Knowra Continuous stirred-tank reactor Continuous stirred-tank reactor A continuous-flow reactor in which incoming reactants mix with the vessel contents while an equal flow of products leaves. Ideal models assume uniform composition throughout the vessel.
Residence time : The average time material spends inside a system before leaving. It links vessel volume and flow rate to how long reactants can react.
Plug flow reactor : A continuous reactor model in which fluid moves through a tube with no axial mixing. Its concentration changes along the reactor, unlike the tank’s uniform composition.
Activated sludge process : A wastewater treatment process in which aerated microbial communities consume dissolved and suspended pollutants. Aeration basins often operate as continuously fed, mixed biological reactors.
Chemical kinetics : The study of reaction rates and how they depend on concentration, temperature, and other conditions. Kinetic laws specify how quickly reactants are consumed inside the tank.
Continuous stirred-tank reactor model : An idealized reactor model that assumes instantaneous, complete mixing and uniform conditions throughout the vessel. Its steady-state balances predict the reactor’s outlet composition under ideal mixing.
Batch reactor : A vessel in which materials are charged, reacted for a period, and discharged without continuous feed or withdrawal. It operates in cycles rather than maintaining continuous inflow and outflow.
Chemostat : A continuously operated culture vessel that controls microbial growth by setting nutrient inflow and dilution rate. It applies stirred-tank operation to study or maintain microbial populations.
Steady state : A condition in which system properties remain constant over time despite ongoing flows or processes. At steady state, material accumulation in the vessel is zero.
Material balance : An accounting equation relating material entering, leaving, accumulating, and reacting in a system. The balance compares feed, outlet, accumulation, and reaction inside the tank.
Continuous flow stirred-tank reactor cascade : A sequence of stirred tanks through which a continuous stream passes. Several tanks in series can approximate plug flow more closely than one tank.
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