Correction of the Penetration Theory applied to the Prediction of k L a in a Bubble Column with Organic Liquids

When Higbie's penetration theory is applied to calculate k L ‐values for ellipsoidal rather than spherical bubbles, some correction factor needs to be introduced. In a recent paper, such a correction factor (less than unity) was derived for the homogeneous flow regime, based on k L a ‐data measured in 1‐butanol, toluene, ethanol, and tap water: f c = 0.211 Eo 0.63 . In the present work, the validity of this approach is further tested on k L a ‐data published for ethylbenzene, xylene, tetralin, anilin, nitrobenzene, 1,2‐dichloroethane, 1,4‐dioxane, 2‐propanol, benzene, ligroin, and ethyl acetate. The full data set involving 79 experimental k L a ‐values at homogeneous flow in 14 organic liquids and tap water, is correlated with a 8.7 % mean error in the following modified form: f c = 0.185 Eo 0.737 . When Higbie's penetration theory is applied to calculate k L ‐values for ellipsoidal rather than spherical bubbles, some correction factor needs to be introduced. In a recent paper, such a correction factor (less than unity) was derived for the homogeneous flow regime. In the present work, the validity of this approach is further tested.