Measurement and Correlation of the Mass-Transfer Coefficient for the Methyl Isobutyl Ketone-Water-Phenol System

To determine the mass-transfer behavior in the extraction of phenol from water with methyl isobutyl ketone, single-droplet experiments were performed to measure mass-transfer coefficients under various conditions. For this purpose, the droplet diameter, the initial concentration of phenol in the aqueous phase, the temperature, and the pH of the aqueous phase were investigated. For the aim of modeling, the molecular diffusivity was multiplied by an empirical factor (R). Then, the molecular diffusivity (D-d) was replaced by the enhanced molecular diffusivity (RDd) in the Kronig-Brink equation. Finally, the modified correlation of the mass-transfer coefficient model was found to fit well all of the experimental data under all experimental conditions.