with Polylysine the reaction rate is the composite of four rates; two associated with the random coil and two associated with the helical …

An Investigation Into The Transport Properties And Kinetic Parameters Of Single Coal Particles During Devolatilization, Gregory Forrest Roach

Chemical and Biological Engineering ETDs

This study focuses on the devolatilization step that occurs in the process of coal gasification. This is a key economic step for both the Lurgi synthetic natural gas process and the in-situ gasification that are being proposed for New Mexican coals. The findings of this study may be used by industry to improve the design and operation of these processes.

The work presented is an investigation into the transport properties and kinetic parameters that govern the extent of pyrolysis for single particles of subbituminous coal from the San Juan Basin in north-west New Mexico. The unique feature of this work …

A Simple, Inexpensive Spinning-Drop Interfacial Tensiometer, Humoud S. Al-Rabiah

Chemical and Biological Engineering ETDs

A spinning-drop interfacial tensiometer was designed, built, and tested. The device is very simple, inexpensive to build, and easy to operate compared with other spinningdrop tensiometers.

The tensiometer measures the interfacial tension of liquid-liquid or liquid-vapor systems. Interfacial tensions of three systems were measured to test the device: water-heptane, glycerol-heptane, and glycerol-air.

Experimental results agree with literature values within one percent for the glycerol-heptane system. The variations among the values for the liquid-liquid systems at different rotational speeds are within six percent. Repeated experiments with different drop sizes show that drop size of the glycerol-air system may affect the results. …

Desublimation Of Water Vapor At Low Pressure And Evaporative Freezing Of Seawater, Sun Sea Pao

Chemical and Biological Engineering ETDs

The Vacuum-Freezing Vapor-Desublimation and High Pressure Ice-Melting Process has been developed since 1972. In 1976, Mr. T. C. Chung finished a theoretical study of Low Pressure Water Vapor Desublimation Operation. The writer was a co-worker of Mr. Chung, and had worked with him for the study for four months. The information collected in Mr. Chung's thesis was borrowed and edited as Chapters 1 and 2 in the present thesis. Mr. Chung's theory predicts the rate of water vapor desublimation as a function of the difference between operating temperature and desublimer wall temperature. In the present thesis, experimental rates of desublimation …

Energy From Swine Manure, J. R. Fischer, E. L. Iannotti, D. M. Sievers

UMR-MEC Conference on Energy / UMR-DNR Conference on Energy

This paper discusses results of anaerobically digesting swine manure. Facts and figures are given on utilization of the energy from the anaerobic digester. Design parameters and some of the biochemical changes that occur during digestion are also given.

5th Annual Umr-Dnr Conference On Energy -- Entire Proceedings, University Of Missouri--Rolla

UMR-MEC Conference on Energy / UMR-DNR Conference on Energy

This volume is a collection of refereed papers presented at the Fifth Annual UMR-DNR Conference on Energy held at the University of Missouri--Rolla on the dates of October 10 - 12, 1978.

Guided by the President's goal of energy independence by 1980, the UMR-DNR Conference on Energy organized in 1974 with the purpose of providing social scientists, scientists and engineers a means for rapid communication of their most recent research results in the field of energy and to offer solutions to the energy related problems of local government, business, industry and the general public. Since that time, there has been …

Variable Elimination For Optimization With Difficult Explicit Inequality Constraints, R. C. Kelahan, J. L. Gaddy

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

No abstract provided.

Nucleate Boiling Of N-Pentane, N-Hexane And Several Mixtures Of The Two From Various Tube Arrays, K. W. Wall, Efton Park

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

No abstract provided.

Vapor Pressures For The System Isobutane-Isobutylene-N-Butane, José A. Martünez-Ortiz, David B. Manley

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

New experimental vapor pressures for the ternary system composed of Isobutane-isobutylene-n-butane from 40 to 160 °F and 20 to 160 psia are presented. The data have an estimated average accuracy of 0.04%. The pure component data are compared with existing data from the literature. © 1978, American Chemical Society. All rights reserved.

The Effects Of Interstage Backmixing On The Design Of A Multicomponent Distillation Column, Gary D. Loud, Raymond C. Waggoner

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Interstage back mixing is encountered as entrainment in many distillation columns. Bidirectional back mixing is common in liquid-liquid extraction. These effects, which reduce the effectiveness of a separation process, may interfere with its operation even to the extent of shutdown. The design engineer and process operator need to recognize the effects of back mixing and must quantify them to take effective countermeasures. A procedure is developed which describes the effects of interstage bidirectional back mixing in multistage separations. It is implemented on an existing simulation for multicomponent distillation and is used to show the effect of back mixing on product …

Direct Solution Of The Isothermal Gibbs-Duhem Equation For Multicomponent Systems, José A. Martinez-Ortiz, David B. Manley

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The numerical solution of the relative volatility form of the isothermal Gibbs-Duhem equation for multicomponent systems Is carried out by a relaxation technique for two ternary systems at five different temperatures. This direct method of solution eliminates calculating and differentiating the excess Gibbs free energy as required by other indirect methods. © 1978, American Chemical Society. All rights reserved.

Nucleate Boiling Heat Transfer Of Liquid Nitrogen From Plasma Deposited Polymer Coated Surfaces, Donald L. Warner, Efton Park, Kenneth G. Mayhan

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

In certain cases, nucleate boiling heat transfer from polymerized tetrafluoroethylene coated surfaces was more than five times the rate of heat transfer found for uncoated surfaces at a given temperature difference. It was also found that for the polymer coated surfaces the transition from nucleate to film boiling was much slower than for uncoated surfaces. © 1978.

A Study Of A Buoyancy Balanced Gas-Liquid Contacting System, Jaw-Ruey Leu

Chemical and Biological Engineering ETDs

In a conventional gas-liquid contacting system that provides a long gas-liquid contact time, a pressurized gas is released at the bottom of a pool of liquid to form gas bubbles; the bubbles move upward through the liquid and break at the surface of the liquid. A large amount of work is spent in pressurizing the gas. Even though it is theoretically possible to recover work from rising bubbles, a work recovery scheme has not been incorporated into a conventional system.

A buoyancy-balanced gas-liquid contacting system concept has recently been introduced. The system comprises two processing zones filled with a liquid, …

Cellulase Production By Fermentation With Trichoderma Viride On Cellulose And Wood Wastes, Nguyen Huu Kho

Doctoral Dissertations

"Cellulase production by the fungus Trichoderma viride QM 6a and the use of this cellulase for cellulose hydrolysis were studied using Solka Floc cellulose and waste wood (oak) as substrates. The fermentation produced higher enzyme concentration solutions with media containing additional amounts of soy peptone and KH₂PO₄.

The kinetics of fermentation in fermentors and shake flasks of Solka Floc and sawdust were investigated, and equations were selected to express the relationship of the rates of growth and enzyme production with cell mass, enzyme concentration and substrate remaining in the media.

Agitation and aeration decrease the enzyme …

The Dufour Effect. Ii. Experimental Confirmation Of The Onsager Heat-Mass Reciprocal Relation For A Binary Liquid Mixture, Richard L. Rowley, Frederick H. Horne

Faculty Publications

Although experimental verification of Onsager's reciprocal relations has been achieved in a variety of cases, no quantitative test of the heat-mass reciprocal relation for a binary liquid system has previously been reported. We present in this communication experimental proof of the equality of the mass-heat reciprocal relation for the system carbon tetrachloride - cyclohezane.

An Application Of Infrared Spectroscopy To The Study Of Binder Migration In Paper Coatings, Fred E. Huang

Masters Theses

Multiple internal reflectance (MIR) was used to study binder migration of paper coatings. Casein and an acrylic latex were selected as binders because of their characteristic infrared absorption bands. The coatings analyzed were prepared on the Western Michigan University Pilot Coater using the airknife coating method at different coating speeds. A surface grinder was used to obtain several layers of coating for surface studies.

It was concluded that the MIR technique could satisfactorily be used in the binder migration studies. Its success mainly depends on the precision of surface grinding, caliper measurement and infrared characteristics of the binders. The results …

Municipal Point Source Pollution In The Hackensack Meadowlands Estuary, Alfonso Augustine Hernandez

Theses

A study was performed to evaluate the effectiveness of various sewage treatment facilities in the Hackensack Meadowlands District. The study dealt with overall plant efficiencies based on percent removals of suspended solids and Biochemical Oxygen Demand although other parameters were also included.

Samples for this study were obtained from the inlet and outlet channels of the individual plants. The parameters studied were: Suspended Solids, Biochemical Oxygen Demand, Total Nitrogen, Nitrate-Nitrite Compounds, Total Organic Carbon, Orthophosphate-P, Total Oxygen Demand and Fecal Coliform. Results obtained were averaged so as to collectively represent wet and dry weather conditions.

The results indicate that most …

So2-Scrubber Technology : Double Alkali Mode, Krishna K. Rao

Theses

Double alkali (D/A) processes for the desulfurization of flue gases occupy an increasingly important role in applied technology.

D/A processes involve two steps, namely, scrubbing and regeneration. In the scrubbing step, the alkali (Na₂SO₃) reacts with SO₂. In the regeneration step the acid formed, NaHSO₃, reacts with an alkali to regenerate Na₂SO₃.

This study was focused on the regeneration step. Regenerants investigated were slurries of lime and limestone. The major factors studied were reactor configuration and mixing patterns.

These systems were investigated in a batch, backmix, and plug-flow …

Introductory Remarks, Dudley Thompson

UMR-MEC Conference on Energy / UMR-DNR Conference on Energy

No abstract provided.

Energy Conservation And U.S. Farm Production Patterns, Angelos Pagoulatos

UMR-MEC Conference on Energy / UMR-DNR Conference on Energy

Energy conservation practices in crop production would not substantially reduce energy use. Substantial reductions of energy would imply major structural changes in terms of extensive systems of crop production. The tradeoffs between land and energy for future desired crop outputs are derived.