Effect of Sieve Plate Wettability on the Hydrodynamic Performance of the Extraction Column

To investigate the effect of sieve plate wettability on the hydrodynamic performance of extraction column, sieve plates with different surface wettability were fabricated via surface modification. The results demonstrate that as the wettability of the sieve plates for the dispersed phase increases, their ability to promote coalescence of dispersed phase droplets is enhanced. This strengthening effect also improves the suppression of entrainment and backmixing, increases the residence time of the dispersed phase droplets, and raises the dispersed phase holdup. Consequently, the throughput of the extraction column and the maximum allowable stirring speed also increase. Furthermore, the promoting effect of sieve plate wettability on droplet coalescence becomes more pronounced in systems with higher interfacial tension. To achieve superior mass transfer performance, it is recommended to use sieve plates with moderate to good wettability to the dispersed phase for systems with low interfacial tension, while sieve plates with poor wettability are preferable for systems with high interfacial tension.