Mass Transfer

Dr. M. Sakthivel
INTRODUCTION:
There is a difference between mass transfer and
bulk fluid motion (or fluid flow).
Fluid flow occurs on a macroscopic level as a fluid
is transported from one location to another.
The primary driving force for fluid flow is the
pressure difference
Mass transfer:

refers to the transfer or movement of certain

quantity (mass) of species from a high concentration
region toward a lower concentration region.
The primary driving force for mass transfer is the
concentration difference (gradient) .
• Three fundamental transfer processes:
i) Momentum transfer - Bulk transfer of Fluid
ii) Heat transfer – Transfer of Heat
iii) Mass transfer – Transfer of species

Many significant heat transfer problems

encountered in practice involve mass transfer.
For example,
about one-third of the heat loss from a resting
person is due to evaporation (sweating)
TYPES OF MASS TRANSFER:

Depending on the conditions, the nature, and the

forces responsible for mass transfer, mass transfer
is classified into:

1.Diffusion Mass Transfer:

Diffusion mass transfer takes place due to
molecular diffusion (penetration) from higher
concentration region to lower concentration region
with almost zero velocity.
Examples are:
Dissolving of salt in water without stirring
Drying of spill out water in the floor with stagnant
atmospheric condition
Fumes forming in the test tube due to chemical
reaction

Diffusion mass transfer is similar to Conduction

Heat Transfer
2.Convection Mass Transfer:
In this, mass transfer takes place due to bulk
movement of species from higher concentration
region to lower concentration region with
appreciable velocity

Examples are: Exhaust gas leaving from chimney

into atmospheric air, drying of water from well,
pond, lake and ocean due to blowing of winds

Convection Mass Transfer is similar to

Convective Heat Transfer
Different types of Diffusion Mass Transfer with
Examples:
1.Diffusion of liquid or gas molecules into a
Stationary Medium
i) This type of diffusion mass transfer takes
place due to the seepage of rain water from outer
wall into inside wall. This problem similar to
conduction heat transfer through slab
ii) Diffusion of LPG gas into the thick rubber
tubes which transmit the gas from Gas cylinder to
burner. Similarly diffusion of chemicals into
transmitting tube walls
This problem similar to conduction heat transfer
through cylinder

iii) Diffusion of liquid N2 , O2 and other cryogenic

fluids diffuse from their Spherical or Elliptical
shape container.
This problem similar to conduction heat transfer
through sphere.
2. Diffusion of one constituent (A) gas molecule of
a mixture diffuse oppositely into the other
constituent (B) gas molecule and vice versa due to
concentration difference is called Equimolar
counter diffusion.
Example for Equimolar Counter Diffusion is each
molecule of exhaust gas from chimny replaces each
molecule of air in the atmosphere.
3. Liquid or Gas molecule ‘a’ or ‘x’ diffuse into a
stationary gas medium ‘b’ or ‘y’ called as Stefan
law Diffusion
Example for Stefan law of Diffusion is evaporation
of water molecule from well diffuse into a
stationary atmospheric column over the surface of
water.
Different types of Convective Mass Transfer with
Examples:

There are two different cases of convective mass

transfer:
Mass transfer takes place only in a single phase
either to or from a phase boundary, as in sublimation
of naphthalene (solid form) into the moving air.

Mass transfer takes place in the two contacting

phases as in extraction and absorption.
Fluid motion (convection) enhances mass transfer
considerably just like in the case of heat transfer

In the limiting case of no bulk fluid motion, mass

convection reduces to mass diffusion, just as
convection reduces to conduction.

The analogy between heat and mass convection

holds for both forced and natural convection,
laminar and turbulent flow, and internal and
external flow.
Basic Laws of Mass Transfer:
The quantity (mass) of a commodity per unit
volume is considered as the concentration ‘C’ of
that commodity
Fick’s law of Diffusion: states that
The rate of flow of the commodity is
proportional to the concentration gradient
dC/dx, which is the change in the concentration
C per unit length in the flow direction x, and the
area A normal to flow direction, and is expressed
as
Flow rate α (Normal area)(Concentration
gradient)
where DAB is the diffusion coefficient (or mass
diffusivity) of the species in the mixture and CA is
the concentration of the species in the mixture at
that location. Negative indicates mass transfer from
higher concentration to lower concentration.
The rate of convection mass transfer for external
flow was expressed as

where hmass is the mass transfer coefficient, As is the

surface area, and Cs – C∞ is the concentration
difference across the boundary layer.
Basic fundamental terminologies related with mass
transfer:
Concentration can represent on the basis of mass
(density or mass concentration) and mole (molar
concentration).
For Diffusion mass Transfer:
Rate of mass diffusion of speice A in kg/s or
Rate of mole diffusion of speice A in k.mole/s
can be calculated by general formulation
Rate of diffusive mass per unit area of cross section
is called as mass flux jdiff A kg/m2 s. Similarly mole
basis per unit area is called as molar flux k.mole/m 2s
General Considerations

General Considerations
• Mass transfer refers to mass in transit due to a species concentration gradient
in a mixture.
 Must have a mixture of two or more species for mass transfer to occur.
 The species concentration gradient is the driving potential for transfer.
 Mass transfer by diffusion is analogous to heat transfer by conduction.

• Physical Origins of Diffusion:

 Transfer is due to random molecular motion.
 Consider two species A and B at the same T and p,
but initially separated by a partition.
– Diffusion in the direction of decreasing
concentration dictates net transport of
A molecules to the right and B molecules
to the left.
– In time, uniform concentrations of A and
B are achieved.
Definitions
Definitions
Molar concentration  kmol/m  of species i.
3
Ci :
i : Mass density (kg/m3) of species i.

Mi : Molecular weight (kg/kmol) of species i.

i  MiCi
J i* : Molar flux  kmol/s  m 2  of species i due to diffusion.
 Transport of i relative to molar average velocity (v*) of mixture.

N i : Absolute molar flux  kmol/s  m 2  of species i.

 Transport of i relative to a fixed reference frame.
ji : Mass flux  kg/s  m  of species i due to diffusion.
2

 Transport of i relative to mass-average velocity (v) of mixture.

ni: Absolute mass flux  kg/s  m 2  of species i.

 Transport of i relative to a fixed reference frame.
xi : Mole fraction of species i  xi  Ci / C  .
mi : Mass fraction of species i  mi  i /   .
Property Relations

Property Relations
• Mixture Concentration:
C   Ci   xi  1
i i

• Mixture Density:
   i   mi  1
i i

• Mixture of Ideal Gases:

p
Ci  i
iT
pi
i 
RiT
p   pi
i

Ci pi
xi  
C p
Special Cases

Special Cases for One-Dimensional , Steady-State Diffusion

in a Stationary Medium
• Diffusion without Homogeneous Chemical Reactions
 For Cartesian coordinates, the molar form of the species diffusion equation is
d 2 xA (1)
0
dx 2

 Plane wall with known surface concentrations:

x A  x    x A,s ,2  x A,s ,1  x  x A,s ,1
L
dx A DAB  C A,s ,1  C A,s ,2 
 
N A, x  J A, x  CDAB 
dx L
DAB A
N A, x  AN A, x 
L
 C A,s ,1  C A,s,2 
Rm ,diff  L
DAB A
Results for cylindrical and spherical shells Table 14.1
 dρ dρ Concentration gradient
m diff A  DA A = =
dx dx Diffusive resistance
DA A
dx
= Diffusive resistance similar to Thermal resistance
DA A
x2  x1
For slab , Diffusive resistance =
DA A
  r2  
 ln  
r
 1 
For Cylinder, Diffusive resistance = 
 2πlD A 

 

 
 r2 - r1 
For Sphere, Diffusive resistance =  
 4πr r
1 2 D A 

Problems related with Gas diffuse into a Stationary Medium

(similar to conduction heat transfer)
Equimolar counter diffusion :

Consider two large reservoirs connected by a channel of

length L, as shown in the Figure.

The entire system contains a binary mixture of gases A and

B at a uniform temperature T and pressure P throughout.

The concentrations and partial pressure of species are

maintained constant in each of the reservoirs such that CA,1
> CA,2 and CB,1 < CB,2 also for pressure PA1 > PA2 and PB1
< PB2
The resulting concentration gradients will cause the species
A to diffuse in the positive x-direction and the species B in
the opposite direction.
Rate of diffusion of mole A is equal to Rate of diffusion of mole B
but in the opposite direction
N A  Rate of diffusion of mole A from 1 (x1 ) to 2 (x 2 ) across the cross
sectional area of A C at a temperature of T is given as
D AB A C  PA1  PA2  k.mole N
NA = ; P in 2
RT  x 2  x1  s m
m2 J
D AB in ; A C in m 2 ; T in K ; R = 8314
s k.mole K

NA = NB but Rate of diffusion of mass of A is not equal

to Rate of diffusion of mass of B as their molecular
weight is different
 kg D AB A C M A  PA1 -PA2 
mA in =
s RT  x 2 - x1 
kg D AB A C M B  PB2 -PB1 
mB in =
s RT  x1 - x 2 
Problems solved in Equimolal Counter Diffusion
Diffusion of vapour through stationary Gas or
Isothermal Evaporation of water into stagnant
atmospheric air ( Stefan Flow):
Convective Mass Transfer:
The rate of convection mass transfer for external
flow was expressed as

hmass is the mass transfer coefficient, As is the

surface area, and Cs – C∞ is the concentration
difference across the boundary layer.

Bulk motion of moles are due to external force.

Convective mass transfer is similar to forced
convection heat transfer.
Convective mass transfer can be represented by
three Dimensionless Numbers:
hm x
Sh - Sherwood Number = ;
D
m
h m = Convective mass transfer coefficient
s
x - Characteristics dimension in m
m2
D - Diffusion coefficient
s

Sc - Schmidt Number =
D
m2
 - Kinematic viscosity =
s
Vx
Reynolds Number =

m
v - velocity of flow
s
Convection mass transfer is control by three dimensionless
numbers
General correlation for convective mass transfer is
Sh = C (Sc) m (Re) n
Rate of mass transfer by convection = m A  h m AS dC = h m A S  CA1  C A2 
kg
For liquid; m A  h m A S  ρ A1 - ρ A2 
s
h m AS k.mole
N A  Rate of mole transfer by convection =  ρA1 - ρA2 
M s

h m AS M kg
For Gases ; m A   PA1 - PA2 
RT s
h m AS k.mole
N A  Rate of mole transfer by convection =  PA1 - PA2 
RT s
The mass transfer coefficients might be obtained
from the correlations given in below Table

where the Prandtl number (Pr = ν/α) is replaced by

Schmidt number (Sc = ν/DAB) and the Nusselt
number (Nu = hL/k) is replaced by Sherwood
number (Sh = hm x /DAB).
Correlations for External Turbulent Flow:
Problems solved in Convection Mass Transfer:

DISCUSSION