Oxygen Transfer Efficiency of the Aquatector and Application to Warmwater Fish Culture

Abstract

Abstract Oxygen transfer rates and efficiencies were determined for a model 32/110 Aquatector – a commercially available device that mixes water and oxygen under pressure, shears the oxygen into microbubbles, and discharges the mixture – at three pressures and six oxygen flows. Standard oxygen transfer rates peaked at 2.87 g/min with 82.8% efficiency at 5.80 kPa, at 1.60 g/min with 33.6% efficiency at 2.90 kPa, and at 1.22 g/min with 21% efficiency at 1.45 kPa. Oxygen transfer efficiency was correlated positively with pressure and negatively with oxygen flow. The Aquatector was capable of saturating deoxygenated water at the rate of about 340 L/ min at 21°C and 5.80 kPa with 82.8% efficiency of oxygen used. Although the total mass transfer of oxygen from the 32/110 Aquatector was too low to be effective in providing emergency aeration in large volumes of water, such as those in warmwater ponds, larger models (40/160 or 50!225) might be practical.