New Turbine Impellers for Viscous Mixing

New open impellers developed for viscous mixing applications were characterized experimentally in terms of power consumption and mixing times, and their performance was compared to that of standard turbines. Their design is based on a nonsymmetry of revolution principle contrary to standard impellers. A color-discoloration technique based on a fast acid-base indicator reaction and image analysis were used to evaluate the mixing efficiency. Experimental results show that the segregated, torus-shaped regions, always observed above and below standard turbine impellers, can be significantly reduced using the new turbine designs generating a well-balanced axial-radial flow field.

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