Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering

THE NATIONAL UNIVERSITY

of SINGAPORE

SEMESTER 2B
Chem.Eng. Process Laboratory I
B.Tech CN 2125e

Experiment M1

Determination of Gaseous Diffusion Coefficient

Name :

Matric No. :

Group :

Date of Expt :

Demonstrator’s :
signature

GRADE :
 Important Note: It should be submitted as a Group report

Read and understand this briefing sheet

Do the pre-laboratory calculations if necessary

During this Experiment

Wear Lab Coat

DO NOT Eat or Drink inside the laboratory

Objective :

• To determine the diffusion coefficient of acetone vapor at different temperatures.

Apparatus :

Water bath, microscope, capillary tube and thermometer

Theory :

The diffusivity of the vapor of a volatile liquid in air can be conveniently determined by
Winklemann’s method in which liquid is contained in a narrow diameter vertical tube,
maintained at a constant temperature and an air stream is passed over the top of the tube to
ensure that the partial pressure of the vapor is transferred from the surface of the liquid to the
air stream by molecular diffusion.

The rate of mass transfer is given by

⎧ CA ⎫ ⎧ CT ⎫
N′A = D ⎨ ⎬⎨ ⎬
⎩ L ⎭ ⎩ C BM ⎭
Where

CA Saturation conc. at interface [kmol m-3]

CBM Logarithmic mean molecular conc. of vapor [kmol m-3]
CT Total molar conc. = CA + CBM [kmol m-3]
L Effective distance of mass transfer [mm]
D Diffusivity [m2 s-1]

Considering the evaporation of the liquid:

 ⎧ ρL ⎫ ⎧ dL ⎫
N′A = ⎨ ⎬⎨ ⎬
⎩ M ⎭ ⎩ dt ⎭

where ρL is the density of the liquid.

⎧ ρ L ⎫ ⎧ dL ⎫ ⎧C ⎫ ⎧ CT ⎫
Thus ⎨ ⎬ ⎨ ⎬ =D⎨ A⎬ ⎨ ⎬
⎩ M ⎭ ⎩ dt ⎭ ⎩ L⎭ ⎩ C BM ⎭

Integrating and putting L = Lo at t = 0

⎧ 2MD ⎫⎧ C A C T ⎫
L2 - L2o = ⎨ ⎬⎨ ⎬t
⎩ ρ L ⎭⎩ C BM ⎭

Note: Lo and L cannot be measured accurately but L-Lo can be measured accurately using the
vernier on the microscope.

⎧ 2MD ⎫⎧ C A C T ⎫
(L - Lo) (L-Lo+2Lo) = ⎨ ⎬⎨ ⎬t
⎩ ρ L ⎭⎩ C BM ⎭
or
t ⎧ ρ L ⎫⎧ C BM ⎫ ⎧ ρ C ⎫
= ⎨ ⎬⎨ ⎬(L - Lo) + ⎨ L BM ⎬Lo
(L - Lo) ⎩ 2 MD ⎭⎩ C A C T ⎭ ⎩ MD C A C T ⎭
where

M = Molecular weight (kg/kmol)

t = time (s)

t
If s is the slope of a graph of against (L - Lo) then :
(L - Lo)

⎧ ρ L C BM ⎫ ρ L C BM
s=⎨ ⎬ or D =
⎩ 2 MD C A C T ⎭ 2 s M C A CT

where :

⎛ 1 ⎞⎛ Tabs ⎞
CT = ⎜ ⎟⎜ ⎟⎟ CB1 = CT
⎜ Kmol Vol ⎟⎜ Ta
⎝ ⎠⎝ ⎠

⎛ P − Pv ⎞ C − C B2 ⎛ Pv ⎞
CB2 = ⎜⎜ a ⎟⎟ CT CBM = B1 CA = ⎜⎜ ⎟ CT
⎟
⎝ Pa ⎠ ⎛C ⎞ ⎝ Pa ⎠
ln⎜ B1 ⎟
⎝ C B2 ⎠
Experimental Procedure

Fill the capillary tube with Acetone to a height of approximately 40 mm using a syringe.
Adjust the vertical height of the microscope until the capillary tube is visible. If the capillary
tube is not visible, adjust the distance from the object lens to the tank until it is. For a clearer
and well defined view of the meniscus inside the capillary tube, adjust the position of the
viewing lens in or out of the microscope body as necessary. Note that when viewing the
capillary tube the image will be upside down, so that the bottom of the tube is at the top of
the image. When the meniscus has been determined, the sliding vernier scale should be
aligned with a suitable graduation on the fixed scale. Switch on air pump and the water bath.
Set a temperature (t<60oC) and obtain a steady temperature. Record the level inside the
capillary tube (at time t=0, L=Lo) every 20 or 30 minutes. Repeat the same experiment at a
different temperature.

Tabulation and Calculations :

Mol. Wt., M (kg/kmol) = 58.08

Temp, Tabs, Ta (K) = 273, 303
Atm. Pressure, Pa (kN/m2) = 101.3
kmol volume, (m3) = 22.4
Density, ρL (kg/m3) = 775
Vapor Pressure, Pv (kN/m2) = 40
Repeat the above experiment at 400C

Mol. Wt., M (kg/kmol) = 58.08

Temp, Tabs, Ta (K) = 273, 313
Atm. Pressure, Pa (kN/m2) = 101.3
kmol volume, (m3) = 22.4
Density, ρL (kg/m3) = 760
Vapor Pressure, Pv (kN/m2) = 56
 Final Initial Height of
Time Liquid Liquid Liquid t
Level Level Evaporated ( L − Lo)
(t) ks (L) mm (Lo) mm (L-Lo)

Plot t/(L-Lo) v/s (L-Lo) and determine the slope s of the resultant curve.

s=
Calculation:

⎛ 1 ⎞ ⎛ Tabs ⎞
CT = ⎜
⎜ Kmol Vol ⎟⎟ ⎜⎜ ⎟⎟
⎝ ⎠ ⎝ Ta ⎠

=
CB1 = CT

⎛P ⎞
CA = ⎜⎜ v ⎟⎟ CT
⎝ Pa ⎠

⎛ P − Pv ⎞
CB2 = ⎜⎜ a ⎟⎟ CT
⎝ Pa ⎠

C B1 − C B 2
CBM =
⎛C ⎞
In⎜⎜ B1 ⎟⎟
⎝ CB2 ⎠

Therefore

Conclusions:

References:

1. Bird, R.B., Stewart, W.E., Lightfoot, E.N., Transport Phenomena, John Wiley and
Sons, New York, NY (1960).
2. Welty, J.R., Wicks, C.E., Wilson, R.E., Fundamentals of Momentum, Heat and Mass
Transfer, John Wiley and Sons, New York, NY (1984).

3. Pommersheim, J.M., Ranck, B.A., Ind. Eng. Chem. Fund., 12, 246 (1973).