Modeling and Simulation of Pulsed Sieve-Plate Extraction Column with Droplet Population Balance

In this research, a film model, considering forward mixing for the prediction of mass transfer behavior of a pulsed sieve-plate extraction column was applied.  For modeling the column hydrodynamic, a dynamic droplet population balance model (DPBM) has been used. The model equations, including disperse phase droplet and partial differential equations, were solved simultaneously using central differential and method of lines methods. The model was studied with water-ethyl acetate as a working system. The mean drop size and its distribution (in both volume and number) were calculated by the model. The model error for mean drop size is 0.65 % whereas the error of the correlation model for the same data is 8.36 %. The exact modeling of the column applying droplet size variations by droplet mass balance during the extraction column showed that the model has good agreement with experimental data.