Experimental study of falling film absorption with potassium formate - Water as working pair

As an essential operation in refrigeration and chemical engineering, gas or vapor absorption with falling liquid film is usually coupled with complex fluid flow patterns and heat & mass transfer processes. Experimental studies are necessary for practical application, especially when non-traditional working pairs are adopted. In this paper, KCOOH/Water was used as the working pair to conduct the experimental study of the falling film absorption process. The results showed that waviness increased the mass transfer rate. The waviness intensity (delta/(delta) over bar) and the average mass transfer rate increased first and then decreased with flow rate at Reynolds number ranging from 15 to 95, up to 0.92 and 3.5 g m(-2)s(-1). The heat transfer flux increased with the flow rate in the test range, and absorption rates were sensitive to the cooling water temperature.