Boundary and inertia effects on convective mass transfer in porous media

Abstract The present work consists of a numerical and experimental investigation of the effects of the presence of a solid boundary and inertial forces on mass transfer in porous media. Particular emphasis is placed on mass transfer through the porous medium near an impermeable boundary. The local volume-averaging technique has been used to establish the governing equations. The numerical solution of the governing equations is used to investigate the mass concentration field inside a porous medium close to an impermeable boundary. In conjunction with the numerical solution, a transient mass transfer experiment has been conducted to demonstrate the boundary and inertia effects on mass transfer. This is accomplished by measuring the time and space-averaged mass flux through a porous medium. The results clearly indicate the presence of these effects on mass transfer through porous media.