Search results for "Anti nuclear"

CFD simulations of early- to fully-turbulent conditions in unbaffled and baffled vessels stirred by a Rushton turbine

2021

Abstract Laboratory scale unbaffled tanks provided with a top cover and a baffled tank both stirred by a Rushton turbine were simulated by carrying out RANS simulations. Three different turbulence models were adopted (k- ω SST, k- e and the SSG Reynolds stress model) to predict the flow field and the relevant performance parameters (power and pumping numbers) of the tank operated from early to fully turbulent conditions. CFD results were compared with literature experimental data and DNS simulation results to validate and properly compare the models. In the range of Reynolds numbers investigated, results showed that, for the unbaffled tank, the SSG model based on Reynolds stresses is a bett…

Numerical simulation of electroconvection phenomena in electrodialysis

In water desalination by electrodialysis, the current density i cannot exceed specific constraints, notably the diffusion limit. Working at higher i (overlimiting current regime) would make higher desalination rates possible. The main phenomenon allowing overlimiting current densities is the electrokinetic instability that arises when a sufficiently intense electric potential gradient is imposed, and leads to electroconvective mixing in the near-wall layer. In this study, these phenomena were investigated by CFD. The governing equations were the Nernst-Planck transport equations for anions and cations, the Poisson equation for the electrical potential and the Navier-Stokes and continuity eq…

CFD study on the influence of water transpiration on flow and mass transfer in channels with bipolar membranes

2018

The future energetic supply based on the massive use of renewable sources poses issues linked to fluctuations of power produced and consumed, thus requiring the use of energy storage systems.

Mechanical-fluid dynamics coupled model for profiled Ion Exchange Membranes design

2018

In this work, we developed an advanced model useful for the design of profiled IEMs, based on the coupled simulation of local mechanical deformations and of fluid dynamics and associated mass transport phenomena within deformed channels

Integrated modelling of membrane deformation, fluid dynamics and mass transfer in electromembrane processes

In recent years, water and energy supply issues have drawn the attention of the scientific community to electromembrane processes. Electrodialysis (ED) and Reverse Electrodialysis (RED) are two of the most attractive electromembrane technologies for water desalination and electric energy production from salinity gradients, respectively. In order to gain an important place in the industrial market, technological challenges on various aspects are involved in the optimization of these processes. In this context, profiled membranes exhibit interesting performance. However, the mechanical behavior of the membranes and its interaction with fluid dynamics has been poorly investigated so far. In me…

Comparison of different hollow fibre haemodialysis module configurations by a CFD multiscale approach

2021

Objectives The study aims to predict 3-D flow and solute concentrations fields both for blood and dialysate and overall performance parameters (such as dialysate pressure drop and clearance) for different hollow-fibre haemodialysis modules. Methods A multiscale approach was used. At small (unit cell)-scale, dialysate flow and mass transfer around straight cylindrical fibres arranged in regular lattices were simulated. At module-scale, hydraulic permeabilities and mass transfer coefficients derived from small-scale simulations were used to define two different porous media representative of blood and dialysate, sharing the same volume and exchanging solute. Simulations involved different mod…

CFD Simulation of Mass Transfer Phenomena in Spacer Filled Channels for Reverse Electrodialysis Applications

2013

Salinity Gradient Power via Reverse Electrodialysis is a topic of primary importance nowadays. It allows getting energy from the “controlled” mixing of solutions at different salt concentration. The performance of this technology depends on many factors such as: components properties (i.e. membranes, spacers, electrodes), stack geometry, operating conditions and feeds features. Concentration polarization phenomena may significantly affect the actual membrane potential, thus reducing the gross power produced. On the other hand, C-polarization phenomena may significantly be reduced by suitably choosing the hydrodynamic regime within the stack. Such a choice may in turn significantly require h…

CFD prediction of solid particle distribution in baffled stirred vessels under partial to complete suspension conditions

2013

Solid-liquid mixing within tanks agitated by stirrers can be easily encountered in many industrial processes. It is common to find an industrial tank operating at an impeller speed N lower than the minimum agitation speed for the suspension of solid particles: under such conditions the distribution of solid-particles is very far from being homogeneous and very significant concentration gradients exist. The present work evaluates the capability of a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model to reliably predict the particle distribution throughout the tank under either partial or complete suspension conditions. A flat bottomed baffled tank stirred by a Rushton turbine was investigated. Both tr…

Experimental Analysis via Thermochromic Liquid Crystals of the Temperature Local Distribution in Membrane Distillation Modules

2013

A reliable and optimized design of channels for Membrane Distillation (MD) requires knowledge of local temperature distributions within the module. This information is essential to measure the temperature polarization, choice the module configuration (net spacer features, channel size, etc) providing the best process performance. Notwithstanding such crucial aspects, only few studies have been devoted to the experimental characterization of MD channels and none of them includes data on the local temperature distribution. In the present work, an experimental technique based on the use of Thermochromic Liquid Crystals (TLCs) and digital image processing, previously proposed by the authors (Pi…

A process model of electrodialysis including membrane deformation effects

2020

Electrodialysis (ED) is an electro-driven process that makes use of ion exchange membranes (IEMs) under an applied electric field. The main application of ED is the desalination for drinking water production. A transmembrane pressure (TMP) distribution may arise in ED stacks due to an uneven pressure distribution in the two fluid channels, thus causing membrane/channel deformation and flow redistribution. This can occur in large-scale non-parallel configurations, e.g. crossflow arrangements. Detrimental effects of membrane deformation have widely been studied with reference to several membrane processes. However, this aspect has been neglected in ED applications. In this work, a novel proce…