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2000
Volume 19, Issue 1
  • ISSN: 2212-7976
  • E-ISSN: 1874-477X

Abstract

Background

As one of the essential pieces of chemical equipment, a reactor provides the necessary reaction space and conditions for the materials involved in the reaction during the stirring process, there has been an increase in patents related to reactors. However, under typical operating conditions, issues such as uneven gas distribution, suboptimal gas-liquid mixing, and low product yield often arise in gas-liquid phase reactors.

Objective

To address the issues prevalent in current stirred reactors, a new design for a stirred reactor equipped with a double-suction turbine agitator was developed.

Methods

In this paper, a stirred reactor equipped with a double-suction turbine agitator was designed, and its three-dimensional modeling was conducted using SolidWorks. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations, based on the Euler-Euler two-phase approach with the RNG turbulence model, were performed to assess variables such as stirring speed, installation height, blade diameter and agitator inner diameter. The dispersion characteristics and flow field behaviors of the gas-liquid two-phase under varying conditions were comparatively analyzed. Optimizations were conducted across various parameters to enhance the gas mixing efficiency in the liquid phase.

Results

The results show that a diameter of 370 mm for the double-suction turbine agitator, an installation height of 640 mm, a blade diameter of 500 mm, and an inner hole diameter of 200 mm yield optimal gas-liquid two-phase mixing performance. This configuration results in a broad and uniform gas distribution within the reactor, maintaining a desired high level of gas holdup at specific positions.

Conclusion

The double suction turbine agitator is a type of radial agitator. During operation, it induces significant centrifugal forces in the liquid, exerts a robust shear effect, and enhances the mixing of the gas-liquid phases, thereby increasing the production efficiency of the product.

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Computational Fluid Dynamics Analysis and Optimization of a Double-suction Turbine Agitator
Recent Patents on Mechanical Engineering 19, 100 (2026); https://doi.org/10.2174/0122127976338968241016045114
/content/journals/meng/10.2174/0122127976338968241016045114
/content/journals/meng/10.2174/0122127976338968241016045114
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  • Article Type:     Research Article
Keyword(s): Computational fluid dynamics; double-suction turbine agitator; gas holdup; gas-liquid dispersion characteristics; gas-liquid two-phase flow; numerical simulation

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