Other Chemical Engineering Commons^™

Mitigation Of Fouling And Liquid Losses In A Fluid Coker™: Influence Of Operating Conditions And Internals On Wet-Agglomerates Contribution To Liquid Carry-Under, Yohann Alain François Cochet

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

In Fluid Cokers, heavy oil is sprayed into a fluidized bed of hot particles through feed ring nozzles located at different heights. Unreacted or partially reacted feedstock, trapped in wet‑agglomerates, reaches the reactor bottom where it causes fouling or is lost to the system burner. The thesis objective is to determine whether modifying the feed distribution between rings or adding baffles can reduce the amount of liquid reaching the reactor bottom.

A model was developed to predict the amount of liquid reaching the reactor bottom. It integrates models for agglomerate formation and rewetting in spray jets, agglomerate drying through heat …

Exploration Of The Sludge Biodiesel Pathway, Zachary Christman

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Wastewater sludge is an overlooked source of fat, oil, and grease (FOG) that could be converted into biodiesel. The United States produces about 8 million tons of sludge per year. The disposal cost for this amount of sludge is about 2 billion dollars. The widespread availability and low cost of sludge compared to other biodiesel raw materials make it an economical choice for a renewable fuel. Using sludge as a raw material can produce 25 to 30 mg per gram of fatty acid methyl ester (FAME); the main component of biodiesel. Sludge biodiesel has the potential of transforming a portion …

Graphical Design And Analysis Of Mass Exchange Networks Using Composition Driving Forces, Nessren Mohamed Farrag, Dina Ahmed Kamel, Ayat Ossama Ghallab, Mamdouh Ayad Gadalla, Mai Kamal Fouad

Chemical Engineering

Pinch analysis is a methodology for minimizing energy and mass consumption in different industries. It has been widely applied for more efficient processes. This study presents a new graphical-approach to analyze and design Mass Integration (MI) and exchange networks that follows Pinch principles to guarantee maximum mass recovery with minimum losses. This technique uses the composition driving forces in network representation as it rules the mass transfer between streams. The proposed approach can be applied on both existing mass networks as well as new ones. This graphical representation a visual descriptive design tool to describe and explain the details of …

Molecular-Level Understanding Of Ionic & Electronic Charge Storage Mechanisms In Rechargeable Aluminum Batteries Using Sold-State Nmr, Ankur Lahanu Jadhav

Dissertations and Theses

Rechargeable aluminum-ion batteries are safe and low-cost alternatives to traditional lithium-ion batteries due to the high volumetric capacity (8040 mAh/cm³) of aluminum. However, very few electrode materials have shown reversible aluminum ion intercalation. Intercalation Al³⁺ ions in these structures leads to poor capacity retention, mainly due to slow solid-state diffusion of the highly charged tri-valent aluminum ions within these crystalline structures. In 2015, aluminum ions were shown to reversibly intercalate/de-intercalate into the Chevrel Mo₆S₈ phase, though the intercalation mechanism is not well understood. Alternatively, molecular chloroaluminate ions within the ionic liquid electrolyte have also …

Molecular To Macroscopic Understanding Of Chloroaluminate Anion Intercalation In Rechargeable Aluminum-Graphite Batteries, Jeffrey Xu

Dissertations and Theses

Today’s global energy challenges pose an urgent need to electrify transportation and better store intermittent renewable energy sources (e.g., solar and wind energy). For such large-scale battery applications, aluminum batteries are a promising “beyond lithium-ion” technology due to the high volumetric capacity, earth abundance, low-cost, and inherent safety of aluminum metal. However, there are very few compatible positive electrode materials that exhibit high energy density and cycling stability, in part due to the challenges of electrochemically intercalating highly charged Al³⁺ cations. Recently, graphite has been demonstrated as a promising positive electrode material in non-aqueous rechargeable aluminum batteries, which store …

Relating Modified Ergun's Equation To Hindered Settling Correlations, Ryan Zahniser

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Correlations were developed between the Modified Ergun’s and Hindered settling correlations under the condition of dense packing of particles in the bed. As the porosity of the slurry increases, so does the interference between particles in the solution which mimics the behavior of a packed or densely concentrated fluidized bed. The similarity between the two sets of conditions was modeled using mathematical equations to calculate settling velocities and pressure drops by means of the Hindered Settling correlations and Modified Ergun’s equation at porosities ranging from 0.4242 to 0.89. The results showed that a porosity of 0.52 and 0.009 ft particle …

Assessing The Impact Of Block-Selective Homopolymers On The Diffusion Of Payload Through Polymeric Organogels, Ian Coates

Honors Theses

Styrenic polymer gels have received recent attention for their application in transdermal patches due to their unique properties. Previous research in the pharmaceutical industry has identified that polymeric gels, specifically styrenic gels, have the potential to encompass multiple functions of the transdermal delivery patch including controlling mechanical and delivery properties. To tailor styrenic gels either the gel nanostructure or the drug complex can be controlled. Specifically, this thesis investigated the effect of gel nanostructure in an attempt to control the gel diffusivity and mechanical properties. To control gel nanostructure a phase selective styrene homopolymer was used at varying concentrations. It …