Effects of Cationic Surfactant Concentration on Bubble Dynamics in a Bubble Fractionation Column

摘要

The object of the investigation was to study the effects on bubble dynamics within a bubble fractionation column of the addition of the cationic surfactant cetyldimethylbenzyl ammonium chloride (CDBAC). The research was designed to test the variations in bubble size and rise velocity with changing surfactant concentrations at various air flow rates. The aeration system consisted of a 147.3 cm high column with an I.D. of 10.2 cm having thirteen sample ports which projected 2.5 cm into the column. The diffuser was a Buchner funnel with a coarse fritted disc having a pore size range of 40-60 microns. Fresh 1 mg/1 surfactant solutions were used for each run and dynamic testing was performed by randomly interrupting the experiments to gather data on the bubble characteristics and rise velocities. The bubble rise velocity shows an increase of 25% over the distilled water values for flow rates in the range of 40 to 52 cu. cm./min/sq. cm. and concentrations below 0.6 mg/1. At concentrations above 0.6 mg/1, the bubble rise velocity is independent of flow rate.