Analysis of Impingement Mixing-Reaction Data: Use of a Lamellar Model To Generate Fluid Mixing Information

Central to reaction injection molding (RIM) is the mixing by impingement of reacting monomer streams. Mixing occurs at relatively low Reynolds numbers, φ(10²); however, little theoretical or experimental guidance exists for this case. Most previous studies focused on fast reactions in turbulent flows with little attention given to laminar or transitional flows. In this work, mixing is studied using simple chemical reactions with known kinetics. The data collected are mixing-dependent selectivity versus Reynolds number from competitive-consecutive azo-coupling reactions at complete conversion. Selectivity bounds on the experimental data points are developed to account for incomplete conversion of the limiting reactant to measurable products. Average fluid mixing information is backed out by matching solutions of a lamellar model to one set of experimental data. A sensitivity analysis is presented.