Acceleration of mass transfer in methane-producing loop reactors

Gas bubbles entrapped in methanogenic granules subjected to hydrostatic pressure oscillations during recirculation in loop reactors will induce intraparticle liq. flows and thereby enhance mass transfer in excess of diffusion. This 'breathing particle' concept was clearly demonstrated in a well defined inorg. model system. The exptl. results could be described satisfactory with a structured math. model, in which a 30% improvement is predicted for methanogenic loop reactors as compared to const. pressure systems. It is concluded that acceleration of mass transfer in gas-producing systems offers challenging perspectives for both heterogeneous catalysis and biol. fermns. [on SciFinder (R)]