Mass Transfer through Vapor-Liquid Interfaces Studied by Non-Stationary Molecular Dynamics Simulations

Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations are highly attractive for studying the influence of interfacial effects, such as the enrichment of components, on the mass transfer through the interface. In a recent work, we have presented a steady-state MD simulation method for investigating this phenomenon and tested it using model mixtures with and without interfacial enrichment. The present study extends this work by introducing a non-stationary MD simulation method. A rectangular simulation box that contains a mixture of two components 1 + 2 with a vapor phase in the middle and two liquid phases on both sides is used. Starting from a vapor-liquid equilibrium state, a non-stationary molar flux of component 2 is induced by inserting particles of component 2 into the center of the vapor phase in a pulse-like manner. During the isothermal relaxation process, particles of component 2 pass through the vapor phase, cross the vapor-liquid interface, and enter the liquid phase. The system thereby relaxes into a new vapor-liquid equilibrium state. During the relaxation process, spatially resolved responses for the component densities, fluxes, and pressure are sampled. To reduce the noise and provide measures for the uncertainty of the observables, a set of replicas of simulations is carried out. The new simulation method was applied to study mass transfer in two binary Lennard-Jones mixtures: one that exhibits a strong enrichment of the low-boiling component 2 at the vapor-liquid interface and one that shows no enrichment. Even though both mixtures have similar transport coefficients in the bulk phases, the results for mass transfer differ significantly, indicating that the interfacial enrichment influences the mass transfer.

Molecular Dynamics Study of Wetting and Adsorption of Binary Mixtures of the Lennard-Jones Truncated and Shifted Fluid on a Planar Wall

The wetting of surfaces is strongly influenced by adsorbate layers. Therefore, in this work, sessile drops and their interaction with adsorbate layers on surfaces were investigated by molecular dynamics simulations. Binary fluid model mixtures were considered. The two components of the fluid mixture have the same pure component parameters, but one component has a stronger and the other a weaker affinity to the surface. Furthermore, the unlike interactions between both components were varied. All interactions were described by the Lennard-Jones truncated and shifted potential with a cutoff radius of 2.5σ. The simulations were carried out at constant temperature for mixtures of different compositions. The parameters were varied systematically and chosen such that cases with partial wetting as well as cases with total wetting were obtained and the relation between the varied molecular parameters and the phenomenological behavior was elucidated. Data on the contact angle as well as on the mole fraction and thickness of the adsorbate layer were obtained, accompanied by information on liquid and gaseous bulk phases and the corresponding phase equilibrium. Also, the influence of the adsorbate layer on the wetting was studied: for a sufficiently thick adsorbate layer, the wall's influence on the wetting vanishes, which is then only determined by the adsorbate layer.

Three-dimensional phase field modeling of inhomogeneous gas-liquid systems using the PeTS equation of state

Recently, an equation of state (EoS) for the Lennard-Jones truncated and shifted (LJTS) fluid has become available. As it describes metastable and unstable states well, it is suited for predicting density profiles in vapor-liquid interfaces in combination with density gradient theory (DGT). DGT is usually applied to describe interfaces in Cartesian one-dimensional scenarios. In the present work, the perturbed LJ truncated and shifted (PeTS) EoS is implemented into a three-dimensional phase field (PF) model which can be used for studying inhomogeneous gas-liquid systems in a more general way. The results are compared with the results from molecular dynamics simulations for the LJTS fluid that are carried out in the present work and good agreement is observed. The PF model can therefore be used to overcome the scale limit of molecular simulations. A finite element approach is applied for the implementation of the PF model. This requires the first and second derivatives of the PeTS EoS which are calculated using hyper-dual numbers. Several tests and examples of applications of the new PeTS PF model are discussed.

Modeling of slow sand filtration for disinfection of secondary clarifier effluent

Due to increasing water scarcity, appropriate technologies are needed for disinfection of wastewater to enable safe reuse. Research on hygienisation of secondary effluent using slow sand filters is very limited but promising with removal of fecal indicator bacteria of >2log-units. A quantitative description of the processes leading to bacteria removal is lacking and therefore a model was developed for E. coli removal from secondary clarifier effluent in slow sand filters. Removal was successfully simulated for sands of variable grain size distribution and under a range of hydraulic loading rates compared to data obtained at pilot-scale filters. The most important process was retention of bacteria at the "schmutzdecke" and sand surface leading to an enrichment by a factor of up to 600 compared to the surrounding bulk phase. Bacteria elimination and inactivation both in the bulk phase and the schmutzdecke can be described by a first order kinetic.

Slow sand filtration of secondary clarifier effluent for wastewater reuse

Appropriate technologies are needed for disinfection of wastewater to allow safe reuse. Slow sand filtration is a simple technology used for pathogen and particle removal in drinking water purification. We investigated removal of fecal indicator bacteria relevant for wastewater reuse, particle removal, and runtime in slow sand filtration of secondary clarifier effluent. The key process parameters hydraulic loading rate, sand grain size distribution, and filter bed depth were systematically varied. Slow sand filters for tertiary treatment of wastewater seem promising for wastewater reuse, especially in arid developing countries. They eliminated 1.9-2.6 log10-units of E. coli and 1.9-3.0 log10-units of intestinal Enterococci reaching effluent concentrations of 11-142 CFU per 100 mL of E. coli and 2-24 CFU per 100 mL of intestinal Enterococci. Bacteria removal was shown to be a function of sand surface area, dirt layer, and supernatant water. Sand surface area per filter surface area should not be chosen below 2000 m2/m2. Slow sand filters removed 70-84% of total suspended solids reaching effluent concentrations of 1.2-2.3 mg/L and turbidity levels of 0.5-0.8 NTU. Average runtime was between 59 and 148 days.