Design of Two-phase Slug Flow Microreactors Using Reduced Order Flow Model

Two-phase slug flow microreactors (SFMRs) are known to be capable of achieving more efficient mass and heat transfer than conventional reactors. However, no method for designing SFMRs has been established so far. The goal of this study is therefore to develop a model-based methodology for deriving o...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Takaki Yamazaki, Keisuke Miyabayashi, Osamu Tonomura
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: AIDIC Servizi S.r.l. 2025-07-01
Series:Chemical Engineering Transactions
Online Access:https://www.cetjournal.it/index.php/cet/article/view/15428
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Summary:Two-phase slug flow microreactors (SFMRs) are known to be capable of achieving more efficient mass and heat transfer than conventional reactors. However, no method for designing SFMRs has been established so far. The goal of this study is therefore to develop a model-based methodology for deriving optimal design and operating variables for SFMRs under constraints on production. Although computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modelling and simulation is a powerful tool for analyzing the characteristics of multiphase flow, it is not realistic to directly apply CFD to optimal design problems of SFMRs, because CFD requires huge amount of computational time. In this study, a reduced order flow model based on the idea of time averaging of void fraction in two-phase flow and mass transfer rate between two phases was developed to efficiently simulate the heat and mass transfer processes involving chemical reactions in SFMRs. And then, a two-stage design method was proposed for design of SFMRs, in which a single channel is designed and then a multichannel device is designed. Finally, the usefulness of the proposed design method was assessed through a numerical case study.
ISSN:2283-9216