Tutorial Description:
This course is intended to be taken as part of a two-part double session. Part I may be taken alone. This course will equip participants to analyze physical systems accurately then specify suitable and practical means of accomplishing the required separation. It is geared towards common applications in the process industries, including product, waste and recycle streams. Although technology constitutes the primary focus, economic factors are also considered. Mechanisms underlying the two dominant forms of solid-liquid separation, filtration and sedimentation, are examined, and the derivation of design equations from conceptual models is explained. Experimental measurements needed to apply those models and determine key process parameters are described, including basic methods for acquiring essential data which are accessible to most technical staff. The impact of material and transport properties is discussed, along with the uniquely influential role of filter media. The performance of supplementary operations, such as solids washing or deliquoring, is analyzed to evaluate their potential contribution to process objectives. Guidelines for the correct matching of separation technology to the suspension and process are provided.