Study of Cutting-Oil Emulsion Separation by Coalescer Process in Terms of Medium Characteristics and Bed Packing

Abstract

This work aimed to consider the effects of media shape, size, and packing on the coalescer efficiency. Different shaped polypropylene was applied as media for separating the cutting-oil emulsion. The results exhibited that polypropylene media can separate the emulsion with the highest efficiency of 43% at the optimal condition. The dissimilar shape provided the difference in the equivalent size and the packing by means of porosity, permeability, and pore uniformity. Furthermore, the approach for determining application possibility of materials as coalescer media was proposed. Wetting properties and bed permeability were suggested as key factors for media selection and coalescer process design.

Keywords:

• cutting-oil emulsion
• coalescer
• media shape
• media size
• packing behavior