HOPPING MODEL FOR RESIDENCE TIME DISTRIBUTIONS OF SYSTEMS WITH SPLITTING AND MERGING STREAMS.

Abstract

A shortcoming of time delay models in their ability to incorporate known features of the mixing processes occurring in packed beds concerns the return of delayed material to the main flow stream. Previously, the assumption has been that this takes place at the same axial position in the bed where the delay occurs; a more satisfactory representation would be for material to rejoin the main pathway at a point some distance downstream from the delay point, thereby incorporating stream splitting and merging effects into the overall pattern of behavior. The purpose of this note is to show that such a modification incorporates easily into the time delay concept, thereby increasing its descriptive capability.