Nye tray vs sieve tray: A comparison based on computational fluid dynamics and tray efficiency

Abstract

Nye and sieve trays were hydrodynamically simulated and compared. The simulations were performed in a Eulerian-Eulerian framework under unsteady (transient) conditions at industrial scale. Conducted on an air-water system, the simulations included three dimensions and two phases. The velocity distribution across the tray, the height of clear liquid, the froth height, and the pressure drop were investigated and compared with experimental data. Péclet number was calculated using hydrodynamic and geometric parameters. The tray efficiencies were also predicted to further compare the two trays. The results showed that the liquid flow was steadier on the Nye tray rather than the sieve tray, possibly because of the special structure of the liquid and gas inlets for the Nye tray.

Nye Tray Versus Sieve Tray: Experimental Study on Hydrodynamic Parameters

“…It sounds like that, for high gas and liquid rates, the Nye tray is more suitable and performs better compared to the sieve tray. The clear liquid height and the froth height on the Nye tray are lower than the mentioned parameters on the sieve tray, and this leads to a lower liquid residence time on the Nye tray [23]. In general, designs of Nye trays aimed to find a suitable alternative to conventional trays, such as sieve and valve trays, to be able to increase the tray capacity without increasing the tower diameter or the distance between trays.…”

“…In addition, the CFD results were in good agreement with the gained experimental results. Abbasnia et al [23] utilized a CFD simulation for a Nye tray and the same sieve tray to study a couple of significant hydrodynamic parameters, such as the velocity distribution on the trays, the clear liquid height, the froth height, and the pressure drop. The results obtained for the sieve tray were compared with experimental data, and the results of the Nye tray were validated by experimental correlations.…”

CFD study on flow characteristics of sieve tray columns with circular downcomers

“…[13] Subsequently, a large number of studies have further verified and developed it. [26] For the gas phase or liquid phase on the tray, the governing equations are as follows [18] :…”