Rheological behaviour modelling of phosphoric acid produced from Moroccan phosphate rocks

ABSTRACT

Rheological behaviour of the industrial phosphoric acid is considered as one if not the most important factor that affects the performance and profitability of phosphoric acid production in wet process facilities. This work is focused on studying and modelling the rheological behaviour of phosphoric acid produced from the Moroccan sedimentary phosphate rocks. The phosphoric acid is produced at different P₂O₅ concentrations, ranging from 18% P₂O₅ up to 54% P₂O₅. The rheograms experimentally elaborated under a range of temperature from 22°C to 80°C, allowed us to determine the rheological behaviours and the appropriate models for these acids. The recorded results indicate that the Herschel–Bulkley model fits all the acids perfectly under the different conditions, with regression coefficient R² greater than 99.3% and mean absolute error of less than 0.142. Furthermore, we managed to develop a mathematical model that describes the apparent viscosity of this acid in terms of P₂O₅ concentration and temperature. The model obtained presents a regression coefficient of 79.26% and a mean absolute error of 4.111.

GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT

KEYWORDS:

• Phosphoric acid
• phosphate
• rheology
• viscosity
• modelling

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).