DYNAMICS OF CONTINUOUS COUNTERCURRENT MASS-TRANSFER PROCESSES .4. MULTICOMPONENT WAVES AND ASYMMETRIC DYNAMICS

This paper complements the approximate dynamic model of multicomponent countercurrent mass-transfer processes presented in Part III based on an adaptation of the equilibrium coherence theory for fixed-bed sorption to countercurrent operation. The numerical technique presented in Part II has been extended to multicomponent systems. Resulting from the numerical solution, the nonlinear wave behavior under nonequilibrium conditions has verified that the coherence theory provides good predictions of dynamic response patterns. In addition, a cause-and-effect analysis has been performed on "asymmetric dynamics" in multicomponent systems, and has shown that such a phenomenon is a natural consequence of nonlinear wave behavior. An effective simple control strategy has been proposed to combat such an unfavorable phenomenon. © 1990.