Residence time distribution analysis from a continuous couette flow device around critical taylor number

This paper presents an experimental study of residence time distribution (RTD) analysis by pulse response technique in a continuous Couette flow device with rotating inner cylinder and stationary outer cylinder. Two kinds of experimental tests using pulses of tracer dye solution and particles resulting from a fast precipitation were performed in the region near the critical Taylor number characterizing boundary between laminar and laminar vortex flow. For most experiments performed in laminar and laminar vortex flow regime around the critical Taylor number over the ranges 0 < T a < 120 and 0 < R e < 5.5 the normalized response can be described by a dispersion model. The results of the critical Taylor number as characterized by the minimum dispersion number appear consistent with both theoretical predictions and other empirical observations.