Mass Transfer
Fundamentals
(ChE-206)
Lecture No. 3
Types of Mass Transfer
Mass Transfer
Molecular Convective
Diffusion Mass Transfer
Gases
Liquid
Solid
Diffusion & Diffusivity
• The transport of molecules from a higher concentration to a lower
concentration tending to make the concentration in the medium
uniform is known as diffusion.
Examples of Diffusion
• A drop of blue liquid dye is added to a cup of water. The dye
molecules will diffuse slowly to all parts of the water.
• Fragrance of bunch of roses kept on the center table of the room.
• Smell of petrol when car is fueled.
Diffusivity is a measure of how fast the material / substance diffuses in
the medium.
Molecular Diffusion
• A purely diffusional mass transfer phenomenon occurs in the absence
of any macroscopic motion in the medium or if the medium is
stagnant or in laminar motion.
• The migration of moisture within a grain during drying.
Convective Diffusion
• When mass transfer occurs in a fluid medium which is in some sort of
motion.
• Also known as eddy or turbulent diffusion.
Vaporization of a layer of water
Air is flowing
Stagnant Air
Water
Rate of vaporization is high
Molecular Diffusion
Fast process
Slow process
Rate of vaporization is low
Effect of Temperature on
Diffusion
• Diffusion rates of gases depend strongly
on temperature.
• Since, the temperature is a measure of
the average velocity of gas molecules.
• Therefore, the diffusion rates will be
higher at higher temperatures.
Effect of molecular spacing on Diffusion
• The larger the spacing, the higher the diffusion rate.
• The diffusion rates are typically much higher in gases than they are in
liquids and much higher in liquids than in solids.
Important Terminologies In Mass
Transfer
• Concentration
• Velocities
• Flux
Concentration
• The concentration gradients are generally expressed in terms of mass
concentration of component, mole concentration or mass/mole
fraction.
Mass concentration:
• Mass of specie ‘i’ per unit volume of the solution or mixture in kg/m3
• For mixture: total mass concentration of all species in a mixture
•Molar
Concentration:
• Number of moles per unit volume.(kmol/m3)
• The molar concentration of component is denoted by Ci
• Total molar concentration of mixture will be C.
• For ideal gas
MassFraction:
• Mass fraction of species ‘i’ in a solution
Mole Fraction:
• Mole fraction of species ‘i’ in a solution
Velocity
Mass-average velocity:
𝑛
∑ 𝜌 𝑖 𝑢𝑖
1
𝑛
𝑖=1
𝑢= 𝑛
= ∑ 𝜌 𝑖 𝑢𝑖
𝜌 𝑖=1
∑ 𝜌𝑖
𝑖=1
Molar-average velocity:
𝑛
∑ 𝐶 𝑖 𝑢𝑖 1
𝑛
𝑖=1
𝑈= 𝑛
= ∑ 𝐶 𝑖 𝑢𝑖
𝐶 𝑖=1
∑ 𝐶𝑖
𝑖=1
Flux
• Rate of transport of species per unit area in a direction normal to the
transport.
Frames of reference
• To express flux of diffusing species three frames of reference are
commonly defined:
• The observer is stationary
• The observer is moving with mass average velocity, u
• The observer is moving with the molar average velocity, U
Mass flux
• Relative to stationary observer
• Relative to an observer moving with mass average velocity
• Relative to an observer moving with molar average velocity
Molar flux
• Relative to stationary observer
• Relative to an observer moving with mass average velocity
• Relative to an observer moving with molar average velocity
Self Study
• Example 2.1
Concentration Difference
And
Concentration Gradient
