Mass transfer in gas-sparged ultrafiltration: upward slug flow in tubular membranes

Gas sparging is recognized as an effective way to increase permeate flux in ultrafiltration processes. This paper discusses the mechanism of flux enhancement in ultrafiltration processes by gas sparging, in the special case of upward slug flow in tubular membrane module. An attempt is made to model gas sparged ultrafiltration with a view to predicting permeate flux in such processes. The model is based on dividing the region near the gas slug …