FACULTY OF ENGINEERING AND THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT

DEPARTMENT OF CHEMICAL, METALLURGICAL AND MATERIALS

ENGINEERING

STUDENT LABORATORY GUIDE

Name of Course

Thermodynamics: Applied III

Qualification & SAQA ID Course Code

National Diploma in Chemical

TDA301T
Engineering

Compiled by: Mr Leshabane LJ

2023
 ©COPYRIGHT :
Tshwane University of Technology
Private Bag X680
PRETORIA
0001

All rights reserved. Apart from any reasonable quotations for the purposes of
research criticism or review as permitted under the Copyright Act, no part of
this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means,
electronic or mechanical, including photocopy and recording, without
permission in writing from the publisher.

Printed and distributed by :

FACULTY OF ENGINEERING AND
BUILT ENVIRONMENT
Tshwane University of Technology

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Contents
SECTION A: INTRODUCTION....................................................................................................4
1.1 WELCOME..........................................................................Error! Bookmark not defined.
1.2 ABOUT THE PRACTICAL GUIDE................................................................................4
1.3 PROVISION OF ASSESSMENT....................................................................................4
SECTION B: ORGANISATIONAL COMPONENT.......................................................................5
2.1 LABORATORY STAFF.................................................................................................5
2.2 STAFF AVAILABILITY..................................................................................................5
SECTION C: CODE OF CONDUCT............................................................................................6
3.1 ATTENDANCE.............................................................................................................. 6
3.2 LABORATORY HEALTH AND SAFETY RULES AND REGULATIONS......................6
3.2.1 LABORATORY RULES.........................................................................................6
3.2.2 USAGE OF CELLPHONE DURING SESSIONS....................................................6
3.2.3 PLAGIARISM AND DISHONESTLY......................................................................7
SECTION D: ASSESSMENT.......................................................................................................8
4.1 ASSESMENT METHOD AND CRITERIA......................................................................8
4.2 LABORATORY REPORT GUIDE..................................................................................8
SECTION E: PRACTICAL EXPERIMENTS...............................................................................12
5.1 Practical Experiment 1: RISING FILM EVAPORATOR.............................................12

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SECTION A: INTRODUCTION

1.1 ABOUT THE PRACTICAL GUIDE

In this practical guide you will learn about: Rising flim evaporators and how to apply an

energy balance to them. It is important to familiarize yourself with the theoretical content

relating the experiments to be conducted, this will help you understand what will be

done during the practical session. During the session you will be expected to:

 Take part in the activities in the laboratories,

 Ask questions to clarify uncertainties, and

 Partake in the discussions relating to the practical.

1.2 PROVISION OF ASSESSMENT

Summative assessment will be conducted after completion of the practical and a

practical report has been submitted. The student must first obtain 100% in a laboratory

safety test in order to qualify to proceed to experimental work. A 50% mark in the

practical/ experimental work is required for a pass. The practical consists of 10% of your

final course mark.

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SECTION B: ORGANISATIONAL COMPONENT

2.1 LABORATORY STAFF

Lab Technician Lab Technician Assistant

Details Mr V.T Mhlanga Mr J.M Mosesane Mr L.J Lehabane

Campus Pretoria Pretoria Pretoria

Laboratory 2 – 120 2 – 127 2 – 120

Tel X5785 X4566 X5785

Email HlongwaneVT@tut.ac.za MosesaneJM@tut.ac.za LeshabaneLJ@tut.ac.za

2.2 STAFF AVAILABILITY

After the conduction of the practical, the student is allowed to consult/contact the

laboratory assistant for clarity if encountering problems. Assistance will be given

provided that the student has exhausted all external resources such as textbooks and

the internet, to help understand the key concepts and principles but still face challenges.

Consultations with the laboratory technician or assistant can be made by means of

phone call or email during office hours (08:00 – 16:00) to set an appointment.

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SECTION C: CODE OF CONDUCT

The applied regulations in the laboratory follow the standard rules and regulations

determined by TUT. Please familiarize yourself with the TUT rules regulations found on

the institution’s website under Students’ Rules and Regulations.

3.1 ATTENDANCE

Attendance of practical sessions is of essential importance as it contributes towards the

student’s final mark. Therefore, it is the student’s responsibility to sign the attendance

register for each practical session.

3.2 LABORATORY HEALTH AND SAFETY RULES AND REGULATIONS

3.2.1 LABORATORY RULES

All students are expected to wear lab coats when coming for a practical session. No

open- toed shoes will be allowed in the labs. Follow all safety measure prior conduction

of the practical. No equipment and/or chemicals will be used by a student without

supervision.

3.2.2 USAGE OF CELLPHONE DURING SESSIONS

The usage of cellphones during practical sessions is strictly prohibited.

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3.2.3 PLAGIARISM AND DISHONESTLY

Plagiarism is strictly prohibited, ensure that all work is referenced. Duplication of other

students’ work and dishonestly is prohibited, every student is expected to submit their

own original work.

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SECTION D: ASSESSMENT

4.1 ASSESMENT METHOD AND CRITERIA

The assessment of this laboratory course will include experimental work, the purpose is

to determine if the student was able to achieve the learning outcomes/objectives. The

final lab rubric is available on page 25 of this document.

4.2 LABORATORY REPORT GUIDE

All reports to be submitted must be technical and professional, the results presented

should be clearly interpreted and have conclusions drawn from then. A good report of

technical work quantitatively states significant results of experiments and computations

and explains how they were obtained, what they mean, and how they are useful. The

report should be clear, concise, and accurate. Often the structure of the report must

conform to specific conventions.

 Title Page

The title of the report is followed by names of the authors and laboratory group,
the date of submission, and identification of the institution or organization
supporting the work (Tshwane University of Technology, Department of Chemical
& Metallurgical Engineering, EES317B).

 Abstract
The abstract is a tightly written summary, typically 100 to 300 words long. This
section is important because it is the first impression your report will make to a
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 reader, and it could very well be the only part of it he or she will read! (Because
of its importance, it is a significant part of the overall grade.) The abstract should
be written as “stand alone” section of just text. Its independence means that the
use of symbols, tables, and graphs as well as literature references should be
avoided. A good abstract states the principal objective of the investigation,
describes the methodology used and summarizes the results and conclusions in
statements as quantitative and as general as possible.
The abstract should provide ranges of the experimental parameters (e.g. the
Reynolds number was varied from 100 to 10000), report the most important
results and state how these values compare to expected (i.e., literature) ones.
(e.g., “values for the friction factor in the laminar flow regime were consistently
15% higher that the predictions of Poiseuille flow”). If the value of a single
variable or a short list of numbers is given, the numbers should give the
uncertainty (e.g., solubility at 25C was 25± 3 moles/liter) and of course units
should be included.
We recommend that you write the abstract last, when your thoughts are most
clearly in focus (i.e., you know all the answers and thus know what to say!).
 Table of Contents
A Table of Contents should be included in the report, including a listing of the
Abstract. Appendices should also be listed. All pages should be numbered,
including tables, figures, and appendices.
 Introduction
The purpose of the Introduction is to place the work in the perspective of prior
work including key literature references, demonstrate its importance, and state
the specific objectives. The Introduction should not exceed two pages.
 Theory
This section is a short, concise statement of the essential empirical and
theoretical relations to be used in interpreting the data or to be tested by the
data. Equations are usually stated with a reference, along with the pertinent
assumptions and limitations. Brief manipulations may be appropriate, but long
derivations are relegated to an appendix. The physical significance of equation
parameters should be pointed out.
 Experimental
A. Apparatus
The objective of this section of the report is to describe the experimental
set-up in enough quantitative detail to enable the reader to completely
understand the experiment. Ranges of independent variables are cited. The

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 model and supplier of any unique equipment should be cited. Also, a
schematic diagram of the experimental apparatus should be included.

B. Procedure
The objective of this section of the report is to describe the materials and
methods used to obtain the experimental data. Emphasis is placed on
general procedures that are not routine.

 Results
The data, or a representative fraction of them, must be included in this section.
They should be presented graphically. If there are only a few (i.e. 2-3) numbers,
these could put into a table if they can be understood. Data are often not
presented in raw form, but are reduced and shown in the way most clearly
supporting the conclusions. Representation of scatter in data is essential. For
example, the experimentally determined heat transfer coefficient is meaningless
unless it is accompanied by units and an estimated uncertainty. Comparison of
data with theoretical predictions and/or previously published values should be
included whenever possible. This may require searching for information in
reference books or research articles. Comment briefly on unique aspects of the
results, in particular its accuracy. Also comment on the range of the variables
covered.
Each graph or diagram is assigned a number (e.g., Figure 1) and should have a
caption that is descriptive of the information contained in the figure. A
restatement of the information on the axes is not an acceptable title.
 Discussion
All important interpretations which follow from the results and the underlying
theory are logically and quantitatively compared in the Discussion section. The
positive conclusions, comparison with literature data, and the significance
applicability, and reproducibility of the results are stressed. Quantitative
statements about the accuracy and precision of the results are required.
However, when a detailed error analysis is essential to the work, it should be
relegated to an Appendix.
 Conclusions and Recommendations
This section is a summary of the most significant conclusions developed in the
preceding section. Quantitative statements are best. Useful recommendations to
improve the experiment and to extend the work to other systems, should be
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included here.

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 Literature Cited
Only references cited in the report are to be listed is this section since it is not a
bibliography covering all references but only the most pertinent ones. Footnotes
on individual pages of the report are not to be used. References cited in the text
of the final project report should give the last name of the author (both authors
when only two; first author et. al. when more than two) and the corresponding
page numbers. An example is given below.
“The Reynolds number can be interpreted as the ratio of inertial to viscous forces
at work in the fluid (Denn 37-39).”
References are to be listed in alphabetical order according to author or
equivalent and should not be numbered. Use Chemical Abstracts Service Source
Index journal abbreviations. For the previous example the citation would be the
following:
Denn, M. M. “Process Fluid Mechanics”; Prentice-Hall; New Jersey, 1980
Typical citations for a journal are given below.
Danckwerts, P. V.; Sharma, M. M. Chem. Eng. (London) 1966, 202,
244. Danckwerts, P. V. Chem. Eng. Sci. 1979, 34, 443.
 Nomenclature
Symbols used in the report are defined immediately after they are presented the
first time. This section of the report lists all of the symbols used. Units should be
included.
 Appendices
The appendices contain material of secondary importance: sample calculations
(a sample of all calculations done for the experiment must be included in the
report), error analysis, derivation of theoretical relations, and perhaps graphs,
calibration curves and/or schematics. Note that the appendices should be named
in the order of which they appear in the final project report. In other words
Appendix A should be the first appendix referred to in the text of the report.

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SECTION E: PRACTICAL EXPERIMENTS

5.1 Practical Experiment 1: RISING FILM EVAPORATOR

OBJECTIVES

1. To determine the energy balance around the rising film evaporator.

2. Compare the energy balance to the amount of energy in the steam feed and

determine the heat transfer efficiency of the film.

BACKGROUND

Rising film evaporators can ensure a high heat-transfer coefficient and short residence

time to the solution having to be concentrated. They have simple building ideas yet offer

cost-effective solutions to their customers. The fluid is treated within the tubes, which

are equipped with the shell-sided heating medium. The feed liquid enters the evaporator

from the bottom head and ascends the tubes. On the shell side, heating media are

present to function as a heat source. They are basic in design yet extremely effective in

delivering exceptional results to their consumers.

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The objective of evaporation is to concentrate a non-volatile solute, carrying out the

elimination of a volatile compound. Water is the volatile compound used in most

evaporations. The rising or falling film evaporators are very useful if high temperatures

can degrade the product that we want to concentrate, so these evaporators work at less

temperature. They can be used, for example, for concentration of fruit juices, milk and

milk products, effluents, etc. Basically, the unit consists of the following circuits:

• The feed circuit that consists on a feed pump that introduces the product in a

double jacket column, which has temperature sensors. The product leaves the tank

through a cyclone placed at the output of the column and it is collected in a 500 ml

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graduated vessel. The vessel is also connected to a 10 l. tank for the storage of the

concentrated product. This last tank is connected to the feed tank for its recirculation.

• The distillation circuit starts at the top of the column, where a joint with a

pressure meter has been assembled. It is also connected to the cyclone to separate the

concentrated product and the distilled one that goes through a spiral condenser. The

distilled product is stored in a graduated vessel that is connected to a 10 l. collection

tank. This last one is connected to the feed tank for its recirculation in a continuous

process.

• The steam circuit, introduced in the external jacket of the column, contains a

pressure meter for the control of the temperature of steam. This meter is connected to a

high-pressure cutout control that opens or closes a control valve for the steam supply.

• The vacuum circuit consists on a vacuum pump, one trap placed at the output of

the condenser and other trap placed at the output of the cyclone.

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Experimental Setup

For this experiment we use electronica venneta (Mod: RFEa/EV) pilot plant:

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METHODOLOGY

Two operation modes are found:

Start up and running in continuous mode

 Close valves V, V2, V3, V4, V5, V6, V7, V8, V9, V16, V17, V22 and V23.

 Open valves V10, V11, V12, V13, V14, V15, partially V18 and V19, V20, V21.

 Fill the reservoir D1 with the solution to be concentrated.

 Adjust the cooling water flow rate FI1 to condenser E2 at about 150 l/h using

valve V18.

 Start the vacuum pump G2 and set the pressure valve, for example, at – 0.7 bar

using valve V20 (decreasing the degree of opening the valve, the operating

pressure PI3 decreases).

 Start the feeding pump G1 and set the flow rate at 50% (about 6l/h) for example.

 Open valve V5.

 Set the value of steam pressure PI2 using the pressure reducer FV1 outlet of the

condenser E2: ∆T will never exceed 20°C: in this case, increase the flow rate

FI1.

 The steady state conditions will be attained after 15min from the starting.

 If the condensate has a too low concentration, increase the steam pressure PI2

or decrease the feeding flow rate.

Start up and running in batch mode

 Close valves V, V2, V3, V4, V5, V6, V8, V9, V16, V17, V22 and V23.
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  Open valves V7, V10, V11, V12, V13, V14, V15, partially V18 and V19, V20, V21.

 Fill the reservoir D1 with the solution to be concentrated.

 Adjust the cooling water flow rate FI1 to condenser E2 at about 150 l/h using

valve V18.

 Start the vacuum pump G1 and set the flow rate at 100%; when the level in tank

D2 is at the mark of 4 litres, switch off pump G1.

 Close partially valve V7 (about 50%).

 Start the vacuum pump G2 and set the pressure valve, for example, at – 0.7 bar

using valve V20 (decreasing the degree of opening the valve, the operating

pressure PI3 decreases).

 Open valve V5

 Set the value of steam pressure PI2 using the pressure reducer FV1 (for

example, 0.3 bar)

 Check the temperature of the water either at the inlet and at the outlet of the

condenser E2: ∆T will never exceed 20°C: in this case, increase the flow rate

FI1.

 ∆The steady state conditions will be attained after 15min from the starting.

 If the condensate has a too low concentration, increase the steam pressure PI2

or decrease the feeding flow rate.

Discharging the reservoirs D2 and D3 under vacuum

Reservoir D2

 Close valve V10

 Close valve V11

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  Open valve V9

 Open valve V8 and drain the reservoir

 Close valve V8 and V9

 Open very slowly valve V11

 When the vacuum is stable, open valve V10

Reservoir D3

 Close valve V13

 Close valve V15

 Open valve V16

 Open valve V17 and drain the reservoir

 Close valve V17 and V16

 Open very slowly valve V13

 When the vacuum is stable, open valve V15

Shutdown

 Close valve V5

 Switch off pump G1

 Switch off pump G2

 Open valve V20

 Clean the plant at the end of each working cycle proceeding to a complete

working cycle using distilled water as feeding

 Drain tank D1, D2 and D3

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  Switch off the E.L.C.B

 Disconnect the voltage from the switchboard

Emergency stop

 Press the red mushroom-head pushbutton

Cleaning operations

SAFETY PRECAUTIONS

 To avoid injury, students must be grant permission and be assisted by the

laboratory staffs before handling any machines. Careless of handling the

machine may results in injury.

 At the end of each experiment, students must clear off all materials from the work

area.

ADDITIONAL ASSIGNMENT

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 %

CHEMICAL ENGINEERING LABORATORY

EXPERIMENT: Rising Film Evaporator

Name:

Student Number:

Group:

Date Experiment Performed:

Date Experiment Submitted:

Submitted to:

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 TSHWANE UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY

DEPARTMENT OF CHEMICAL AND METTALURGICAL ENGINEERING

REPORT GRADING FORM

Name of Student:

Student Number:

Title of Report:

Term: DATE:

Subject Max Mark Actual Mark

1. Title Page 1

2. Abstract 6

3. Introduction 2

4. Theoretical Background 3

5. Procedure 2

6. Results 6

7. Discussion of Results 10

8. Conclusion and Recommendations 4

9. Literature Cited 1

10. Nomenclature 1

11. Organization and Neatness 2

Appendix

A1 Raw Data 2

A2 Data analysis and Sample 10

Calculations

TOTAL 50

Signed:

Comments:

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