Mathematical Model of a Foam Fractionator Used in Aquaculture

Water recirculating systems are becoming more prevalent as wild fish supplies and fresh water sources become increasingly scarce. As water recirculating rates increase, the accumulation of fine and dissolved solids can degrade water quality and fish productivity. Foam fractionators have been used with some success to remove these solids, although an understanding of how to best operate such units is currently lacking. The foam enrichment process occurs as bubbles travel from the bottom of a fractionator column to the top of the water column. Factors affecting bubble enrichment include several operating or design parameters under operator control or influence, e.g, water pH, gas bubble size, airflow rates, and fractionator geometry. Predictive relationships were developed to describe these effects and are considered generally applicable to predict the foam enrichment process. Predicting the actual operation of a specific foam fractionator requires additional mathematical expressions to model the foam collection process and removal from the top of the water column. Here, the geometric characteristics and type of foam removal device or geometry of placement become important. Performance data in the literature was used in coajunction with a mathematical model that predicted foam enrichment to model the foam collection process for a typical foam fractionator design. This overall model can be used for foam fractionators that employ glass bonded air diffusers with an inverted funnel at the top of the fractionator column to concentrate and remove the foam being produced. An example problem is given to demonstrate the utility of the mathematical models. Since foam fractionators are typified by erratic performance, the mathematid models presented must be used with some caution and only viewed as providing estimates of average fractionator performance.