Fluid treatment apparatus and process
First Claim
1. A process for enhancing chemical or physical reactions occurring in processes in which a slurry and a gas are contacted such that at least a component of the gas partakes in a physical or chemical reaction with at least one component of the slurry with the gas in the form of bubbles entrained in the slurry, wherein the size of the gas bubbles is reduced by utilizing choked flow, the process comprising passing the slurry from a first chamber to a second chamber through a choke nozzle comprising a converging section, a throat section, a backward-facing step immediately after the throat section and an exit section wherein the directional flow, angular velocity, centrifugal acceleration and straight line acceleration of the slurry create conditions providing cavitation consequent on choked flow through the choke nozzle wherein the process includes diffusing a gas in the slurry and generating bubbles in the slurry that accelerate through the throat section to cause the bubbles to implode and form multiple smaller bubbles, the process being characterized in that the gas is introduced through one or more gas inlets having their axes extending transversely at an offset in a generally tangential direction relative to slurry flow so that a swirling action of diffusing gas in the slurry results.
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Abstract
Liquid treatment apparatus comprises at least two chambers being first and second chambers through which a fluid can flow. The two chambers are separated by at least one choke nozzle which has an entrance in the first chamber and an exit in the second chamber. The choke nozzle (1) comprises a converging section at its entrance (3), a throat section (4), a backward-facing step (5) immediately after the throat section (4), and an exit section at its exit (6) wherein the exit section (6) diverges from the step (5). Similarly constructed mixing nozzles (1) may be included in the apparatus. The apparatus is especially useful in processes requiring a gas to be entrained in a fluid so that the gas is in the form of very small bubbles that do not tend to coalesce and flash off such as in the dissolution of gold and other precious metals from ore in the removal of arsenic from an ore.
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Citations
11 Claims
- 1. A process for enhancing chemical or physical reactions occurring in processes in which a slurry and a gas are contacted such that at least a component of the gas partakes in a physical or chemical reaction with at least one component of the slurry with the gas in the form of bubbles entrained in the slurry, wherein the size of the gas bubbles is reduced by utilizing choked flow, the process comprising passing the slurry from a first chamber to a second chamber through a choke nozzle comprising a converging section, a throat section, a backward-facing step immediately after the throat section and an exit section wherein the directional flow, angular velocity, centrifugal acceleration and straight line acceleration of the slurry create conditions providing cavitation consequent on choked flow through the choke nozzle wherein the process includes diffusing a gas in the slurry and generating bubbles in the slurry that accelerate through the throat section to cause the bubbles to implode and form multiple smaller bubbles, the process being characterized in that the gas is introduced through one or more gas inlets having their axes extending transversely at an offset in a generally tangential direction relative to slurry flow so that a swirling action of diffusing gas in the slurry results.
Specification