Counter current mixing reactor
AssigneeThe University of Nottingham
InventorsEdward Henry Lester, Barry James Azzopardi
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Abstract
A mixing reactor for mixing efficiently streams of fluids of differing densities. In a preferred embodiment, one of the fluids is supercritical water, and the other is an aqueous salt solution. Thus, the reactor enables the production of metal oxide nanoparticles as a continuous process, without any risk of the reactor blocking due to the inefficient mixing inherent in existing reactor designs.
Claims21
A counter current mixing reactor for continuously mixing two or more fluids of differing densities comprising a first inlet and an outlet characterized in that one or more further inlets are diametrically opposed to the first inlet and are disposed within the outlet, wherein at least one of the fluids is in the subcritical, near critical or supercritical state.
A process as defined in 8 wherein said metal salt solution is cooled prior to mixing.
A device capable of mixing two fluids of differing densities having a downwardly facing outlet for less dense fluid and inlet for more dense fluid adapted to cause an upwards flow of said more dense fluid in use, the arrangement being such that said less dense fluid is introduceable into the device in a downwards orientation relative to the upwards flow of said denser fluid.
A method of mixing two fluids of different densities, comprising:
- providing a device with a downwardly facing outlet for processing flow of less dense fluid;
- further providing an inlet for processing flow of more dense fluid and the device causing an upward flow of said more dense fluid;
- and
- introducing said less dense fluid into the device in a downwards orientation relative to the upwards flow of said more dense fluid, the less dense fluid and the more dense fluid being mixed within the device.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.