Mass Transfer Characteristics Research Articles

Research on heat and mass transfer characteristics of a counterflow wet cooling tower using a new type of straight wave packing

In this paper, a new type of straight wave packing is developed for the purpose of improving the heat and mass transfer characteristics of counterflow wet cooling towers. Experimental studies and numerical simulations are carried out to explore the effects of inlet air velocity, water drenching density, gas-liquid ratio and packing height on the heat and mass transfer characteristics of cooling towers. According to research, the novel packing's cooling efficiency increased by 14.4% when compared to the conventional straight wave packing. This is a more substantial effect, and it offers a new plan for the cooling tower's heat transfer that can direct engineering practice. Combined with the analysis of the actual tower operating conditions, it is found that the higher the height of the packing, the easier it is to meet the cooling task, and the smaller the reasonable gas-liquid ratio and air volume required, the maximum air volume can be saved by 30%.

Mass transfer parameters and quality characteristics of aonla slices under refractance window drying

This study investigates the effects of refractance window (RW) drying process parameters on mass transfer and quality characteristics of dried aonla slices. RW drying of aonla slices was carried out at three levels of water temperature (75, 82 and 90 °C) and slice thickness (2, 4 and 6 mm). In terms of quality characterization, the total phenolic content, ascorbic acid content, and browning index were determined. Higher retention of ascorbic acid (64.49 ± 0.34%) and phenolic content (37.84 ± 0.08 mg GAE/g dry matter) was found at 90 and 82 °C water temperature, respectively with inconsequential variation in browning index. Mass transfer parameters such as Biot number, effective moisture diffusivity and mass transfer coefficient were estimated using Dincer and Dost model. Effective moisture diffusivity during drying varied from 4.27 × 10−10 to 1.09 × 10−09 m2s−1 and Biot number was observed to be in the range of 0.268 to 8.666 for different drying conditions. XRD pattern suggested that RW dried aonla slices had semi-crystalline structure. The changes in crystalline structure to amorphous was pronounced more at high water temperature. It was also revealed by the disintegration of cell wall/membrane and connecting surfaces, which resulted into smooth and flaky microstructures with sharp edges. The gamut of crystallite size was obtained as 49.12 ± 0.26 to 99.12 ± 1.19 nm. The presence of bound water after completion of drying was represented by FTIR peaks centered around 3577 cm−1. The infrared spectroscopy of RW dried aonla postulated that peak intensity of absorption bands negligibly changed with varying processing conditions, but minor peak shift was observed. This study elucidates the suitability of RW drying for retention of heat-sensitive compounds in food produce such as aonla with better quality retention and morphological characteristics.

Decoding the performance of module-scale interfacial desalination from a thermodynamic perspective

Passive solar-driven interfacial evaporation (PSDIE) is a highly efficient desalination technology that localizes heating at the evaporation surface, resulting in low heat loss and high evaporation rates. While many studies have focused on improving solar absorber performance, few have systematically analyzed the PSDIE thermodynamics. In this study, we propose a novel PSDIE distiller that effectively avoids salt accumulation. A module-scale model is developed that captures the mass and heat transfer characteristics of the distiller, and comprehensive thermodynamic analysis is performed. Our results show that the relative thickness between the evaporation and condensation layers, namely α, is a critical design parameter that optimizes process performance. An evaporation restricted region (α>5) and a condensation restricted region (α<5) can be identified. We also investigate the influence of hydrophobic membrane properties, finding that their effects depend on α. Our analysis demonstrates that inlet salinity of seawater feed has a detrimental effect on the water productivity of the distiller, while distiller with larger α tends to be more salt tolerable. Finally, we propose a design for a multistage distiller system and evaluate its water production performance, the results show that additional evaporation stages are beneficial to the distiller with smaller α.

Hydrophobic air pollutants removal at one second gas contact in a multi-channel capillary bioreactor

Biological processes are increasingly applied for gas purification as a sustainable and economical alternative to conventional physical-chemical processes (chemical absorption, incineration, adsorption). Although biological gas treatment is accepted as an economical, safe, and reliable air pollution control technology, it faces important limitations when applied for the treatment of poorly water-soluble compounds due to mass transfer limitations. A twenty-five capillary channels bioreactor was studied to characterize mass transfer coefficients and the removal of hydrophobic air pollutants under segmented gas-liquid flow pattern. The removal efficiency of hexane, toluene and α-pinene vapors reached values up to about 75%, 99% and 75%, respectively, at a gas contact time of less than 1 s, which is at least one, but closer to two orders of magnitude shorter than conventional biological gas purification systems. The bioreactor displayed stable operation for 100 days and was robust against common upsets, which opens the new opportunities for expanding the application field of biological processes for air pollution control and the mitigation of greenhouse gases in dilute air streams. SynopsisThis study breaks through existing barriers of gas treating biotechnologies which allows expansion of the application field of more sustainable processes for air pollution control.

Time-Dependent Features of Mass Transfer and Transmembrane Potential in Erythrocytes During Equilibration in Cryoprotective Solutions

On the basis of the developed physical and mathematical model of mass transfer, which takes into account the transmembrane transfer of non-electrolytes, basic ions and the associated changes in the transmembrane potential, the redistribution of osmotically active substances during equilibration of erythrocytes in cryoprotective solutions was investigated. Time parameters of changes in concentrations of osmotically active substances inside and outside cells, as well as transmembrane electric potential, were calculated. It is shown that during the exposure of human erythrocytes to 1M solutions of glycerol, 1,2-propanediol (1,2-PD) and dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO), the sign of their transmembrane electric potential changes three times, and in solutions of ethylene glycol (EG) and of acetamide (AA) – once. The analysis of the obtained results showed that the most acceptable for further cryopreservation from the point of view of erythrocytes reaching a state close to equilibrium in a 1M solution of glycerol was their equilibration for 5.5 min, and in solutions of DMSO, AA, EG and 1,2-PD with the same concentration – 1 min. At the same time, the cells remain somewhat dehydrated (by 5.5–7.5%), and the concentrations of cryoprotectants inside erythrocytes change insignificantly during longer exposure. The indicated degree of dehydration does not affect cell viability, but reduces the likelihood of intracellular ice formation during subsequent freezing.

Numerical analysis of SO2 removal characteristics in industrial flue gas desulfurization reactor by spray drying adsorption

The flue gas desulfurization reactor by spray drying adsorption plays a crucial role in the process of gas purification. This study employed the multi-phase particle-in-cell method to accurately model the three-dimensional motion of particles of different sizes in the flue gas desulfurization reactor. The double-film theory was utilized to simulate the heat and mass transfer processes of desulfurization slurry droplets. Additionally, this study conducted a comprehensive analysis of various factors affecting gas-solid flow and mass transfer processes, including flue gas inlet velocity and temperature, Ca/S molar ratio, slurry particle size, and slurry temperature. The results demonstrate that the simulated and experimental results are in good agreement, validating the reliability of the developed model. The axial mass fluxes of gas and particles exhibit contrasting distributions in the central part and near the wall, with the turbulent viscosity being particularly pronounced in the top nozzle region. The inlet velocity of flue gas has a limited effect on the axial mass flux of particles, whereas the Ca/S molar ratio exerts a more significant influence. Furthermore, the Ca/S molar ratio has a substantial impact on the spatial distribution of flue gas temperature. The inlet velocity of flue gas and slurry particle size are negatively and positively correlated with particle residence time, respectively. Based on the mass transfer characteristics, the reactor interior can be divided into three zones: a high-efficiency desulfurization zone, a low-efficiency desulfurization zone, and a partial desulfurization zone. For the investigated operating conditions, the desulfurization efficiency is most strongly influenced by the slurry particle size, followed by the flue gas inlet velocity, Ca/S molar ratio, flue gas inlet temperature, and slurry temperature.

Numerical study on the interfacial heat and mass transfer characteristics of bubble direct contact condensation with the effect of non-condensable gas

Bubble condensation is one of the fundamental issues in the direct contact condensation, which is also affected significantly by the existence of non-condensable gas. In this study, a further investigation is carried out on air-steam bubble condensation with the Proportion Integration Differentiation (PID) control model which adjusts the mass transfer coefficient of Lee model in each time step by comparing the parameters obtained in the simulation with the ones calculated based on the empirical correlations originated from the experiments. Furthermore, species transport equations are employed to obtain the local mass fractions of steam and air. The proposed simulation schema is verified by the existing experimental data.Results show that the air-steam bubble condensation can be divided into initial and stable stages. The mass transfer coefficient used in Lee model can be regarded as linear growth over time at each stage, but with different slopes. The non-condensable gas can weaken the heat and mass transfer of condensation, but stabilize the bubble deformation. The present study also reveals the influences of subcooling and initial bubble diameter on the air-steam bubble condensation, which is expected to be instructive for better understanding the effect of non-condensable gas on the interfacial characteristics of bubble condensation in subcooled water.

Favorable trade-off between heat transfer and pressure drop in 3D printed baffled logpile catalyst structures

Additive manufacturing has the potential to unlock a large degree of geometric freedom in the shaping of catalytic material, thereby providing new possibilities to optimize catalyst holdup, pressure drop and heat and mass transfer characteristics. In this modelling study, baffled logpile structures are proposed as a promising candidate to exploit this potential, by shaping the catalytic material as a static mixer, generating cross-flow. An OpenFOAM Computational Fluid Dynamics study was performed on various 2D structure designs to map the trade-off between heat transfer, pressure drop and residence time distribution as a function of the design, length and gap spacing of the baffle. It is observed that structures with the longest baffles provide optimal heat transfer performance, and that the baffle gap spacing can be used to tailor the trade-off between heat transfer and pressure drop. In comparison to a packed bed filled with spherical particles, the novel structures offer a heat transfer rate four to six times as high at the same pressure drop. Whilst full 3D simulations, validated by experiments, remain to complete the analysis, the current work illustrates the potential of this novel class of structured catalyst materials for intensified chemical reactors.

SORET AND DUFOUR EFFECTS IN A THREE-DIMENSIONAL MHD FLOW PAST A SEMI-INFINITE UNIFORMLY MOVING VERTICAL PLATE WITH CONSTANT HEAT FLUX

In this paper, we have considered the three-dimensional MHD flow past a semi-infinite uniformly moving porous plate with Soret and Dufour effects. The plate is subjected to a sinu-soidal suction velocity and constant heat flux. It is assumed that a uniform magnetic field is applied normal to the plate and directed into the fluid region. But the induced magnetic field is neglected in the study on the assumption that the magnetic Reynolds number is very small. The analytic solutions are obtained by adopting the method of perturbation technique. The influence of magnetic field parameter, thermal diffusion and diffusion-thermo effects on the flow, heat and mass transfer characteristics are mainly focused on the study. It is found from our study that fluid velocity increases under the influence of Soret and Dufour effects.

Micro-interface enhanced mass transfer sodium carbonate absorption carbon dioxide reaction

Micro-interface intensified reactor (MIR) can be applied in series/parallel in the absorption of CO2 in industrial gases by Na2CO3 due to the ability to produce large numbers of stable microbubbles. This work focuses on the variation pattern of mass transfer characteristics parameters of the reaction gas in Na2CO3 solution under the influence of different solution properties and operating parameters in the reaction of CO2 absorption by Na2CO3. The mass transfer characteristics parameters include bubble Sauter mean diameter, gas holdup, interfacial area, liquid side mass transfer coefficient, and liquid side volume mass transfer coefficient kLa. The solution properties and operating parameters include Na2CO3 concentration (0.05–2.0 mol·L−1), superficial gas velocity (0.00221–0.01989 m·s−1), superficial liquid velocity (0.00332–0.02984 m·s−1), and ionic strength (1.42456–1.59588 mol·kg−1). And volumetric mass transfer coefficients kLa and superficial reaction rates r of the MIR and the bubble column reactor are compared in the reaction of sodium carbonate absorption of carbon dioxide, and the former shows a greater improvement under different solution properties and operating parameters. The enhanced role of MIR in mass transfer in non-homogeneous reactions is verified and the feasibility of industrial practical applications of MIR is demonstrated.

Exploring the Performance and Mass-Transfer Characteristics of Porous Zinc Anodes for Membraneless Hybrid-Flow Batteries

Zinc-based hybrid-flow batteries are considered as a promising alternative to conventional electrochemical energy-storage systems for medium- to large-scale applications due to their high energy densities, safety, and abundance. However, the performance of these batteries has been limited by issues such as dendritic growth and passivation of zinc anodes during charge–discharge cycling. To address this challenge, a variety of two- and three-dimensional zinc anodes have been investigated. While two-dimensional zinc anodes have been extensively studied, there has been limited investigation into three-dimensional zinc anodes for hybrid-flow batteries. This study highlights the potential of three-dimensional zinc anodes to mitigate overpotentials and improve the mass transport of active species to promote negative electrode reactions. The performance of a membraneless flow battery based on low-cost zinc and organic quinone was herein evaluated using experimental and numerical approaches. Specifically, the use of zinc fiber was shown to yield an average coulombic efficiency of approximately 90% and an average voltage efficiency of approximately 82% over the course of 100 cycles at a current density of 30 mA cm−2. These results indicate the viability of using zinc fiber anodes to improve the performance of existing hybrid-flow batteries.

Highly-Controlled Soft-Templating Synthesis of Hollow ZIF-8 Nanospheres for Selective CO2 Separation and Storage.

Global warming is an ever-rising environmental concern, and carbon dioxide (CO2) is among its major causes. Different technologies, including adsorption, cryogenic separation, and sequestration, have been developed for CO2 separation and storage/utilization. Among these, carbon capture using nano-adsorbents has the advantages of excellent CO2 separation and storage performance as well as superior heat- and mass-transfer characteristics due to their large surface area and pore volume. In this work, an environmentally friendly, facile, bottom-up synthesis of ZIF-8 hollow nanospheres (with reduced chemical consumption) was developed for selective CO2 separation and storage. During this soft-templating synthesis, a combined effect of ultra-sonication and low-temperature hydrothermal synthesis showed better control over an oil-in-water microemulsion formation and the subsequent growth of large-surface-area hollow ZIF-8 nanospheres having excellent particle size distribution. Systematic studies on the synthesis parameters were also performed to achieve fine-tuning of the ZIF-8 crystallinity, hollow structures, and sphere size. The optimized hollow ZIF-8 nanosphere sample having uniform size distribution exhibited remarkable CO2 adsorption capability (∼2.24 mmol g-1 at 0 °C and 1.75 bar), a CO2/N2 separation selectivity of 12.15, a good CO2 storage capacity (1.5-1.75 wt %), and an excellent cyclic adsorption/desorption performance (up to four CO2 adsorption/desorption cycles) at 25 °C. In addition, the samples showed exceptional structural stability with only ∼15% of overall weight loss up to 600 °C under a nitrogen environment. Therefore, the hollow ZIF-8 nanospheres as well as their highly controlled soft-templating synthesis method reported in this work are useful in the course of the development of nanomaterials with optimized properties for future CO2 capture technologies.

Mass transfer characteristics of a single bubble in immiscible fluids

The bubbles flow in immiscible fluids is widely present in metallurgical and chemical processes, and the investigation of mass transfer characteristics in immiscible fluids is of great importance in bath melting and extraction. The bubble rising process in immiscible fluids is simulated with the phase-field method, different viscosity and density ratios, interfacial tensions and bubble sizes are considered for the study of interface fluctuation behavior. Firstly, whether bubbles can cross the liquid-liquid interface is studied, and the discriminant K1 of whether bubbles can cross the interface is proposed. When K1 < 2.0, bubbles are trapped between the interfaces, otherwise, bubbles can successfully cross the interface. Secondly, the fluctuation behavior of bubbles on the interface is investigated after they cross the interface. Finally, the prediction model K2 for the degree of interface fluctuation is proposed under the condition of K1 ≥ 2.0. The interface belongs to smaller fluctuation when K2 < 2.45, and vice versa, it belongs to larger fluctuation. The accuracy of K2 is 93.39% after verification.

Influence of the phase interface mass transfer characteristics on the cavitation bubble collapse in water

The dependence of cavitation bubble collapse on such characteristics of the mass transfer across the bubble surface as the phase interface temperature jump, the ratio of the interface displacement speed due to the mass exchange to the speed of the thermal motion of the vapor molecules, the difference between the evaporation and condensation coefficients on the cavitation bubble collapse in water is studied. The evaporation and condensation coefficients range from 0.002 to 0.2. In the numerical technique, the dynamics of the vapor in the bubble and the surrounding liquid is governed by the gas dynamics equations closed with wide-range equations of state. Evaporation and condensation are described by the Hertz–Knudsen–Langmuir expressions. It has been found that the influence of the mass transfer characteristics considered is insignificant at small values of the evaporation and condensation coefficients, and monotonically grows with their increasing. In particular, the vapor mass in the bubble at the end of collapse is underestimated by 10% if the temperature jump is not taken into account, is overestimated by 20% if non-zero ratio of the interface displacement speed due to mass exchange to the thermal motion speed of vapor molecules is ignored and is overestimated by 80% if the difference between the evaporation and condensation coefficients is not allowed for. Similar errors in the maximum pressure in the bubble during its collapse can reach 10%, 15% and 35%, respectively.

An engineered biochar for treatment of selenite contaminated water: Mass transfer characteristics in fixed bed adsorption

Biochar composites have been gaining attention in recent years as a promising and cost-effective material for wastewater treatment. In the present study, a novel procedure was developed to create a biochar (BC) composite impregnated with binary zinc (Zn) and iron (Fe) oxides (denoted as ZnFeBC). The procedure was optimized to enhance selenite, Se(IV), adsorption performance of the ZnFeBC composite. The modified biochar composite had excellent pore characteristics with a specific surface area of 854 m2/g. The maximum Se(IV) adsorption capacity of an unary Zn-loaded biochar composite was 520 µg/g, which significantly increased to 4,100 µg/g after the iron oxide impregnation. Isotherm experiments suggested that the adsorption process was likely through homogeneous monolayer adsorption. The ZnFeBC composite exhibited excellent performance over a broad range of pH values, with the highest Se(IV) adsorption capacities observed at lower pH values (maximums at pH 3). X-ray absorption near edge structure spectroscopy (XANES) indicated that the redox reaction of Se oxyanions did not occur during the adsorption process. ZnFeBC was successfully used to remove Se(IV) from a mining lake water matrix in a fixed-bed adsorption system. Additionally, a mass transfer model optimizing effective diffusion and external mass transfer coefficients was developed to comprehensively assess the adsorption system. Overall, ZnFeBC exhibited great potential as an adsorbent for treating Se(IV) contaminated waters and the developed mass transfer model is useful for scaling up fixed-bed adsorption systems.

Effect of electric field on mass transfer during oleuropein extraction

The use of alternative extraction methods has increased since conventional methods have disadvantages like long processing time and limited extraction yield. It is known that the extraction yield is enhanced, and the processing time is shortened by the electric field. However, the mathematical characterization of the electrically assisted processes is needed for a better understanding and the improvement of extraction. In this study, effects of the moderate electric field extraction (MEF-E) parameters (frequencies of 1, 1000, and 2000 Hz, and wave types of sine and square) on yield, cell disintegration index (Zc), microstructure, and mass transfer coefficient (Deff) were investigated to examine mass transfer characteristics of the extraction of oleuropein from olive leaves. Correlation analysis was performed to investigate the relations between yield, Zc, Deff, and the changes in the cross section areas of palisade cells. The frequency and wave significantly affected yield, Zc, microstructural changes, and Deff values (p &amp;lt; 0.05). Additionally, the Zc value showed a good correlation with yield, microstructure, and Deff in both sine and square waves (p &amp;lt; 0.05). It was concluded that the extraction level and microstructural changes could be controlled by Zc during the MEF-E process. Two different finite element models (model 1: fixed Deff and model 2: Deff depending on the Zc) were used for mass transfer, and model 2 gave better predictions (p &amp;lt; 0.05). Thus, it will be possible to characterize and monitor oleuropein transfer depending on the effects of frequency and wave type applications during the MEF process. The model consisting of the Zc–Deff relationship showed that the use of Zc would be preferred for the characterization of mass transfer rather than calculating the Deff value. It is thought that the effects of electric field parameters on microstructure with the developed models will be determined and successfully characterized, thus contributing to the understanding of the effects of electric field extraction processes on mass transfer. However, it is recommended that similar studies are conducted for other plants in order to develop a valid approach on the extraction process from plants.

Drying kinetics and heat mass transfer characteristics of thin layer pineapple during microwave vacuum drying

Microwave vacuum drying of pineapple slices was carried out to investigate the microwave power degree on the drying kinetics and heat mass transfer characteristics. Numerical simulation and bench test were used to study the variation characteristic of microwave volumetric heating and temperature and moisture during the drying process, and the best drying model was selected. The result shows that the drying process of the pineapple slices belonged to the falling rate period without constant drying stage; Among 6 common thin layer drying kinetic models, the mean values of R2 were maximum, χ2 and RMSE for the Two-term exponential model were minimum, which were 0.9993, 0.000107 and 0.00839, respectively. As the temperature rose to 40∼45∘C at the late stage of drying, the thermal runaway phenomenon appeared, and the internal temperature of pineapple slices rose sharply. Hot spots appeared at the center and edge of pineapple at the late stage of drying, and it generated by microwave volumetric heating focusing. The predicted values of moisture ratio (MR) obtained from COMSOL simulation showed good consistency with the Two-term exponential model and the experimental. In order to improve the drying quality of the pineapple, the microwave power should be varied and reasonable interval to make the drying temperature lower than the thermal runaway temperature range.

Heat and mass transfer analysis for magnetized flow of {mathrm{ZnO}-SAE50} nanolubricant with variable properties: an application of Cattaneo–Christov model

The current study scrutinizes heat and mass transfer features of magnetized flow of {mathrm{ZnO}-SAE50} nanolubricant over Riga plate in a Darcy Forchheimer medium. The effects of variable viscosity, thermal radiation, variable thermal conductivity, viscous dissipation and uniform heat source/sink are examined in this study. The diffusion model presented by Cattaneo–Christov is incorporated in this study to enclose heat and mass transport phenomenon. Additionally, the mass transfer rate is inspected subjected to the effects of variable solutal diffusivity and higher order chemical reaction. Heat and mass transfer phenomena have significant applications in the disciplines of science and technology that can be seen everywhere in nature. This simultaneous transportation phenomenon indicates a variety of applications in manufacturing processes, aerodynamics, cooling systems, environmental sciences, oceanography, food industries, biological disciplines, and energy transport systems etc. The modeled system of PDEs is metamorphosed to nonlinear ODEs with the introduction of appropriate transformations. An eminent bvp4c method in MATLAB has been incorporated to execute the resulting system of ODEs numerically. The outcomes of velocity, temperature and concentration profiles corresponding to various emerging parameters have been exposed graphically. The motion of {mathrm{ZnO}-SAE50} nanolubricant tends to enhance significantly with larger modified Hartmann number, whereas converse behavior is reported by increasing porosity parameter and variable viscosity parameter. The greater heat transfer rate is observed for variable thermal conductivity parameter. The rates of heat and mass transfer slow down for thermal and solutal time relaxation parameters respectively. The concentration profile gets enriched by growing the order of the chemical reaction and variable mass diffusivity parameter. It is concluded that by increasing solid volume fraction up to 1.5%, the viscosity of the nanolubricant enhances up to 12% which consequently slows down motion of the nanolubricant but increases temperature and concentration profiles.

A continuous flow mode with a scalable tubular reactor for the green preparation of stable alkali lignin nanoparticles assisted by ultrasound

Lignin nanoparticles (LNPs) have become a hot topic recently because of their improved physicochemical properties and the excellent integration into various industrial sectors compared to lignin. However, the green large-scale production of stable LNPs severely restricts the high-value applications of LNPs. In this work, a simple and potentially scalable continuous-flow mode setup with a tubular flow reactor was designed for the green preparation of stable alkali LNPs assisted by ultrasound. When the flow rates of lignin solution and nitric acid solution were 8.00 mL/min and 2.67 mL/min respectively, and the length of the tube was 5.5 m, the average residence time of mixed solution was 62.2 s in the tubular reactor. Spheroid nanoparticles with an average size of 97.2 nm were obtained under this optimized condition. Furthermore, the results showed a better control of the mixing compared to the batch process, resulting in a homogeneous distribution of smaller particle sizes thus improving stability and UV-blocking properties. This is attributed to the better mixing and excellent mass transfer characteristics in the tube, which provides favorable conditions for the full contact and uniform dispersion of the mixed solution. More importantly, continuous flow mode makes it possible to prepare LNPs with excellent physicochemical properties on a large scale, which will bring great opportunities for the industrial production and application of LNPs.

Computational modeling of spatial variation in moisture content and temperature distribution in corn at different superheated steam temperatures

The Superheated steam has been shown to be more effective than hot air for drying corn. Modeling studies have been carried out in fluidized bed dryers to determine the moisture and heat transfer characteristics of corn, but there are no modeling studies for a single corn kernel. Knowledge of heat and mass transfer characteristics in a single kernel would produce a better understanding of steam characteristics needed for specific drying rates. The study sought to determine the influence of steam temperature and velocity on the drying rate of a corn kernel. It used computational fluid dynamics (CFD) to model the transfer of heat and moisture between the corn kernel and superheated steam. The simulation used cone geometry to represent the corn kernel. The kernel had characteristic dimensions and 20% initial moisture content. The condition of the steam, which was typical of that found in industry, had temperatures of 120–200°C and velocities of 0.5–1.5 m/s. There was a decrease in the duration of the initial condensation phase as the temperature of superheated steam increased from 120°C to 200°C. The highest steam temperature and velocity resulted in the shortest duration for steam condensation. Contrary to what has been reported, there was no moisture loss from the corn kernel when exposed to superheated steam at 120°C, which may be due to how heat was retained in the drying chamber. Thus, the processes of tapping steam and retaining heat are important elements in the operation of industrial steam driers.