Sonoprocessing: From Concepts to Large-Scale Reactors

Abstract

Intensification of ultrasonic processes for diversified applications, including environmental remediation, extractions, food processes, and synthesis of materials, has received attention from the scientific community and industry. The mechanistic pathways involved in intensification of ultrasonic processes that include the ultrasonic generation of cavitation bubbles, radical formation upon their collapse, and the possibility of fine-tuning operating parameters for specific applications are all well documented in the literature. However, the scale-up of ultrasonic processes with large-scale sonochemical reactors for industrial applications remains a challenge. In this context, this review provides a complete overview of the current understanding of the role of operating parameters and reactor configuration on the sonochemical processes. Experimental and theoretical techniques to characterize the intensity and distribution of cavitation activity within sonoreactors are compared. Classes of laboratory and large-scale sonoreactors are reviewed, highlighting recent advances in batch and flow-through reactors. Finally, examples of large-scale sonoprocessing applications have been reviewed, discussing the major scale-up and sustainability challenges.

Ultrasonic-assisted ozone degradation of organic pollutants in industrial sulfuric acid

“…The effective calorimetric power ( ) [39] , [40] , [41] was used to quantify the energy transfer efficiency of the sonochemical reactor in our work. 3 L of black concentrated sulfuric acid (equivalent to a sulfuric acid mass of 5.52 kg) was directly sonicated with an ultrasonic power density of 200 W·L −1 (equivalent to an ultrasonic power of 600 W) without any cooling for 10 min.…”

Deagglomeration of DNA nanomedicine carriers using controlled ultrasonication

“…Achieving high levels of cavitation power through multi-transducer vessels, particularly where geometrical focusing allows lower individual transducer operating levels, produces robust and repeatable processing capabilities, and can also generate cavitation over large liquid volumes. For industrial manufacturing, the sonication process needs to be applied and monitored consistently to large volume batches to enable upscaling of production, and this can be achieved using multi-transducer sonication cells [19] , [26] , [39] of the type considered here, designed and configured for eventually achieving flow-based processing. Having control over the sonication dose by removing potential sources of set-up uncertainty means a higher reproducibility and consistency between processed batches can be attained.…”

Ultrasound waves at the service of photocatalysis: From sonochemical synthesis to ultrasound-assisted and piezo-enhanced photocatalysis

“…The main limit of ultrasound-assisted synthetic approaches lies in their scalability. Most studies report batch syntheses of small amounts of photocatalysts and sonoprocessing is notoriously dependent on reactor geometry [8]. In this respect, Zhu et al [24] reported a continuous flow reactor (Fig.…”

“…1a). However, these phenomena are primarily dependent on experimental parameters like ultrasound frequency and power, medium properties, operating conditions, and reactor geometry [8]. For instance, ultrasound waves with low frequency (20−80 kHz) cause mainly physical effects, whereas chemical effects dominate at high frequencies (150−2000 kHz).…”