Adamson University

College of Engineering
Chemical Engineering Department

Plate and Frame Filtration

Experiment no. 7

Submitted by:
Chua, Jodessa Mae T. - 200510881
Cudiamat, James Robin R.- 200510906
De Vera, Lawrence E.- 200510896
Dizon, Franz Aron C.- 200510917
Ibarra, Mark Gerald L.- 200512092

Submitted to:
Engr. Jerry G. Olay

October 4, 2010
ABSTRACT

Filtration is the unit operation carried to separate solid materials from a liquid
by forcing the slurry through a porous medium that retains the solid. The solids are
removed from the liquid and remain on the porous filtering medium as a cake. The
filtrate volume was found out to be in direct relationship with time on the early part of
the process but on the latter, it was found out to be decreasing relative to filtration
time.

INTRODUCTION

Filter presses are sometimes called "Plate-and-Frame Filters" which describes the
style of filters developed from the 1800's onwards. The majority of today's filters are
more correctly called "Membrane Plate Filters".

Many processes in the food, chemical or pharmaceutical industries make products

that are liquid-solid suspensions or slurries. These mixtures are a little like a runny
mud or milk-shake. The solids in them do not dissolve in the liquid but are carried
along in it. Filter presses separate the solids from the liquids so that the useful part
can be processed or packaged.

Filter presses generally work in a "batch" manner. They are loaded with slurry before
completing a filtering cycle and producing a batch of solid filtered material, called the
filter "cake". The solid is removed, the press re-loaded with slurry and the batch
cycle repeated.

A filter press uses increased pressure to maximize the rate of filtration and produce a
final solid with low water content. This is more efficient than filtration using a funnel
and paper which utilizes the low pressure caused by the weight of liquid above the
filter paper.
THEORETICAL BACKGROUND

In another class of mechanical separations, placing a screen in the flow through which they
cannot pass imposes virtually total restraint on the particles above a given size. The fluid in
this case is subject to a force that moves it past the retained particles. This is called
filtration. The particles suspended in the fluid, which will not pass through the apertures, are
retained and build up into what is called a filter cake. Sometimes it is the fluid, the filtrate,
that is the product, in other cases the filter cake.

The fine apertures necessary for filtration are provided by fabric filter cloths, by meshes and
screens of plastics or metals, or by beds of solid particles. In some cases, a thin preliminary
coat of cake, or of other fine particles, is put on the cloth prior to the main filtration process.
This preliminary coating is put on in order to have sufficiently fine pores on the filter and it is
known as a pre-coat.

The analysis of filtration is largely a question of studying the flow system. The fluid passes
through the filter medium, which offers resistance to its passage, under the influence of a
force which is the pressure differential across the filter. Thus, we can write the familiar
equation:
rate of filtration = driving force/resistance

Resistance arises from the filter cloth, mesh, or bed, and to this is added the resistance of
the filter cake as it accumulates. The filter-cake resistance is obtained by multiplying the
specific resistance of the filter cake, that is its resistance per unit thickness, by the
thickness of the cake. The resistances of the filter material and pre-coat are combined into
a single resistance called the filter resistance. It is convenient to express the filter
resistance in terms of a fictitious thickness of filter cake. This thickness is multiplied by the
specific resistance of the filter cake to give the filter resistance. Thus the overall equation
giving the volumetric rate of flow dV/dt is:

dV/dt = (ADP)/R

As the total resistance is proportional to the viscosity of the fluid, we can write:

R = mr(Lc + L)

where R is the resistance to flow through the filter, m is the viscosity of the fluid, r is the
specific resistance of the filter cake, Lc is the thickness of the filter cake and L is the
fictitious equivalent thickness of the filter cloth and pre-coat, A is the filter area, and DP is
the pressure drop across the filter.

If the rate of flow of the liquid and its solid content are known and assuming that all solids
are retained on the filter, the thickness of the filter cake can be expressed by:

Lc = wV/A

where w is the fractional solid content per unit volume of liquid, V is the volume of fluid that
has passed through the filter and A is the area of filter surface on which the cake forms.

The resistance can then be written

R = mr[w(V/A) + L) (1.1)

and the equation for flow through the filter, under the driving force of the pressure drop is
then:

dV/dt = ADP/mr[w(V/A) + L] (1.2)

Equation (1.2) may be regarded as the fundamental equation for filtration. It expresses the
rate of filtration in terms of quantities that can be measured, found from tables, or in some
cases estimated. It can be used to predict the performance of large-scale filters on the
basis of laboratory or pilot scale tests. Two applications of eqn. (1.2) are filtration at a
constant flow rate and filtration under constant pressure.

Constant-rate Filtration

In the early stages of a filtration cycle, it frequently happens that the filter resistance is large
relative to the resistance of the filter cake because the cake is thin. Under these
circumstances, the resistance offered to the flow is virtually constant and so filtration
proceeds at a more or less constant rate. Equation (1.2) can then be integrated to give the
quantity of liquid passed through the filter in a given time. The terms on the right-hand side
of eqn.(1.2) are constant so that integration is very simple:

dV/Adt = V/At = DP/mr[w(V/A) + L]

or DP = V/At x mr[w(V/A) + L] (1.3)

From eqn. (1.3) the pressure drop required for any desired flow rate can be found. Also, if a
series of runs is carried out under different pressures, the results can be used to determine
the resistance of the filter cake.

Constant-pressure Filtration

Once the initial cake has been built up, and this is true of the greater part of many practical
filtration operations, flow occurs under a constant-pressure differential. Under these
conditions, the term DP in eqn. (1.2) is constant and so

mr[w(V/A) + L]dV = ADPdt

and integration from V = 0 at t = 0, to V = V at t = t

mr[w(V2/2A) + LV] = ADPt and rewriting this

tA/V = [mrw/2DP] x (V/A) + mrL/DP

t / (V/A) = [mrw/2DP] x (V/A) + mrL/DP (1.4)

Equation (1.4) is useful because it covers a situation that is frequently found in a practical
filtration plant. It can be used to predict the performance of filtration plant on the basis of
experimental results. If a test is carried out using constant pressure, collecting and
measuring the filtrate at measured time intervals, a filtration graph can be plotted of t/(V/A)
against (V/A) and from the statement of eqn. (1.4) it can be seen that this graph should be a
straight line. The slope of this line will correspond to mrw/2DP and the intercept on the t/
(V/A) axis will give the value of mrL/DP. Since, in general, m, w, DP and A are known or
can be measured, the values of the slope and intercept on this graph enable L and r to be
calculated.
PROCEDURE

• Prepare 10% by weight slurry of Kaolin and water.

• Stir well to dissolve disperse particles and to homogenize the slurry.
• Put the slurry into the feed tank. Stir to homogenize and to prevent settling of
Kaolin.
• Pump the Kaolin slurry into the filter press.
• Record the feed inlet pressure.
• Collect the filtrates for a specific time ranges and determine the volume.
• After the filtration period, dismantle the plate and wash off the particles with
water. After the parts have dried, assemble them back into the filter press.
 RESULT

KAOLIN + WATER

Kaolin = 1000g

Water = 9L

%wt = 10

Feed Rate = 247.8 cm3/s

Time Range Filtration Pressure Filtrate Volume Filtration Rate

(seconds) (psig) (liters) (liters/second)
0-20 0 3.575 0.179
21-40 0 1.1 0.055
Table 1

Graph 1
Frame Filter Filter + Wet Filter + Dry Cake
Moisture Content
No. Weight Cake Cake Thickness
grams grams grams mm %
1 90.5 90.5
2 89.7 179.7 118.7 1.5 33.95
3 91.0 185.1 134.5 2.0 27.34
4 91.2 150.0 109.0 0.6 27.33
5 90.7 174.8 125.2 1.8 28.38
6 89.3 168.8 110.4 1.4 34.61
7 88.0 183.9 115.0 3.4 37.47
8 91.3 183.0 117.7 1.7 35.68
9 89.9 166.7 107.5 1.5 35.51
10 89.9 186.0 118.5 1.6 36.29
11 93.1 193.4 122.0 2.5 36.92
12 90.9 151.7 102.8 2.5 32.23
Table 2

Capacity of the Filter Press = Filter + Wet Cake Filter Weight

Moisture Content = Filter + Wet Cake-Filter + Dry CakeFilter + Wet Cake

Filtration Rate = Filtrate VolumeTime

CaO + H2O

CaO = 1000g

Water = 9L

%Wt. = 10

Feed Rate: 152.32 cm3/s

Filtration Filtration Filtration

Time Range
Pressure Volume Rate
s psig L L/s
0-5 0 0.34 0.108
6 - 10 0 0.59 0.117
11 - 15 0 1.80 0.360
16 - 20 0 0.56 0.112
21 - 25 0 0.50 0.100
26 - 30 0 1.20 0.240
31 - 35 0 0.35 0.070
36 - 40 0 0.07 0.014
41 - 45 0 0.07 0.010
46 - 50 0 0.05 0.008
51 - 55 0 0.04 0.008
56 - 60 0 0.04 0.006
61 - 65 0 0.03 0.004
66 - 70 0 0.02 0.004
Table 3

Graph 2

Frame Filter + Wet Cake Cake Filter Moisture

 Number Cake Thickness Weight Content
grams grams mm grams %
1 123.9 0.2 0.10 90.5 26.80
2 156.1 18.8 0.50 89.7 30.49
3 171.1 30.6 1.00 91.0 28.93
4 183.4 39.7 1.50 91.2 28.63
5 187.6 44.8 1.50 90.7 27.77
6 183.1 45.6 1.75 89.3 26.32
7 196.3 52.6 2.00 88.0 28.37
8 193.7 47.5 1.50 91.3 28.34
9 173.3 51.0 2.25 89.9 18.70
10 177.4 32.2 1.50 89.9 31.17
11 136.2 34.3 1.50 93.1 6.46
12 90.9

DISCUSSION OF RESULT

During filtration, the only variables subject to the control of the operator are
the pressure drop, filtrate volume, and time. Theoretically, the flow rate should be
directly proportional to the pressure differential but we were not able to prove that
because our equipment is working at atmospheric condition.

It is inversely proportional to the filtrate and the amount of cake. As the

filtration time increases, the filtration rate decreases because the cake becomes
thicker and it increases the specific cake resistance which slows down the flow.

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

A typical plate and frame filter press contains a slurry tank, filtrate outlet
sampling, filtrate tank, wash water tank, conveyor, motor pump, closing wheel,
excess filtrate bin, clear filtrate inlet and a pressure gauge. From the experiment, the
total filtration time summed to 3 hours which include the filtration itself, the dumping
and washing. The filtrate volume was found out to be in direct relationship with time
on the early part of the process but on the latter, it was found out to be decreasing
relative to filtration time. The pressure gauge should be fixed so that the effect of
pressure on the particle size could be properly evaluated.

Equipment Setup
 Water Line

Steam Line

LITERATURE CITED
 Unit Operations of Chemical Engineering, W.L. Smith, J.C. Smith, P. Harriot,
5th ed., McGraw-Hill Inc.