bchoate
The original post is a very good example of 'selected scope revelation'. I'm not trying to be unkind but the initial post was about 'jacketed tanks' and heat transfer. A 'fuel' was to be heated by natural convection at the warm wall (no mixing involved). Now we learn that not only is the tank to be mixed (particle suspension) but also the mixing modality is a not so common 'Pulse Jet Mixer'. In asking for fouling resistances, transuranic (radioactive) slurries are mentioned. Although I may have a few comments on the problem as expanded, it would seem that scope clarification is sorely needed.
Questions that come to mind include the following:
1) are you truly working with transuranic salts and sediments
2) if so, is this a pilot scale or grassroots project. There is a lot of literature about re-slurrying transuranic sediments in tanks at ORNL and Hanford and other places. It seems that DOE has this work in progress.
3) if possible to disclose, what are you working on
Let me comment on and perhaps anwswer some of your questions.
De Dietrich, as Art told you, is a manufacturer of chemical process equipment including jacketed tanks. The typical product is a CSTR with a mechanical agitator. They can fab the vessel for whatever design is required. Patterson Ltd in Cleveland, Oh and Addison Fabricators in Addison, Al also fab jacketed vessels.
Heat transfer with Pulse Jet Mixers (PJM) is about 2/3 that of a CSTR (mechanical). I'm sure you are familiar with the PJM design but let me go over it just to be sure we are talking about the same thing. Consider two eductors essentially in parallel. Compressed air is connected to the converging side nozzle of each. The diverging side nozzle of one is connected to a small tank; the other vents to the atmosphere. Aspirating nozzles are connected. A pipe connects the small tank to a nozzle(s) in the tank to be mixed. The cycle starts by feeding air to the eductor open to the atmosphere. This pulls a vacuum on the small tank and sucks fluid into the small tank. At the target level air is switched to the other eductor and the small tank is pressured to a target pressure. The contents on the small tank are forced back into the mix tank by pressure through a small nozzle. When the small tank is empty, excess pressure is vented and the cycle starts again.
The number of mix nozzles and mix pressure is a function of the volume of the mix tank, the viscosity of the liquid phase, the settling velocity of the dispersed particles, and the cycle time. Typically PJM's are designed for the fastest possible cycle time at a given pressure (about 90 s)
Longer cycle times can be achieved with more mix nozzles. It would seem that compressed air consumption could be high with PJM's. If there are hazardous materials in the air, it becomes more of a problem.
describes PJM tests conducted with materials to simulate transuranic wastes. They homogenized a vessel with 17% solids.
Heat transfer with slurries is impacted by the particles. The particles increase the effective thermal conductivity of the fluid in the reactor. Hydrodynamically, heat transfer is affected by the particle influence on boundary layer thickness. Heat transfer to a slurry is enhanced over transfer to the liquid phase.
A simple model of this system could be achieved using a CSTR containing the liquid phase only and whatever heating medium desired in the jacket. A PJM mixed, jacketed CSTR will achieve about 2/3 the heat transfer of the model. This system needs to be modeled. A pilot scale model could answer some of the questions for which there is no data.
De Dietrich can run CFD on the CSTR. AEA can perhaps provide info about the mixing capability and design of the PJM.
Thermal conductivities for transuranic salts are in the range of 7-10 W/mK @ 400 K. Vessel wall fouling may be addressed if the application is grassroots or pilot plant. In a batch operation, a rinse cycle (dilute nitric acid) could be run whenever heat transfer begins to drop.
I am not able to assist you with detailed analysis of this vessel. I think we have gravitated to an exotic system.
An estimate for the mixture thermal conductivity can be estimated from the following:
k(mix)/k(liq) = 2*(1/(1-p^.3333)) where p is estimated from
p = (rho(solid)-rho(mix))/(rho(solid)-rho(liquid)).
I thank you for the opportunity to participate in your problem.
Bill Choate