Prediction of surface area in polydisperse gas-suspension systems with variable apparent surface tension, viscosity and density

Bubble size distribution was found to be represented by a modified log-normal distribution with 3 parameters. The parameters are simple functions of suspension properties,viz. surface tension, viscosity and density, and a function of superficial gas rate. Correlations are presented, enabling the prediction of the distribution constants (and thus of the bubble size distribution) from the system properties and gas rate. Model translucent systems can be used, having identical apparent system properties as real suspensions in experimental work. A computer algorithm is presented for (i) prediction of bubble size distribution, defining the region of formation of spherical bubbles, (ii) converting particle size distribution into volume distribution, (iii) determining the actual gas volume from a hold-up correlation, and (iv) giving the surface area of the system of a given predicted distribution.