In this study, the effect of microfluidic microbubbles on overall gas-liquid mass transfer (CO 2 dissolution and O 2 removal) was investigated under five different flow rates. The effect of different liquid substrate on CO 2 mass transfer properties was also tested. The results showed that the K L a can be enhanced by either increasing the dosing flowrate or reducing the bubble size; however, increasing the flow rate to achieve a higher K L a would ultimately lower the CO 2 capture efficiency. In order to achieve both higher CO 2 mass transfer rate and capture efficiency, reducing bubble size (e.g. using microbubbles) has been proved more promising than increasing flow rate. Microbubble dosing with 5% CO 2 gas showed improved K L a by 30% -100% across different flow rates, compared to fine-bubble dosing. In the real algal culture medium, there appears to be two distinct stages in terms of K L a, divided by the pH of 8.4.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.