Extended residence time centrifugal contactor design modification and centrifugal contactor vane plate valving apparatus for extending mixing zone residence time
The present invention provides an annular centrifugal contactor, having a housing adapted to receive a plurality of flowing liquids; a rotor on the interior of the housing; an annular mixing zone, wherein the annular mixing zone has a plurality of fluid retention reservoirs with ingress apertures near the bottom of the annular mixing zone and egress apertures located above the ingress apertures of the annular mixing zone; and an adjustable vane plate stem, wherein the stem can be raised to restrict the flow of a liquid into the rotor or lowered to increase the flow of the liquid into the rotor.
1. An annular centrifugal contactor, said contactor comprising:
a housing adapted to receive a plurality of flowing liquids;
a rotor on the interior of the housing;
an annular mixing zone defined by the housing and a vane plate, wherein the annular mixing zone has a plurality of fluid retention reservoirs with ingress apertures near the bottom of the annular mixing zone and egress apertures located above the ingress apertures of the annular mixing zone; and
an adjustable vane plate stem, wherein the stem can be raised to restrict the flow of a liquid into the rotor or lowered to increase the flow of the liquid into the rotor.
2. The annular centrifugal contactor of claim 1 , wherein the fluid retention reservoirs are a plurality of helical tubes.
3. The annular centrifugal contactor of claim 2 , wherein a plurality of heat transfer tubes run countercurrent with the helical mixing tubes.
4. The annular centrifugal contactor of claim 1 , wherein the opening of each reservoir has an inlet oriented tangential to the flow of the liquid within the contactor.
5. The annular centrifugal contactor of claim 1 , wherein a plurality of baffles are disposed within each reservoir.
6. The annular centrifugal contactor of claim 1 , wherein the reservoirs are jacketed with a volume enclosing a flowing heat transfer fluid.
7. The annular centrifugal contactor of claim 1 , wherein a plurality of baffles extend from the external surface of each of the reservoirs.
8. The annular centrifugal contactor of claim 1 , wherein the annular mixing zone is impregnated with a catalyst, reactant, adsorbent, or a combination thereof.
9. The annular centrifugal contactor of claim 1 , wherein the adjustable vane plate stem is adapted to serve as a needle valve and drain tube.
10. The annular centrifugal contactor of claim 1 , wherein the adjustable vane plate stem is in mechanical communication with a mechanized assembly such that the adjustable vane plate stem is adjusted up and down using the mechanized assembly.