Introduction to

Mass Transfer
 INTRODUCTION

➢ There are 3 fundamental transfer processes

i. Momentum Transfer

ii. Heat Transfer

iii. Mass Transfer

 INTRODUCTION

Mass Transfer

Molecular Diffusion Convective Mass Transfer

Gases Liquid Solid

 INTRODUCTION
➢ When a system contains two or more components whose concentrations vary
from point to point, there is a natural tendency for mass to be transferred,
minimizing the concentration differences within a system

➢ The transport of one constituent from a region of higher concentration to that

of a lower concentration is called mass transfer

➢ The transfer of mass within a fluid mixture or across a phase boundary is a

process that plays a major role in many industrial processes eg (i) dispersion of
gases from stacks (ii) removal of pollutants from plant discharge streams by
absorption (iii) stripping of gases from waste water (iv) neutron diffusion
within nuclear reactors (v) air conditioning
 MIXTURES

➢ Mass transfer always involves mixtures

➢ Consequently, we must account for the variation of physical properties which

normally exist in a given system

➢ When a system contains three or more components, as many industrial fluid

streams do, the problem becomes unwieldy very quickly

➢ The conventional engineering approach to problems of multicomponent system

is to attempt to reduce them to representative binary (i.e., two component)
systems
 MASS TRANSFER
➢Mass transfer phenomena is defined as;
 mass in transit as a result of a species concentration difference in a mixture

 the net movement of mass from one location (stream, phase, fraction or
component) to another as a result of a concentration gradient

➢Mass transfer basically deals with transport of species;

 within a medium

 across an interface, i.e. from one medium to another

 Mass transfer is formulated in terms of flux of matter and occurs by two

means, Diffusive and Convective transport,
 WHAT IS MASS TRANSFER

N2

Mixture of
O2 and N2
O2

➢ Suppose two gases N2 and O2 are separated by a barrier as shown above

➢ By removing the barrier the molecules of N2 diffuse into the O2 whilst those of O2
diffuse into the N2

➢ If we wait long enough we end up with a homogenous mixture

➢ Mixing occurs via diffusion (random molecular motion)

➢ How do we explain it mathematically?

 DRIVING FORCE
➢ Mass transfer occurs whenever there is a gradient in the concentration of a
species, though other thermodynamic gradients may couple to the flow of
mass and drive it as well

➢ A chemical species moves from areas of high chemical potential to areas of

low chemical potential i.e. high concentration to low concentration

➢ No energy is required since movement is down a concentration gradient

➢ Mass transfer may occur in a gas mixture, a liquid solution or solid

➢ The basic mechanisms are the same whether the phase is a gas, liquid, or
solid
 FICK’S LAW: GOVERNING EQUATION
➢ Fick’s Law expresses the process of diffusion in mathematical form

➢ The molecular diffusion of a substance A in a certain y-direction is the product

of its concentration gradient (driving force) and diffusion coefficient (resistance)

𝑑𝐶𝐴
𝑁𝐴 = −𝐷𝐴𝐵
𝑑𝑦
➢ NA is molar flux of A (moles per unit area per unit time) (in mol A/s.m2)

➢ CA is concentration of A (moles of A per unit volume)(in mol/m3 )

➢ DAB is diffusion coefficient or diffusivity for A in B (in m2/s)

➢ y is the distance in the direction of diffusion/transfer in m

 FICK’S LAW: GOVERNING EQUATION
𝑑𝐶𝐴
➢ Ficks Law for substance A: 𝑁𝐴 = −𝐷𝐴𝐵
𝑑𝑦

𝑑𝐶𝐵
➢ Ficks Law for substance B: 𝑁𝐵 = −𝐷𝐵𝐴
𝑑𝑦

➢ Where DBA is the diffusivity of B in A

➢ Fick's first law, which only depends on a single property of the solute's
interaction with the solvent: the diffusion coefficient
 DIFFUSIVITY
➢ The diffusivity or diffusion coefficient DAB of a constituent A in solution in B, is
a measure of its diffusive mobility, which is then defined as the ratio of its flux
NA to its concentration gradient

➢ The diffusivity is a characteristic of a constituent and its environment

(temperature, pressure, concentration whether in liquid gas and solid solution and
the nature of other constituents.)

➢ The higher the diffusivity (of one substance with respect to another), the faster
they diffuse into each other

➢ CO2 in air has a diffusion coefficient of 16 mm2/s, and in water its diffusion
coefficient is 0.0016 mm2/s
 FICK’S SECOND LAW
➢ The rate of change of concentration at a point in space w.r.t time is proportional
to the second derivative of concentration with space

𝜕𝐶𝐴 𝜕 2 𝐶𝐴
= 𝐷𝐴𝐵
𝜕𝑡 𝑑𝑦 2

 CA is concentration of A

 t is time

 DAB is diffusion coefficient

 y is the distance in the direction of transfer

 MICRO MASS BALANCE EQUATION

Figure 1: Schematic representation of an infinitely small volume element

➢ It has dimensions Δx, Δy and Δz and a volume of ΔxΔyΔz

 MICRO MASS BALANCE EQUATION

➢ Flux of matter, N, is the quantity of mass that passes through a surface area per
unit time.

➢ The units of flux (N), g.m-2.s-1 (mol. m-2.s-1) can be compared to the mass flow
(m) units of mass per unit time, g.s-1 (kg/s, kg/h etc) or mol/s

➢ Matter is transported by diffusion (resulting from a concentration gradient) and

by convection (bulk flow).
 MICRO MASS BALANCE EQUATION

➢ The mass flux therefore consists of these two components: flux by diffusion
and by convection
𝑑𝐶𝐴
𝑁𝐴 = −𝐷𝐴𝐵
𝑑𝑥
➢ Figure (1) considers flow in the x-direction; however similar formulations can
be found for the y- and z- directions.

➢ The balance equation for this infinitely small volume element reads:

𝛿𝐶𝐴
∆𝑥∆𝑦∆𝑧 = 𝑁𝐴 ∆𝑦∆𝑧 𝑋 − 𝑁𝐴 ∆𝑦∆𝑧 𝑋+∆𝑋 + 𝑅𝐴 ∆𝑥∆𝑦∆𝑧 (3)
𝛿𝑡
 MICRO MASS BALANCE EQUATION
➢ The solution for CA(t) (concentration of A at anytime t) can be found by
dividing Equation (3) by ΔxΔyΔz and it becomes

𝜕𝐶𝐴 𝑁𝐴 𝑋 − 𝑁𝐴 𝑋+∆𝑋
=
𝜕𝑡 ∆𝑥

➢ When Δx becomes so small that it reaches zero, the first term of the right hand
side of the equation is equivalent to the mathematical definition of a first order
derivative – δNA/δt

➢ In the limit as x→0 this term gives,

𝑙𝑖𝑚 𝑁𝐴 𝑋 − 𝑁𝐴 𝑋+∆𝑋 𝜕𝑁𝐴
=−
∆𝑥 → 0 ∆𝑥 𝜕𝑥
 FICK’S SECOND LAW
➢ We know that,
𝑑𝐶𝐴
𝑁𝐴 = −𝐷𝐴𝐵
𝑑𝑥
➢ And that,
𝜕𝐶𝐴 𝜕𝑁𝐴
=−
𝜕𝑡 𝜕𝑥
➢ Substituting for NA into the partial differential equation for the concentration,
we get Fick’s Second Law,

𝜕𝐶𝐴 𝜕 𝑑𝐶𝐴 𝜕 2 𝐶𝐴
=− −𝐷𝐴𝐵 = 𝐷𝐴𝐵
𝜕𝑡 𝜕𝑥 𝑑𝑥 𝜕𝑥 2
 DIFFUSION RATES

➢ Fick’s law: linear relation between the rate of diffusion of chemical species and
the concentration gradient of that species

➢ Approximate rates of diffusion in:

 Gases: 10 cm/min (a lady with a nice perfume).

 Liquids: 0.05 cm/min (stir cream into the coffee).

 Solids: 0.00001 cm/min (takes long to rust an iron axe)

 MASS TRANSFER BETWEEN PHASES

➢ The rate at which equilibrium conditions are reached in a diffusion process

depends on the interfacial mass transfer rate

➢ Mass transfer depends on both molecular and turbulent diffusion.

➢ Molecular diffusion constants are in the range of 10-9 m2.s-1 as shown in the
table on the next slide

➢ Turbulent diffusion coefficients are several magnitudes larger and range from
10-5 to 102 m2.s-1.
 MASS TRANSFER BETWEEN PHASES

Table 1: Molecular diffusion coefficients of common solutes in water

Dissolved gasses Molecular Diffusion coefficient (m2.s-2×10-9)

O2 2.5

SO2 2.0
CO2 1.7
Cl2 1.4
NH3 2.0
 MOLECULAR DIFFUSION

➢ It is the transfer or movement of individual molecules through a fluid by means

of random, individual movements of the molecules

➢ The molecules travel only in straight lines and in the process, may collide with
other molecules in their path

➢ The molecules then change direction (still in a straight line) after the collision

➢ In the process, the whole bulk fluid is not moving but stationary

➢ Sometimes, but not always, this is similar to heat transfer by conduction

➢ In closed system with one or more compounds where the concentration vary there
is a natural tendency to level the concentration within the system
 MOLECULAR DIFFUSION

➢ For a binary mixture, the Fick’s Law is applied as,

∗ 𝑑𝑥𝐴
𝐽𝐴𝑍 = −𝑐𝐷𝐴𝐵
𝑑𝑧

 c – total concentration of A and B [mol (A + B)/m3]

 xA – mole fraction of A in the mixture of A and B

 J*AZ is the molar flux of component A in the z direction in mol A/s.m2

 MOLECULAR DIFFUSION

Before After
➢ Whenever there is concentration difference in a medium, nature tends to equalize
things by forcing a flow from the high to the low concentration region

➢ The molecular transport process of mass is characterized by the general equation:

𝑑𝑟𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒
𝑅𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑇𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑓𝑒𝑟 𝑃𝑟𝑜𝑐𝑒𝑠𝑠 =
𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒
 CONVECTIVE MASS TRANSFER
➢ Convective mass transfer is mass transfer due to bulk motion of fluid (mixing
or dispersion or agitation)

➢ It is the transport of material between a boundary surface and a moving fluid or

between two immiscible moving fluids separated by a mobile interface

➢ It can be divided into 2 (i) Forced Convection and (ii) Natural Convection

➢ Mass is transferred by finite parcels of fluids as in momentum and heat transfer

➢ Convective mass transfer takes place in situation when,

 Fluid moves near the solid surface and mass transfer takes place between them
 Two immiscible fluids separated by a mobile interface (kind of contractor)
 CONVECTIVE MASS TRANSFER
➢ Convective mass transfer depends on both transport properties and the fluid flow
characteristic

➢ When a fluid flowing outside a solid surface in forced convection motion, rate of
convective mass transfer is given by,
𝑁𝐴 = 𝑘𝑐 (𝐶𝐿 − 𝐶𝐿𝑖 )
 kc - mass transfer coefficient (m/s)
 cL1 - bulk fluid conc.
 cLi - conc of fluid near the solid surface
➢ kc depend on (i) system geometry (ii) fluid properties (iii) flow velocity
 CONCENTRATION

𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑒𝑠
𝑁𝑢𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑒𝑠 𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡 𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒 =
𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒 𝑚3

𝑛𝑢𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑠 (𝑚𝑜𝑙)

𝑀𝑜𝑙𝑎𝑟 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 =
𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒 (𝑚3 )

𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠 (𝑘𝑔)
𝑀𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 =
𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒 (𝑚3 )
 EXPRESSIONS OF CONCENTRATION
𝑛𝐴 𝑛𝐵 → number of moles of A and B respectively

𝑛𝐴 +𝑛𝐵 = 𝑛 → total number of moles

𝑛𝐴 𝑛𝐵
𝑦𝐴 = 𝑦𝐵 = → mole fraction of A and B respectively
𝑛 𝑛

𝑛𝐴 𝑛𝐵
𝐶𝐴 = 𝐶𝐵 = → moles per unit volume of A and B respectively
𝑉 𝑉

𝐶𝐴 𝐶𝐵
𝑐𝐴 = 𝑐𝐵 = → mass per unit molecular weight of A and B respectively
𝑀𝐴 𝑀𝐵

𝑥𝐴 + 𝑥𝐵 = 1 → xA and xB are the mass fractions of A and B respectively

𝜌𝐴 𝜌𝐵 → density of A and B respectively

 DIFFUSION IN BINARY GAS MIXTURES
➢ If we consider ideal gases then the following equations apply,

𝑛𝐴 𝑐𝐴 𝑃𝐴
𝑃𝐴 𝑉 = 𝑛𝐴 𝑅𝑇 𝑃𝐴 = 𝑅𝑇 = 𝐶𝐴 𝑅𝑇 = 𝑅𝑇 → 𝐶𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝐴 𝐶𝐴 =
𝑉 𝑀𝐴 𝑅𝑇

𝑛𝐵 𝑐𝐵 𝑃𝐵
𝑃𝐵 𝑉 = 𝑛𝐵 𝑅𝑇 𝑃𝐵 = 𝑅𝑇 = 𝐶𝐵 𝑅𝑇 = 𝑅𝑇 → 𝐶𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝐵 𝐶𝐵 =
𝑉 𝑀𝐵 𝑅𝑇

𝑛
𝑃𝑉 = 𝑛𝑅𝑇 𝑃 = 𝑅𝑇 = 𝐶𝑇 𝑅𝑇 → 𝑚𝑖𝑥𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝐴 + 𝐵
𝑉

➢ Using Dalton’s Law of partial pressures

𝑐𝐴 𝑐𝐵
𝑃 = 𝑃𝐴 + 𝑃𝐵 = 𝑅𝑇 𝐶𝐴 + 𝐶𝐵 = 𝑅𝑇 +
𝑀𝐴 𝑀𝐵
 QUESTION: DIFFUSION IN BINARY GAS MIXTURES

A mixture of He and N2 gas is contained in a pipe at 298 K and 1 atm total pressure

which is constant throughout. At one end of the pipe at point 1 the partial pressure

pA1 of He is 0.6 atm and at the other end 0.2 m pA2 = 0.2 atm

Calculate the flux of He at steady state if DAB of the He-N2 mixture is 0.687 x 10-4

m2/s
 SOLUTION: DIFFUSION IN BINARY GAS MIXTURES
➢ Since the total pressure is constant, the c is constant and is given by,

𝑛 𝑃
𝑃𝑉 = 𝑛𝑅𝑇 → 𝑐= =
𝑉 𝑅𝑇

➢ The ideal gas constant R is 8.314 J/kmol.K

➢ For steady state the flux J*Az is constant; DAB is also constant

𝑧2 𝐶𝐴2
∗
𝐽𝐴𝑍 න 𝑑𝑧 = −𝐷𝐴𝐵 න 𝑑𝐶𝐴
𝑧1 𝐶𝐴1

∗
𝐷𝐴𝐵 (𝐶𝐴1 − 𝐶𝐴2 )
𝐽𝐴𝑍 =
𝑧2 − 𝑧1
 SOLUTION: DIFFUSION IN BINARY GAS MIXTURES

➢ Since pAV=nART, then we can substitute for CA to get the following equation,

∗ 𝐷𝐴𝐵 (𝑝𝐴1 − 𝑝𝐴2 )

𝐽𝐴𝑍 =
𝑅𝑇 𝑧2 − 𝑧1

➢ This is the final equation to use, which is in a form easily used for gases. Partial
pressures are pA1 = 0.6 atm = 0.6 x 1.01325 x 105 = 6.04 x 104 Pa and pA2 = 0.2
atm = 0.2 x 1.01325 x 105 = 2.027 x 104 Pa. Then, using SI units,

∗
(0.687 × 10−4 )(6.08 × 10−4 − 2.027 × 10−4 )
𝐽𝐴𝑍 = = 𝟓. 𝟔𝟑 × 𝟏𝟎−𝟔 𝒌𝒎𝒐𝒍𝑨. 𝒔−𝟏 . 𝒎−𝟐
8.314(298)(0.20 − 0)
 DIFFUSION PHENOMENA
➢ Thermal diffusion: Diffusion due to a temperature gradient. Usually negligible
unless the temperature gradient is very large

➢ Pressure diffusion: Diffusion due to a pressure gradient. Usually negligible

unless the pressure gradient is very large

➢ Forced diffusion: Diffusion due to external force field acting on a molecule.

Forced diffusion occurs when an electrical field is imposed on an electrolyte ( for
example, in charging an automobile battery)

➢ Knudsen diffusion: Diffusion phenomena occur in porous solids. Where the

main resistance to diffusion arises from collisions of molecules with the walls
 BROWNIAN MOTION

➢ Brownian motion is the random motion of particles suspended in a fluid (a

liquid or a gas) resulting from their collision with the quick atoms or molecules
in the gas or liquid. Small particles suspended in a fluid undergo random
translational motions due to molecular collisions

➢ The term "Brownian motion" can also refer to the mathematical model used to
describe such random movements, which is often called a particle theory

➢ Its also known as Pedesis

 FACTORS AFFECTING THE RATE OF DIFFUSION
➢ Concentration gradient: The greater the difference in concentration, the more rapid
the diffusion. The closer the distribution of the material gets to equilibrium, the slower
the rate of diffusion becomes
➢ Mass of the molecules diffusing/mass of the solute: Heavier molecules move more
slowly; therefore, they diffuse more slowly. The reverse is true for lighter molecules
➢ Temperature (of environment): Higher temperatures increase the energy and
therefore the movement of the molecules, increasing the rate of diffusion. Lower
temperatures decrease the energy of the molecules, thus decreasing the rate of diffusion
➢ Solvent density: As the density of a solvent increases, the rate of diffusion decreases.
The molecules slow down because they have a more difficult time getting through the
denser medium. If the medium is less dense, diffusion increases
➢ Surface area and thickness of the membrane: Increased surface area increases the
rate of diffusion, whereas a thicker membrane reduces it
 TYPES OF FLUXES

➢ Total Flux: Quantity of mass passing through a unit surface area per unit time

➢ Convective Flux: Quantity of mass passing through a unit surface area per unit
time that is carried by some reference velocity

➢ Diffusive Flux: Quantity of mass passing through a unit surface area per unit
time due to diffusion

 The difference between the Total Flux and the Convective Flux cannot be defined
independently of the total & convective fluxes!

Total Flux = Diffusive Flux + Convective Flux

 EDDY DIFFUSION

➢ In convective mass transfer, The mechanical agitation produces rapid movement

of relatively large chunks , or eddies of fluid characteristic of turbulent motion
and this method of solute transfer is also known as eddy or turbulent diffusion.

𝑑𝐶𝐴
𝑁𝐴 = −𝐷 → 𝑀𝑇 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑙𝑦 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑑𝑜𝑚 𝑚𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑒𝑠
𝑑𝑦

𝑑𝐶𝐴
𝑁𝐴 = − 𝐷 + 𝐸𝐷 → 𝑀𝑇 𝑑𝑢𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑐𝑖𝑟𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑐𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑒𝑛𝑎ℎ𝑛𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑟 𝑚𝑒𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑖𝑠𝑚
𝑑𝑦
 D depends on composition, pressure and temperature
 ED depends on the flow pattern and varies with position
COMMON DIMENSIONLESS GROUPS
 MASS TRANSFER APPLICATIONS
 dispersion of contaminants

 drying and humidifying

 segregation and doping in materials

 vaporisation and condensation in a mixture

 evaporation (boiling of a pure substance is not mass transfer)

 combustion and most other chemical processes

 cooling towers

 sorption at an interface (adsorption) or in a bulk (absorption),

 most living-matter processes as respiration (in the lungs and at cell level i.e.
transfer of oxygen across gradient), nutrition, secretion, sweating, etc