Chemical Engineering Science 58 (2003) 2123 – 2140

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Solids suspension in stirred tanks with pitched blade turbines

Rajendra N. Sharma∗ , Abdullah A. Shaikh
Department of Chemical Engineering, King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals, P.O. Box 5050, Dhahran 31261, Saudi Arabia
Received 12 November 2001; received in revised form 7 May 2002; accepted 5 June 2002

Abstract

In view of developing a universal correlation for critical speed of suspension, extensive suspension experiments were conducted with
tank scales in the range of 15 –121 cm, D=T from 0.083 to 0.625, using four di2erent sizes of spherical glass beads and employing Pitched
Blade Turbines with four and six blades as the impellers. The periphery of the tank bottom was modi7ed to include a permanent 7llet
in order to eliminate the e2ect of induced recirculation loop, which account for the formation of peripheral 7llets of unsuspended solids.
The critical speed of suspension Nc and power Pc were observed to vary independently both with D and T to give two correlations for
each of the variables, Nc and Pc ; one for the close proximity impeller operation where both Nc and Pc remained invariant with o2-bottom
impeller clearance and the second for the region where Nc and Pc were a2ected signi7cantly by the impeller position. The e2ects of the
physical characteristics of the solids were also included in the four correlations so proposed. It was clearly noticed that the correlations
were valid up to a critical value of D=T beyond which the trapped particles in the stagnant zone below the impeller needed extra energy
to be raked out and suspended, thus breaking the log-linear relationship between Nc (or Pc ) and D=T hitherto maintained. Comparisons
of the suspension speed and power have been made with open literature. More importantly, the reasons why the earlier studies di2ered
with each other in Nc -predictions have been identi7ed.
? 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Impeller; Solids suspension; Stirred tank; Critical speed of suspension; Mixing

1. Introduction
Suspension of particulate solids in stirred tanks poses
a complex hydrodynamic problem of two-phase turbulent
:ow in a stirred tank. This renders an analytical approach
to the problem extremely tedious. Ever since the pioneering
work of Zwietering in the late 1950s, numerous empiri-
cal and semi-empirical investigations on solids suspension
have been reported in literature. The results have been crit-
ically reviewed and discussed by Joshi, Pandit, and Sharma
(1982), Oldshue (1983), Nienow (1985) Chapter 16, Gray
and Oldshue (1986), and more recently, by Upadhyay, Rai,
Kumar, and Shah (1994), Armenante, Nagamine, and
Susanto (1998), and Armenante and Nagamine (1998).
There is, unfortunately, a recognizable variance in the pre-
diction of critical speed of suspension and a correlation
with universal validity is still sought. Bohnet and Niesmak
(1980) calculated critical speed of suspension using nine
∗ Corresponding author. Tel.: +966-3-860-2199;
fax: +966-3-860-4234.
E-mail address: rajendra@kfupm.edu.sa (R. N. Sharma).
correlations to 7nd that the reported values were in the range
of −56% to 250% from their own values. Recently Sharma,
Peri, and Hanley (1989) and Oldshue and Sharma (1992)
have drawn attention to the factors due to which the critical
speed predictions may vary from one study to another.
The present study was undertaken to critically examine
the suspension phenomena with a fresh look in order to iden-
tify the factors, which are supposed to be responsible for the
reported discrepancies in the minimum values of suspension
speeds and power. This exercise, it was expected, would
lead to a universal correlation for the speed and power.
The study is con7ned to particulate suspensions in stirred
tanks through Pitched Blade Turbines, 45◦ with four and six
blades, to be referred hereafter as PBT-4 and PBT-6. It may
be added that the scope of the present study excludes the
natural frequency limitations required to modify the values
of the critical speed of suspension in order to keep the me-
chanical stability of the system secure. Whenever, the sus-
pension speeds are equal or close to the natural frequency,
the agitator experiences excessive vibrations leading to its
mechanical failure. If natural frequency constraints do arise,
a judicious decision based on practical considerations can be

0009-2509/03/$ - see front matter ? 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/S0009-2509(03)00023-X
2124 R. N. Sharma, A. A. Shaikh / Chemical Engineering Science 58 (2003) 2123 – 2140

taken. For example, if the agitator is operating at the criti-

cal speed of suspension, which happens to resonate with the
natural frequency of vibration of the agitator, either of the
two available options can be exercised; 7rst, the shaft can
be shortened, increasing the 7rst natural frequency. Second,
the agitator speed i.e. the critical suspension speed of the
agitator can be decreased through use of a large impeller.

2. Experimental set-up and measurements

The experimental set-up is shown in Fig. 1. Experiments

were conducted in cylindrical glass vessels having :at bot-
tom with round corners and 7tted with four standard baKes.
Whenever the round cornered tanks, particularly in large di-
mensions, were not available, Plexiglas vessels were used
and a permanent 7llet was added to give the junction be-
tween the tank base and wall a smooth turning.
The critical speed of suspension, Nc , is de7ned as the im-
peller speed at which no solids remain at the tank base for
more than a second or two. The corresponding power for sus-
pension shall be denoted as Pc . In the present experiments,
Nc was visually identi7ed. A magnetic pick-up hooked on
the motor shaft was connected to a PC through a circuit to
record Nc . A rotating torque sensor, also 7xed on the shaft,
gave corresponding power on the PC. For higher tank sizes,
a dynamometer assembly, with optical pick-up for speed,
was used to measure both the power and critical speed of
suspension. Spherical glass beads were used as the particu-
late solids, which were suspended in water. The parameter
A, as de7ned by Eq. (5) being a function of the physical
characteristics of the glass beads and water, was manipu-
lated by changing the physical variables associated with it
to remain at a constant value of approximately 10:9 cm0:85 =s
for three of the four groups of glass beads chosen. The geo-
metrical and physical systems used in the present study are
speci7ed in Tables 1 and 2.
For a given tank diameter, various impellers sizes were
used to just suspend the glass beads in water. For each im-
peller, the o2-bottom clearance, C=T , was continuously var-
ied and for each clearance, the critical speed of suspension
and the corresponding power were measured.
2.1. Tank base design
Most of the reported studies have been conducted in :at
bottom tanks with straight junction at the tank base and wall.
Suspension from the mixed :ow turbines, like other agita-
tors, in general, takes place at the corners of the tank base.
This is because the centrifugal action drives the particles to
the corners where from they are ultimately suspended. The
particles, traveling towards the corner, hit the wall, lose mo-
mentum and get trapped in the stagnant zone at the corner
junction forming a kind of 7llet through the deposition of
the particles giving a rounding e2ect to the straight junction.
This may be termed as self-7lleting of the corners. It was
Fig. 1. Experimental set-up.
sometimes visually observed that any extra input of energy
in terms of higher impeller speed with the intent of raking
particles out of the 7llet tended to homogenize the solids
concentration in the bulk of the tank 7rst before the 7llets
were eliminated. Caution should, therefore, be exercised in
applying the criterion of particles spending not more than
a second or two at the tank base. The criterion should be
applied to the bulk of the tank base excluding the corner
sites. Evidently, higher Nc -values would be observed if the
view of observation includes the corners also. Possibly, this
could have been one of the reasons for variance in the re-
ported Nc -values. Following the observations of Bourne and
Sharma (1974) for the eLcient usage of contoured bottom
in particulate suspension, Chudacek (1982, 1985) has dis-
cussed the corner self-7lleting of the straight tanks, which
support the present observations.
With the observation on a few runs on straight tanks and
on the basis of the arguments cited above, it was intuitively
argued that the existence of induced recirculation loops at
the wall-to-bottom junction of the :at bottom tank make the
corner area of the tank diLcult to be de7ned hydrodynami-
cally. A successful model should preclude the weakly recir-
culated stagnant zones. It was, therefore, decided to round
the straight junction by adding an external permanent 7llet.
It was anticipated that Nc in a tank with rounded corners
at the periphery of the tank base would give the correct, or
shall we say, the ideal Nc -value from which the chances of
variance with respect to di2erent observers are removed.
 R. N. Sharma, A. A. Shaikh / Chemical Engineering Science 58 (2003) 2123 – 2140
Table 1
Characteristics of the physical system
Material
s −
l (g=cm3 ) dp (cm) B A
Glass beads I 1.404
Glass beads II 1.635
Glass beads III 1.585
Glass beads IV 1.39
Table 2
Characteristics of the geometrical system
Impeller type
Pitched 4-blade turbine (45◦ PBT-4)
Pitched 6-blade turbine (45◦ PBT-6)
Liquid height/tank diameter = 1:0.
3. Results and discussion
3.1. Gross features of suspension
The hydrodynamics of two-phase :ow in a stirred tank
space is so tedious that any attempt to introduce a model,
much less to understand the mechanism of suspension, at
this stage would be purely speculative. It, however, has to
be recognized that even such complex :ows leave behind
some evidence, which, if properly understood, may lead to
the initiation of a model. In this context, the following ob-
servations depicting a few salient characteristics of solids
suspension were made. The most critical place for the sus-
pension is the tank base and the ease or diLculty of suspen-
sion from it depends on the type of :ow pattern that the agi-
tator generates. The :ow pattern from an axial :ow impeller
is conducive to easier suspension in comparison to the :ow
pattern produced by a radial :ow impeller. The suspension
eLciency of the mixed :ow impellers remains in between.
There are two zones at the tank base where weakly recir-
culated induced loops occur, one just below the impeller and
the other at the junction of the tank base and wall, which in
the present case has been eliminated by the addition of an
external 7llet. For the case of impeller operating close to the
tank base, the eLciency of energy transfer from impeller to
particles is maximum. The particulate mass trapped in the
stagnant zone below the impeller is, therefore, easily driven
to the corners with enough velocity to get suspended after
sliding over the external permanent 7llet. If the o2-bottom
clearance of the impeller is increased, then the stagnant zone
below the impeller also increases, more particles are caught
in it, and because of higher position of impeller, less en-
ergy is imparted to them, as a consequence, higher speed of
impeller rotation would be needed to drive the particles to-
2125
0.085 2 10.904
0.07 1.6 10.911
0.07 1.78 10.91
0.013 1.55 7.213
Impeller diameter (cm) Tank diameter (cm)
7.62, 10.16, 10.5, 12.7, 121.92, 76.2,
15.24, 17.78, 20.32, 44.45, 28.13,
25.4, 27.94, 30.48 23.5
5.35, 8.5, 10.5 15.5, 21, 29
wards the tank corner from where they may be suspended,
if not, then still higher impeller speeds for ultimate suspen-
sion may be needed.
It should be noted that the :ow, generated by a radial
:ow impeller, on reaching the tank base, would sweep the
particles towards its central region, which is partly covered
by an induced secondary loop. This is a very inconvenient
situation for suspension. It is diLcult to lift the particles
from the center than to drive them towards the corners where
from they are picked up. At suLciently higher position of the
axial impeller (PBTs in the present case), axial :ow pattern
changes to a radial :ow pattern. It can be emphasized that
the suspension is not complete until the last unsuspended
fraction of the particle mass is suspended.
3.2. Critical speed and power pro9les
Plots between Nc versus C=T and between Pc versus C=T
were made for each tank size. Figs. 2 and 3 show a typical
set of these pro7les for di2erent combinations of tank and
impeller sizes for PBT-4. Similar trends were observed in
the corresponding 7gures (not shown) for PBT-6. Note that
abscissa of these 7gures is in log-scale to accentuate the
e2ect of C=T .
Three regions can be identi7ed in the curves of Figs. 2
and 3. This is illustrated in Fig. 4. First is the :at region
where Nc remains constant with o2-bottom impeller clear-
ance, C=T . This is the con7guration where the impeller is
operating very close to the tank bottom. Baldi, Conti, and
Alaria (1978) have noted that the ratio of the local energy
dissipated per unit volume at the tank base to the average
energy dissipated throughout the tank volume, (b =), is con-
stant when the stirrer is operating very close to the bottom.
This is also in accordance with some experimental results
2126 R. N. Sharma, A. A. Shaikh / Chemical Engineering Science 58 (2003) 2123 – 2140

Fig. 2. Pro7les of critical impeller speed for solids suspension with impeller clearance for PBT-4. A = 10:91 except for (d) where A = 7:2.

Fig. 3. Pro7les of critical power of solids suspension with impeller clearance for PBT-4. A = 10:91 except for (d) where A = 7:2.

of the local values of energy dissipation in stirred tanks due
to Nagata (1975). It can be clearly seen in Figs. 2 and 3 that
Nc and the corresponding Pc -values do remain constant in
the 7rst region, which is also referred to as the :at region.
This renders the parameter Z = f(b =), de7ned by Baldi
et al. (1978), as a constant, thus providing the 7rst evidence
of the validity of the model proposed by these authors. Both
the impellers, PBT-4 and PBT-6, become very eLcient in
suspending the solids at this con7guration of close-bottom
operation where the critical speed or the power of suspen-
sion is minimum. The 7gures indicate that, in general, the
:at portion continues up to a value of C=T around 0.1. In
fact, for a given physical system, the extent of the :at por-
tion depends on the tank size and the D=T ratio. The depen-
dence, however, seems to be weak. There is not much data
reported in literature on Nc or Pc -pro7les and the experi-
mental evidence of the existence of the :at portion has not
been reported although the data of some important studies
 R. N. Sharma, A. A. Shaikh / Chemical Engineering Science 58 (2003) 2123 – 2140
Fig. 4. Illustration of the e2ect of impeller clearance on critical speed of
suspension.
devoted entirely to study the e2ect of impeller clearance on
suspension do indicate the existence of a constant Nc -region.
For example, the Nc -pro7les of Raghava Rao, Rewatkar, and
Joshi (1988) and the power pro7les of Gray (1987) would
indicate the existence of the :at region, if interpolation of
their data is extended to lower values of C=T . Armenante and
Nagamine (1998) conducted experiments with PBT-6 oper-
ating very near to tank bottom, and with a close scrutiny, the
constant Nc region can be visualized in their data. It can also
be added that, all the impellers of di2erent types at this con-
7guration would generate a single-eight :ow pattern, which
is typical of an axial impeller; the impellers would be oper-
ating at their respective maximum eLciency and any di2er-
ence in their performance would be due to the hydrodynamic
shape of the impellers, which assign them di2erent power
numbers.
Immediately following the :at region is the zone where
Nc (or the corresponding power Pc ) becomes a function
of impeller clearance. Because of higher impeller position,
the energy available for suspension at the tank bottom
decreases. As a result, the suspension performance of the
impeller also decreases. The :ow pattern, however, does not
change. Another factor, which contributes to higher speeds
of suspension and as a result to higher slope in Nc -pro7le
when the impeller clearance is increased to enter the second
region is as follows: The induced secondary loop (almost
stagnant) at the tank base below the impeller gets wider
with increasing impeller height. Consequently, extra energy
is needed to force the higher amount of trapped particles
out from this region and put them in the mainstream of :ow
to be 7nally suspended from the corners. Higher impeller
rpm is, therefore, required to suspend the particles. This is
the second region where Nc or Pc increases with increasing
impeller heights and where most of the suspension experi-
ments have been reported in literature. Yet another region,
the third, can be detected in Figs. 2 and 3. This is clearly
illustrated in Fig. 4. The slope in this region is higher than
the slope in the second region. The point at which the third
2127
region starts is the point where the :ow pattern changes.
The impeller now is positioned at such an increased height
that the streamlines emanating from it hit the tank walls
7rst and then slide down along the walls to 7nally turn at
the corners towards the center of the tank base. This is the
typical :ow pattern generated by a radial :ow impeller like
a six-:at blade Rushton turbine. This means that the axial
:ow impeller (in the present case PBT) is converted to a
radial :ow impeller and the particles are driven towards the
center. It should be recognized that the diLculty of suspen-
sion increases as the :ow pattern at the tank base is changed
from axial :ow to radial :ow type. Now, if the C=T is such,
that the third region has just begun, then a heap of the par-
ticulate mass in the shape of a cone with vertex up collects
at the tank base beneath the impeller. Particles are now
caught in an inverted spinning vortex below the impeller
just like a tornado touching the ground. A few particles at
the vertex of the conical heap are lifted up apparently under
the in:uence of the vortex while a few more particles at the
circular periphery of the conical heap at the tank bottom are
thrown by centrifugal force towards the corners and at high
speeds are lifted before reaching there. When the particles
strike the tank base later, they are again swept towards the
center. At still higher speeds, the particulate mass was ob-
served to be alternatively collected at the tank base in broad
streaks and then suddenly dispersed with a certain period-
icity. A kind of instability sets in. It very well may be that
PBT at this point successively behaves as a radial :ow and
axial :ow impeller. The suspension criteria of no particle
remaining stationary at the tank base for more than a second
or two no more holds and had to be abandoned, at least for
the systems studied. A compromised de7nition is now taken
for this new situation according to which the particles are
de7ned to be suspended at an impeller speed, Nc , where the
time spent by the broad streaks of mass at the tank base is
minimum (between 1 to 3 or 4 s). It can be conjectured that
the impeller clearance at which this instability sets in would
depend on the geometric and physical factors of the system
being studied. It was observed from all the critical speed
and power pro7les including the typical ones shown in Figs.
2 and 3, that a change of :ow pattern occurs approximately
at C=T = 0:35. Gray (1987) also noted a break in the power
versus impeller clearance curve for PBT-6 exactly at the
same value of C=T = 0:35 where a change of :ow pattern
from a “single-eight” to a “double-eight” occurred. This
changeover means that at C=T ¿ 0:35, the axial :ow im-
peller starts behaving like a radial :ow impeller. Gray did
not mention about the diLculty of suspension, the insta-
bility, and the modi7ed de7nition of suspension although
he did observe suspension instability with radial :ow im-
pellers. Since the author did not conduct experiments at
close impeller clearances, the 7rst region remains absent in
his data. Barresi and Baldi (1987) also noted certain insta-
bility, particularly with PBT-4 and PBT-6, as a consequence
of which, the authors acknowledged, that the determination
of their Nc -values su2ered from uncertainty. Armenante
2128 R. N. Sharma, A. A. Shaikh / Chemical Engineering Science 58 (2003) 2123 – 2140
and Nagamine (1998) conducted experiments only at low
impeller clearances; the third region, therefore, does not
appear in their data. The Nc -pro7les of Raghava Rao et al.
(1988) for PBT-6 impellers show a break at C=T =0:33 for 5
of the 7 pro7les shown in their Fig. 7(b). The authors seem
to have missed the 7rst region since no data have been taken
at impeller positions near the tank base. Though not men-
tioned, but it appears, that a change of :ow pattern occurs
at C=T = 0:33 beyond which PBT-6 is supposed to assume
the characteristics of a radial :ow impeller. This apparently
seems to be the reason why the suspension speeds are sig-
ni7cantly higher at C=T ¿ 0:33. Further, the authors did not
report the diLculty of suspension or any kind of instability
at clearances higher than C=T = 0:33 and up to C=T = 0:5. It
is possible that the periodicity of the collected mass at the
tank base might have been of the order of a few seconds in
the single digit so the classical de7nition, instead of being
modi7ed, might have been inadvertently extended. It is
also possible that, since a small solids loading (0.34%) was
used, the third region might really have existed. In any case,
third region needs further investigations although it is not an
eLcient region to be employed in practice. No attempt, by
design, was made in the present study to generate the data
in the third region with PBT-6 since the classical de7nition
of suspension could not be sustained in the third region.
Data with PBT-4 do show the third region with the modi-
7ed de7nition of suspension criteria. Which region(s) shall
appear in an experimental run would, it can be intuitively
argued, depend on the physical and geometrical system
employed.
Finally, it has to be stressed that each of the three re-
gions has its own scale-up. Any erroneous mix-up between
the regions can lead to errors in the correlations. The third
region was not considered industrially important, and was,
therefore, not analyzed.
3.3. E:ect of impeller diameter and the limiting value of
D=T
No conclusive unanimity has yet been reported about the
e2ect of impeller diameters on suspension speeds. For a
given physical system, the critical speed of suspension was
found to decrease with the increasing impeller size at con-
stant tank diameter and increase with increasing tank di-
ameter at constant impeller size. Fig. 5 shows the plot be-
tween Nc and D in the 7rst region for both impellers, PBT-4
and PBT-6. Also included, as a typical example for second
region, are the Nc versus D data for a speci7ed impeller
clearance of C=T =0:25 in Fig. 5(a). Patterns for other clear-
ances were found to be similar for both the impellers. It
can be observed that the linear relation between Nc and D
on the log–log plot is maintained up to a limiting value of
D=T ∼= 0:35. For example, the data point corresponding to
D = 10:5 cm, T = 21 cm (D=T = 0:5) for PBT-6 in Fig. 5 (b)
does not follow the linear decay, as the earlier two points for
D = 5:35 cm (D=T = 0:255) and D = 8:5 cm (D=T = 0:4) do.
In fact, a break in the linear decay of Nc with D in this case
occurs at D=T ∼ = 0:35. On the same 7gure for T = 29 cm,
the Nc -value corresponding to D = 10:5 cm also falls o2 the
linear curve but not so drastically since D=T =0:362 exceeds
the limiting value of 0.35 only slightly. Also, the point for
D = 8:5 cm, T = 15:5 cm (D=T = 0:548) does not follow
the expected linear drop as shown by the continuous line of
the present prediction. Similar data for PBT-4 can be exam-
ined in Fig. 5(a). The linear drop in Nc with D is maintained
for tank sizes of 121.92, 76.2, 44:45 cm since the data fall
within the range of D=T = 0:35. However, for D = 10:16 cm
and for T = 23:5 cm, the experimental Nc -value drops o2
the linear curve. This is expected since D=T in this case is
0.432, which exceeds the critical value of D=T equal to 0.35.
Similarly, the point D = 10:16, T = 28:13 (D=T = 0:361) is
slightly o2 the linear decay but not so much as in the previ-
ous case, since D=T di2ers only marginally from its limiting
value. It was also observed that the Nc –D curves at higher
impeller clearances corresponding to the second region were
found to be parallel to the curves in the 7rst region. Simi-
lar trends were observed when Pc pro7les (not shown) were
plotted and examined. All the curves in Figs. 5 (a) and (b)
were found to have a common slope of −2:0. Thus, for a
given tank size, Nc varies as D−2 . Likewise, for constant
impeller size, Nc –T plots were made as shown on Fig. 6 (a)
for PBT-4 and Fig. 6 (b) for PBT-6. It can be observed that,
in general, for a constant impeller size, Nc decays linearly as
the tank size is decreased. This trend, expectedly, is broken
when the value of D=T exceeds 0.35. For example, in Fig.
6 (b) for D = 8:5 cm, the point at T = 21 cm (D=T = 0:405)
and the other at T =15:5 cm (D=T =0:548) fall o2 the linear
curve, the latter falling further away from the line since the
violation of the critical value is more severe here. The point
for D = 10:5 cm and T = 21 cm (D=T = 0:5) in the same
7gure also drastically falls o2 the line. In Fig. 6 (a), the
last two points corresponding to T = 23:5 cm, D = 10:16 cm
(D=T =0:432) and T =28:13 cm, D=10:16 cm (D=T =0:361)
fall o2 the linear decay curve, the former, as expected, hav-
ing a more severe departure. It may be added, that the con-
tinuous curves in Figs. 5 and 6 are the predicted ones based
on the correlations developed in the present study (shown
in Table 4). All the curves in Fig. 6 were found to have a
common slope of 1.15 up to the critical or limiting value of
D=T ∼ = 0:35. Thus, for a given impeller size Nc varies as
T 1:15 . Similar analysis was done for the critical power and
it was found that Pc ˙ D−1 for constant T and Pc ˙ T 3:45
for constant D. Same proportionality were observed for Nc
and Pc at higher impeller clearances. Therefore, Nc still var-
ied as D−2 or as T 1:15 (Pc ˙ D−1 or T 3:45 ) at other impeller
positions (C=T ¡ 0:35) but within the limit of D=T ¡ 0:35.
Table 3 gives the exponents on impeller and tank diame-
ters as reported by various investigators. Unfortunately, the
values of exponents di2er widely as can be observed from
the table and this di2erence is carried over in the corre-
sponding correlations to predict the suspension speed. In the
 R. N. Sharma, A. A. Shaikh / Chemical Engineering Science 58 (2003) 2123 – 2140
Fig. 5. E2ect of impeller diameter on critical speed of suspension at constant tank size.
absence of a general validity of the scale-up criteria in terms
of D and T , industry or other heavy users tend to develop
their own scale-up rules or use a conservative estimate from
the available correlations.
Based on the observations of the present study, one
possible explanation for the discrepant behavior of
Nc -dependence on D and T could be the ‘erroneous mix-up’
of the di2erent regions as mentioned earlier. For example,
it very well could be that the Nc -values for di2erent diame-
ters of the impeller may partly fall in the 7rst and partly in
the second region. Obviously, the Nc -values in the variable
(second) region (where Nc is a function of the impeller
clearance) shall be higher than the corresponding Nc -value
that falls in the 7rst region (where Nc is independent of the
impeller clearance) and the two should not be correlated.
An error would, therefore, creep in if a relation were forced
between the two variables, Nc and D, belonging to di2erent
regions.
2129
The other point is more important and refers to yet unrec-
ognized fact established through the present study that the
linear drop of Nc with increasing D on a logarithmic plot
breaks down beyond the critical or limiting value of D=T ∼ =
0:35. Therefore, suspension data beyond this limiting value
of D=T should not be included in the analysis, and if it were,
then obviously, di2erent investigators would report di2er-
ent values of the exponent on D and T . The importance of
this point is illustrated in Fig. 7. The data are taken from
literature (Raghava Rao et al., 1988), not for comparison,
but, to establish the validity of the concept of the limiting
value of D=T . Open circles represent suspension speeds in a
57 cm tank with four PBT-6 impellers of diameters 14.25,
19.0, 25, and 33:0 cm. The D=T ratios for the four points
are 0.25, 0.33, 0.44, and 0.58. Note that the third and fourth
points violate the limiting value of D=T . If 7rst and second
points are considered, then the slope is approximately −2:0
and the data remain within the range of D=T ∼ = 0:35 falling
2130 R. N. Sharma, A. A. Shaikh / Chemical Engineering Science 58 (2003) 2123 – 2140
Fig. 6. E2ect of tank diameter on critical speed of suspension at constant impeller dimensions.
on the continuous line which represent the prediction from
the present work. If, however, 7rst, second and third points
are considered then the slope adjusts to a lower value. Fi-
nally, the slope would adjust to a still lower value if all the
four points were taken. This example explains how the ex-
ponent on D can vary from one investigator to another if the
constraint of the limiting value of D=T is not appropriately
used.
It would be interesting to take notice of two studies rep-
resenting one of the earliest and the latest work in this
regard. Zwietering (1958) while conducting experiments
on a series of propellers in a vessel of constant dimen-
sions found that for D=T ¿ 0:45, the linear relation between
Nc and D on a log–log plot breaks down. The other ob-
servation is due to Myers, Corpstein, Bakker, and Fasano
(1994a) who reported data on suspension speeds for vari-
ous impeller diameters in a tank at varying impeller clear-
ance. The data did show a distinct break-o2 in the Nc –D
relation at a D=T = 0:35 and a minimum at D=T ∼ = 0:47.
The authors, however, did not reconcile to the fact that the
just-suspended speed can exhibit a minima. Further analy-
sis was, therefore, dropped. A detailed discussion and com-
parison of the results of these authors is made elsewhere in
this communication but the point is stressed that the e2ect
of D=T can distinctly be observed in their data. Ironically,
the observations due to Zwiertering and Myers et al. re-
mained unnoticed or for some reasons were ignored in their
appropriate context. Researchers in the mean time contin-
ued to correlate the suspension data even beyond D=T = 0:5.
Evidently, depending on how far one study is beyond the
critical value of D=T , the prediction in Nc -value will dif-
fer.
3.4. E:ect of o:-bottom impeller clearance
It was observed that the e2ect of D (and T ) on Nc (and
Pc ) remained same irrespective of the impeller clearance.
For example, Nc -decay with D (Fig. 5(a)) and with T (Fig.
6(a)) at a value of C=T = 0:25 in the second region follow
the same pattern as the curves in the 7rst region. It has al-
ready been discussed and concluded while examining the
Nc and Pc pro7les that the suspension eLciency of the im-
pellers decreases with the increase in the impeller clearance
both in the second and third regions. The reason for higher
impeller speeds needed in the second region has also been
discussed earlier. Evidently, with the increase in the impeller
 R. N. Sharma, A. A. Shaikh / Chemical Engineering Science 58 (2003) 2123 – 2140 2131

Table 3
Exponents on T and D

Investigator Exponent Exponent

on D on T

Baldi et al. (1978) −1:89 1.0

−1:67 1.0

Chapman, Nienow, Cooke, and −1:57

Middleton (1983)
−1:67 0.76
−2:45

Einkel and Mersmann (1977) −2:3 1.7

Fig. 7. E2ect of impeller diameter on critical speed of suspension at two
tank sizes.
Gates, Morton, and Fondy (1976) −2:4 1.6

Kneule and Weinspach (1967) −2:2 1.7

No attempt was, therefore, made to obtain a correlation for
Kolar (1961) −2:3 1.6
this region.
Kotzek, Liepe, Langhaus, and −1:7 1.0
Weissgarber (1969)
Raghava Rao et al. (1988) −1:16 0.31
4. Correlations
Weisman and E2erding (1960) −1:7 1.0
It has already been established from Figs. 5 and 6 that
Zwietering (1958) −1:7 0.85 Nc ˙ D−2 for constant T and,
−2:35 1.5
Nc ˙ T 1:15 for constant D.
Armenante et al. (1998) −2:25 1.43 The same relations, as already mentioned, are maintained
−2:07 1.25 at any other impeller clearance except that the constant of
−1:66 0.84 proportionality is changed to a function of C=T .
−1:62 0.84 Therefore,
Rai (1991) −2:35 0.35 Nc D2
= constant (1)
Nienow (1968) −2:21 1.5
T 1:15
for 7rst or :at region, and
Present work −2:0 1.15


Nc D2 C
=f (2)
T 1:15 T

height, the energy supplied to the tank base is reduced and at for second region.
still higher clearances, i.e. in the third region, the change of A similar exercise was done for Pc and, as expected, fol-
:ow pattern introduces still higher demand of energy needed lowing relations were obtained,
for suspension. The diLculty of suspension increases dras- Pc D
tically in the third region. A heap of particles in the shape of = constant (3)
T 3:45
a cone deposits below the impeller. Without attempting to
model the complex suspension phenomenon for this partic- for 7rst region, and


ular :ow situation, it can be added that this collected heap Pc D C
of particles can, in two extreme cases, be either thrown to- 3:45
=F (4)
T T
wards the tank corners from where suspension may take
place or may be lifted up from the center of the base itself. for second region.
The hydrodynamics in which the central heap of particles are Clearly, Eqs. (1)–(4) form a basic set of design equations
caught is very complex, possibly a combination of two phase for the system used in the present experiments. A parame-
forced and free vortex. It was observed that if the particles ter describing the e2ect of the physical system needs to be
size and loadings were very small then at least part suspen- incorporated in these equations before general correlations
sion from the central heap could be achieved. But in most are developed.
cases suspending the particles became extremely diLcult, if The present study was not geared to investigate the
not impossible, with the classical de7nition of suspension. e2ects of the properties of the physical system. It was,
Third region was not considered of any practical importance. therefore, decided to use the recommendations from the
2132 R. N. Sharma, A. A. Shaikh / Chemical Engineering Science 58 (2003) 2123 – 2140

a common curve with a slope of −1:15. It can be clearly

seen in these 7gures that at D=T ¿ 0:35, the linearity of the
relation between S and D=T is broken. The values of the
constant C1 for PBT-4 and for PBT-6 calculate to be 1.21
and 1.18 respectively. These are included in Table 4, which
gives the 7nal correlations developed in the present study.
PBT-6, however, draws more power because of its higher
power number.
A similar exercise was done for Pc by dividing Eq. (3)
with A3 . The resulting equation, representing the 7rst region,
was written in the following form:

−3:45
Pc D
= C3 = SP : (7)
A3 D2:45 T

Fig. 8. E2ect of D=T ratio on the dimensionless variable S.
literature, which con7rm the values quoted by Zwietering
(1958). Thus, a variable A is de7ned as
A = (gU
=
l )0:45 dp0:2 0:1 B0:13 :
It is to be noted that the 7rst three glass beads were so chosen
that the value of A approximately remained at a value of
10.9. The value A for the fourth type of the glass beads was
7.2. The units of A are in cgs system, cm0:85 =s.
Eq. (1) can be converted in to a more familiar form by
dividing it through A and readjusting, i.e.,

−1:15
Nc D0:85 D occurs with respect to C=T . A plot similar to Fig. 9 is shown
= C1 = S; (6)
A T
where, S is dimensionless.
Figs. 8(a) and (b) show the variation of S with D=T for
PBT-4 and PBT-6 in the 7rst (:at) region. All the data follow
Plots of Pc =A3 D2:45 with D=T for PBT-4 and PBT-6 (not
shown) were separately drawn, and it was observed that
the experimental points with D=T ¿ 0:35, as expected, fell
o2 the linear curve on the logarithmic plots and also, the
correlated points with D=T ¡ 0:35 followed closely a line
with a slope of −3:45. From the plots, for the 7rst region,
C3 is calculated to be 2:7 × 10−7 for PBT-4 and 2:1 × 10−7 .
for PBT-6.
Finally, (Nc D2 =AT 1:15 ), which can also be written as
[(Nc D0:85 =A)(D=T )1:15 ], is plotted with C=T for PBT-4
and PB-6 respectively in Figs. 9 and 10. The continuous
curves in Fig. 9 (for PBT-4) represent the regressed lines
for the 7rst and second regions. Final correlations for the
respective regions are obtained from these regressed lines.
As mentioned earlier, no attempt has been made to obtain
(5) correlation for the third region. The data which fall o2 the
correlated curves are the ones for which the D=T is more
than its critical value. The rest of the data are within the
required D=T -range and is well correlated. It can also be
noted from the 7gure that the third region starts approx-
imately at an impeller clearance C=T = 0:35. This is the
o2-bottom position of the impeller where the change of
:ow pattern from axial to radial :ow occurs. It is to be
stressed that this is the only change in :ow pattern, which
in Fig. 10 for PBT-6. The data points closely follow both
the regressed lines representing the 7rst (:at) and second
(variable) regions. It can be seen that the third region is
absent since no data were taken in it. The experimental

Table 4
Correlations

Impeller type Speed Power

First region Second region First region Second region

Nc D0:85 Nc D0:85 Pc Pc
A
= C1 (D=T )−1:15 A
= C2 (D=T )−1:15 (C=T )0:453 A3 D2:45
= C3 (D=T )−3:45 A3 D2:45
= C4 (D=T )−3:45 (C=T )1:3
C1 C2 C3 C4

PBT-6 blades 1.18 3.0 2:1 × 10−7 4:2 × 10−6

PBT-4 blades 1.21 2.7 2:7 × 10−7 2:7 × 10−6

Conditions: D=T ¡ 0:35, C=T ¡ 0:1 for 7rst region, 0:35 ¿ C=T ¿ 0:1 for second region.
 R. N. Sharma, A. A. Shaikh / Chemical Engineering Science 58 (2003) 2123 – 2140
Fig. 9. Pro7le of critical impeller speed for PBT-4.
Fig. 10. Pro7le of critical impeller speed for PBT-6.
points, except the ones for which D=T is more than 0.35,
are very well correlated with the regressed lines.
Figs. 11 and 12 show a plot between (Pc D=A3 T 3:45 ), which
can also be written as [(Pc =A3 D2:45 ) (D=T )3:45 ], versus C=T .
A Slight scatter for the case of PBT-4 in Fig. 11 can be
noticed. It is possible that the power measurements might
not have been as accurate as speed measurements. Most of
the data for both the 7gures, however, satisfactorily follow
the regressed lines which represent the 7nal correlations as
given in Table 4. The points which do not follow the re-
2133
gressed lines are the ones for which D=T is greater than
0.35. An interesting result from the present experiments re-
lates to interconvertibility of Nc and Pc -correlations. For the
given range of experiments, the Pc -correlation tallies with
its form derived from the speed correlation. It should be so
since it is the same hydrodynamics which registers Nc or
Pc . It, however, stipulates that impeller power number as
a function of C=T and D=T is known. In the present case
the power number was found to remain more or less invari-
ant with D=T and C=T ratios. Still, the inter-conversion re-
mains only approximate, if exact functionality of the power
number with D=T and C=T is not used. Power correlations,
therefore, carry their own signi7cance. It may be added that
constants C3 and C4 (power-correlation Table 4) were found
to vary from 3% to 15% from their theoretical values de-
rived from the speed correlations. The variations could be
due to error in the measurements of power or the change in
the impeller power number. This has to be established by
further experimentations.
The unknown constants in Eqs. (1) and (3), and the
unknown functions in Eqs. (2) and (4) can be evalu-
ated through the regressed lines in Figs. 9–12. It is to
be noted that the constants in Eqs. (1) and (3), refer-
ring to the 7rst region have already been calculated. This
exercise simply con7rms the earlier calculations. Re-
sults in terms of the 7nal correlations are included in
Table 4.
2134 R. N. Sharma, A. A. Shaikh / Chemical Engineering Science 58 (2003) 2123 – 2140

Fig. 11. Pro7le of critical power of suspension for PBT-4.

Fig. 12. Pro7le of critical power of suspension for PBT-6.

5. Comparisons context of Nc variation with D. The physical and geomet-

As has been mentioned earlier, not much data is avail-
able in literature for direct comparisons when C=T is vary-
ing continuously. There are, however, a few investigations
that provide enough data for direct comparisons. One of the
interesting comparisons is with the work of Myers et al.
(1994a), which has already been referred elsewhere in the
rical parts of the system have not been speci7ed since di-
mensionless ratios were used. It, however, is imperative to
know the tank dimensions if a meaningful comparison has
to be made since Nc depends both on D and T . It appears
that the authors have used the same system as employed
by Myers, Fasano, and Corpstein (1994b) where particulate
suspension is studied in a :at bottom tank of diameter 29 cm
 R. N. Sharma, A. A. Shaikh / Chemical Engineering Science 58 (2003) 2123 – 2140
Fig. 13. Comparison of the critical speed of suspension for PBT-4.
Fig. 14. Comparison of the critical power of suspension for PBT-4.
with a liquid height equal to the tank diameter and stirred
by a PBT-4 agitator. The authors have plotted the ratio of
Nc at one D=T to the Nc at D=T = 0:35 with D=T . The value
of this ratio was also calculated from the present results and
the comparisons are made on Fig. 13. It is interesting to note
that the predictions from the present study almost exactly
match the data of Myers et al. (1994a). It can also be seen
that the linear relation between Nc -ratio and D=T also breaks
for the data of Myers et al. at D=T = 0:35. Fig. 14 shows
the comparisons for the relative power versus D=T . Except
for mismatch at smaller values of D=T , agreement here is
also very good and the break point is again at D=T = 0:35.
Fig. 15 shows the critical speed ratio with impeller clear-
ance. The matching is almost perfect. Thus, the investiga-
tions of Myers et al. (1994a) seem to completely validate
the 7ndings of the present study. No more Nc versus D data
are available for comparisons in the background of the lim-
iting value of D=T .
Armenante and Nagamine (1998) conducted over 300
experiments in open, :at-bottom, cylindrical, fully baKed
Plexiglas tanks having diameters of 18.8, 24.4, 29.2, and
58:4 cm. Four types of impellers were used but the one,
which is relevant to the present study, is the PBT-6. Authors
used the following correlation for PBT-6 using a modi7ed
2135
Fig. 15. Comparison of the critical speed of suspension for PBT-4.
Fig. 16. Comparison of the critical speed of suspension for PBT-6.
Zwietering equation.

0:83 

NC D0:85 D 0:65C
= 2:28 exp : (8)
A T T
Fig. 16 compares Nc -values predicted by the Armenante cor-
relation and the present one for three values of D=T equal to
0.217, 0.261, and 0.348, which Armenante and Nagamine
used to suspend particles in a 29:2 cm tank. The character-
istics of the physical system used corresponds to A = 6:23.
Fig. 16 at least con7rms a marked feature of commonality
in the trends from both the predictions. Up to the end of
the 7rst region of the present study, the data of Armenante
and Nagamine seem to di2er only by a constant from the
present experiments. The authors have observed an extended
range of close bottom impeller operation from C=T = 0:02
to 0.25, while the present study observes it up to a value
of C=T = 0:1. The point to be stressed is that the axial :ow
impeller, PBT-6 operating away from the tank base starts
consuming extra energy despite the fact that no change in
:ow pattern occurs. This is, as mentioned elsewhere, due to
a larger amount of trapped particles in the stagnant zone be-
neath the impeller, which gets extended at higher impeller
positions beyond the 7rst region. Pursuing the possibility
2136 R. N. Sharma, A. A. Shaikh / Chemical Engineering Science 58 (2003) 2123 – 2140

that the two sets of curve in Fig. 16 di2er by a constant, an

interesting analysis was done. The Armenante-correlation
was modi7ed as follows:

1:15 

NC D0:85 D 0:65C
= 1:16 exp : (9)
A T T

Note that the constant was changed to 1.16 from 2.28 and
the exponent on D=T was changed to 1.15 from of 0.83. The
reasons for doing this exercise is as follows: First, a close
inspection of Fig. 16 suggest that the two sets of Nc -pro7les,
one for the present study and the other for Armenante et al.,
are approximately parallel and the di2erence seems to be Fig. 17. Comparison of the critical speed of suspension for PBT-6.
of a constant. It can be argued that the Nc -observations for
Armenante et al. could be higher since they used a straight
cornered :at bottom-tank and the particles are trapped in
the induced stagnant loop at the corners of the base. These
particles as, discussed earlier, need extra energy to be raked
out. The suspension de7nition for particles might have inad-
vertently been applied to these particles at the corner. This
results in higher Nc -values. For the modi7cation in the ex-
ponent value of D=T , reference is made to Fig. 7 where
Nc -decay with the impeller diameter is plotted from the
experiments of Armenante and Nagamine (1998) as also
from the present work. The three points of the former work
seem to lie parallel to the continuous curve representing the
present study giving rise to the possibility that a best 7t line
through the three points may have the same slope as that
of the continuous line. This was the basis to modify the ex- Fig. 18. Comparison of the critical power of suspension for PBT-6.
ponent on D=T as obtained by Armenante and Nagamine
(1998). Predictions based on Eq. (9), the modi7ed equation
of Armenante and Nagamine, are also shown in Fig. 16. The
matching is excellent except for the last point which records
lower Nc -value.
Chudacek (1986) also conducted suspension experiments
with PBT-6 in a 50-cm tank with a D=T =0:33. The suggested
correlations for speed and power are

Nc = 13:58(C=T )0:22 d50

0:55 −0:75
D [C=(1 − C)]0:08 ; (10)

for speed, and

Pc =V = 13:58(C=T )0:49 d50 D [C=(1 − C)]0:36

1:56 0:22
(11)

for power, where, d50 is the solids mean diameter in mm

and C is the mean solids concentration in volume percent.
Based on Eqs. (10) and (11), comparisons of the speed
and power for 6:1 vol% of the solids of particle size 0:29 mm
(A=12:51) are shown in Figs. 17 and 18. The critical speeds
match very well (Fig. 17) up to impeller clearance of 0.3.
The comparisons beyond this point, probably, are not as
meaningful since a change in :ow pattern would occur to
enter in to the third region, which the author seems to have
missed. Corresponding power comparisons (Fig. 18) are in
agreement in the 0.2– 0.35 range of impeller clearance be-
yond which, again due to change in the :ow pattern, the com-
parisons become redundant. The author has not observed the
Fig. 19. Comparison of the critical power of suspension for PBT-6.
7rst region where the impeller is supposed to be most eL-
cient and the suspension speed and power are constant at
a minimum value. However, at impeller positions close to
the tank base, Chudacek records higher suspension power.
As an overview, comparisons displayed in Figs. 17 and
18 seem to be satisfactory within acceptable limits of
error.
Fig. 19 shows Pc =B0:39 versus C=T as measured by
Gray (1987) and as predicted by the present study. The
 R. N. Sharma, A. A. Shaikh / Chemical Engineering Science 58 (2003) 2123 – 2140
Fig. 20. Comparison of S with D=T for PBT-6.
experimental curve due to Gray represent a common curve
for two PBT-6 impellers with diameters, 6.4 and 10:2 cm
and three solids weight percent, 1%, 2%, and 5%. Inter-
estingly, Gray reports a break in the curve at C=T = 0:35,
which according to him, corresponds to the change in the
:ow pattern from a single-eight to a double-eight :ow
pattern for C=T ¿ 0:35. This exactly is the 7nding of the
present study when a similar change of :ow pattern is ob-
served at C=T ¿ 0:35 which is the start of the third region.
It is also interesting to note that Gray reports a kind of in-
stability in the suspension but from a radial :ow impeller at
C=T ¿ 0:17 where it is conjectured that the :ow pattern os-
cillates between single eight and a double eight. Obviously,
these oscillations might have had a periodicity associated
with them. Present study distinctly notes this instability as
mentioned earlier. Gray’s curve underestimates the power
in comparisons to the present predictions. The discrepancy,
however, is not severe and the trends are similar. It should
be noted that for the same solids concentration, the sus-
pension power is expected to be a function of the impeller
diameter. Therefore, a common curve for two impellers and
3 wt% in Gray’s data remains unexplained. A close look at
the curves does suggest the existence of the three regions
as suggested by the present study.
The above three comparisons are direct since the sus-
pension speed or power were measured at varying impeller
clearances. Earlier, these variables were measured at a few
staggered values of the impeller clearance and the data
were compared as S-curves. This is yet another format of
comparisons when the e2ect of impeller clearance is not
explicitly incorporated in the Nc -correlation. As a typical
example, comparisons of S-values for PBT-6 are shown in
Fig. 20. Four curves from the present study are included in
2137
the 7gure; for the 7rst region, and for C=T equal to 0.167,
0.25, and 0.35. The curves of Armenante and Nagamine
(1998) are drawn for C=T = 0:25 and 0.35. The di2erence
between the present predictions and that of Armenante et al.
lies in the slopes; −0:83 for Armenante and Nagamine. and
−1:15 for the present predictions. This point has already
been discussed in detail elsewhere. Experimental points of
Raghava Rao et al. (1988) are shown for C=T = 0:33 as
obtained from Fig. 11 of their data. The points seem to un-
derestimate the S-values. The authors did obtain Nc -pro7les
with impeller clearance, but its e2ect was averaged out,
therefore, the 7nal correlation did not include explicitly the
in:uence of o2-bottom impeller clearance. Additionally,
the authors found that Nc ˙ D−1:16 . The exponent on D
is smaller than that observed in the present study. The two
points due to Chapman, Nienow, Cooke, and Middleton
(1983) are at C=T = 0:25 for D=T = 0:25 and for D=T = 0:5.
The 7rst point satisfactorily lies between the predicted lines
of C=T = 0:167 and 0.25 from the present study. The second
point expectedly lie above the curve for C=T = 0:25 since
the D=T in this case exceeds its limiting value. Same argu-
ment would cover the location of the two points cited by
Nienow (1985). The point due to Chudacek (1986) is lo-
cated at an acceptable position as also the point of Kawase,
Shimizu, Araki, and Shimodaira (1997). Eight points due
to Barresi and Baldi (1987) corresponding to eight values
of A and the two points of Rieger and Ditl (1994) fall much
below the relevant curve. Finally, it should be noted that
the continuous lines of present predictions in Fig. 20 have a
limited applicability up to C=T = 0:35. The extended range
beyond this value is academic.
The S-comparisons for PBT-4 are processed with a dif-
ferent format. The power law variation of S ˙ (D=T )−1:15
2138 R. N. Sharma, A. A. Shaikh / Chemical Engineering Science 58 (2003) 2123 – 2140
Fig. 21. Comparison of S with impeller clearance for PBT-4. Data from Chapman et al. (1983), Wong et al. (1987), Myers et al. (1994a,b), Barresi and
Baldi (1987), Buurman, Resoort, and Plaschkes (1986) and Myers and Fasano (1992).
as obtained in the present study is imposed on these points
and re-plotted as shown in Fig. 21. It can be seen that the
points fall satisfactorily on the curve representing the sec-
ond region, where Nc is dependent on the impeller clear-
ance. It is interesting to note that the point at C=T = 0:5
due to Wong, Wang, and Huang (1987) falls as expected
in the third region. The points corresponding to D=T = 0:5
have not been included the 7gure since, as expected, the
points would fall above the curve for the second region as
the values of D=T violate its critical limits. The way of rep-
resentation depicted in Fig. 21 is more appropriate once the
Nc -correlation incorporates in it explicitly the e2ect of im-
peller clearance. The S-curves were useful when the critical
suspension speed or the corresponding power were recorded
at a few staggered values of impeller clearances. The data
in the 7rst region are not available and the third region have
been put aside for further exploration. The gross features
of these comparisons do support the 7ndings of the present
study.
6. Conclusions
The present study has identi7ed the main factors, which
have been responsible for the variance in the predictions
of critical speed and critical power of solids suspension
in stirred tanks. Three regions have been identi7ed in the
pro7les of critical speed and critical power of suspension.
Scale-up should be handled separately for di2erent regions.
Any mix-up would lead to erroneous results. At close prox-
imity operation of the impellers, the critical impeller speed
or the corresponding power becomes constant. This is the
7rst experimental proof of the hypothesis that the ratio of
the local energy to average energy dissipated per unit vol-
ume is constant when the stirrer is very near to the tank
bottom. The study also proposes that the critical speed of
suspension varies as D−2 at constant T and as T 1:15 at
constant D. The proportionality, however, holds only up
to a limiting value of D=T , which approximately is equal
to 0.35.
For the determination of a true or ideal value of critical
suspension speed or power through experiments, it is imper-
ative to eliminate the induced secondary loops formed at the
corners of the tank base periphery. In the present study a per-
manent 7llet was added at corners whenever, round-cornered
vessels were not available. Final correlations for critical
speed of suspension and power were developed for the 7rst
and second regions incorporating the e2ect of o2-bottom
clearance explicitly. Whatever few data are available seem to
support the 7ndings of the present work. Finally, the present
study is a signi7cant step forward in developing a universal
correlation.
Notation
A physical characteristics of the particulate solids, de-
7ned by Eq. (5)
B weight percentage, (wt: of solids=wt: o:iquid) ×
100
d average particle size, cm
D impeller diameter, cm
g gravitational constant, cm=s2
Nc critical speed of impeller for solids suspension, rps
or rpm as the case may be
 R. N. Sharma, A. A. Shaikh / Chemical Engineering Science 58 (2003) 2123 – 2140
Pc power drawn by the impeller at Nc , W
S zwietering correlation parameter de7ned by Eq.
(6), dimensionless
Sp correlation parameter de7ned by Eq. (7), dimen-
sionless
T tank diameter,
 cm
1=6
Z f(b =) = (
s −
l
l )g Td
Nc P0 D5=3
, where P0 is the power
number of the impeller
Greek letters
 kinematic viscosity, cm2 =s
l density of liquid, g=cm3
s density of solid, g=cm3
U
s −
l Gray, J. B., & Oldshue, J. Y. (1986). Agitation of particulate solid–liquid
Acknowledgements
The authors wish to gratefully acknowledge the sup-
port provided by the King Fahd University of Petroleum
and Minerals, Saudi Arabia. Thanks are also due to Mr.
Sameenn A. Zaidi, Lecturer, KFUPM for carefully check-
ing the manuscript, and making and editing many 7gures.
R.N. Sharma expresses his thanks to Mr. Dick Howk for
his valuable contribution in a part of the experimental pro-
gram and to Mr. J. L. Stanton for his continued interest
and encouragement to let that part take shape at Lightnin,
Rochester, NY.
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