Canadian Journal of Chemical Engineering, Vol.96, No.1, 360-366, 2018
Mixing strategy effect on dispersion of amine during reagent production for flotation applications
Mixing and dispersion strategies for the inline production of amine flotation reagents is explored for 2.54cm and 5.08cm process lines and flow rates comparable to current commercial production systems. Through video analysis of injection into a clear pipe, the dispersion effectiveness was visualized and quantified as a variability intensity, and compared for natural-stream turbulence, orifice-plate and structured static mixing elements. The results suggest that a single point of energy dissipation was more effective in dispersing the injected amine, with the orifice plates consistently yielding fully-dispersed reagent solutions. The results suggest that while a structured mixing device with 6 elements did improve dispersion relative to an empty pipe, more mixing elements or a smaller characteristic length (i.e. 2.54cm mixer) would be better suited to this specific application.