The present study investigates experimentally the laminar mixing and heat transfer of a range of helical ribbon and anchor impellers for both Newtonian and inelastic non-Newtonian fluids. The work also correlates the experimental data empirically in the form of dimensionless groups. In order to estimate the relative importance and the effect of all the geometrical parameters on the mixing power and heat transfer, data from the published literature sources will be utilized and combined with the results from this study. Thus, reliable empirical correlations will be obtained which are applicable over the widest range of operating conditions. The study also investigates the ablity of the various impellers to level out temerature distributions. The measurement of these temperature gradients and the impeller power requirements gives a measure of the mixing efficiency of the impeller used. / Science Research Council

This research undertakes the problem of vibration control of vehicular and structural systems using intelligent materials and controllable devices. Advanced modeling tools validated with experimental test data are developed to help with understanding the fundamentals as well as advanced and novel applications of smart and conventional suspension systems. The project can be divided into two major parts. The first part is focused on development of novel smart suspensions using Magneto-Rheological (MR) fluids in unique configurations in order to improve efficiency, controllability, and safety of today's vehicles. In this part of the research, attention is paid to fundamentals as well as advanced applications of MR technology. Extensive rheological studies, both theoretical and experimental, are performed to understand the basic behaviors of MR fluids as complex non-Newtonian fluids in novel applications. Using the knowledge obtained from fundamental studies of MR fluids, unique application concepts are investigated that lead to design, development, and experimental testing of two new classes of smart devices: MR Hybrid Dampers and MR Squeeze Mounts. Multiple generations of these devices are built and tested as proof of concept prototypes. Advanced physics-based mathematical models are developed for these devices. Experimental test data are used to validate the models and great agreement is obtained. The models are used as design tools at preliminary as well as detailed design stages of device development. The significant finding in this part of the research is that MR fluids can deliver a much larger window of controllable force in squeeze mode compared to shear and valve modes which can be used in various applications. The second part of the research is devoted to the development of innovative design tools for suspension design and tuning. Various components of suspension systems are studied and modeled using a new physics-based modeling approach. The component of main interest is the shim stack assembly in hydraulic dampers which is modeled using energy and variational methods. A major finding is that the shims should be modeled individually in order to represent the sliding effects properly when the shim stack is deflected. Next, the individual component models are integrated into a full suspension model. This model is then used as a tool for suspension design, synthesis, and tuning. Using this design tool, suspension engineers in manufacturing companies and other industrial sections can easily perform parametric studies without the need to carry out time consuming and expensive field and laboratory tests. / Ph. D.

Hollow fiber membranes offer the opportunity to dramatically reduce the energy required to perform gas separations in the chemical industry. The membranes are fabricated from highly non-Newtonian precursor materials, including concentrated polymer solutions that sometimes also contain dispersed particles. These materials are susceptible to shear-induced microstructural changes during processing, which can affect the characteristics of the resulting membrane. This thesis explores several shear-related effects using materials and flow conditions that are relevant for fiber spinning. The findings are discussed as they relate to membrane processing, and also from the standpoint of enhancing our fundamental understanding of the underlying phenomena. First, the effect of shear on polymeric dope solutions was investigated. Shear-induced demixing—a phenomenon not previously studied in membrane materials—was found to occur in membrane dopes. Phase separation experiments also showed that shear-induced demixing promotes macrovoid formation. The demixing process was found to depend not only on the instantaneous shear conditions, but also on the shear history of the solution. This suggests that low-shear flow processes that occur in the upstream tubing and channels used for fiber spinning can affect macrovoid formation. The effect of viscoelastic media on dispersed particles was also explored. Shear-small-angle light scattering results showed that particles suspended in membrane dope solutions formed aggregated, vorticity-oriented structures when shear rates in the shear-thinning regime of the polymer solution were applied. Shear rates well below the shear-thinning regime did not produce any structure. In fact, the application of a Newtonian shear rate to a sample already containing the vorticity structure caused the sample to return to isotropy. Measurements using a highly elastic, constant-viscosity Boger fluid showed that strong normal forces alone are not sufficient to form the vorticity structures, but that shear thinning is also required. Lastly, a study was conducted examining cross-stream migration of particles dispersed in viscoelastic media. Fluids exhibiting varying degrees of shear thinning and normal forces were found to have different effects on the particle distribution along the shear gradient axis in Poiseuille flow. Shear thinning was found to promote migration toward the channel center, while normal stresses tended to cause migration toward the channel walls. In addition to hollow fiber spinning, many other industrially relevant applications involve polymer solutions and suspensions of particles in viscoelastic media. Often, the properties and performance of the material depend strongly on the internal microstructure. The results from the research described in this thesis can be used to guide the design of materials and processing conditions, so that the desired microstructural characteristics can be achieved.

Three dimensional flow regimes are encountered in many types of industrial flow processes such as filtration, mixing, reaction engineering, polymerization and polymer forming as well as environmental systems. Thus, the analyses of phenomena involved fluid flow are of great importance and have been subject of numerous ongoing research projects. The analysis of these important phenomena can be conducted in laboratory through experiments or simply by using the emerging computational fluid dynamics (CFD) techniques. But when dealing with three dimensional fluid flow problems, the complexities encountered make the analysis via the traditional experimental techniques a daunting task. For this reason, researchers often prefer to use the CFD techniques which with some care taken, often produce accurate and stable results while maintaining cost as low as possible. Many CFD codes have been developed and tested in the past decades and the results have been successful and thus encouraging researchers to develop new codes and/or improve existing codes for the solutions of real world problems. In this present project, CFD techniques are used to simulate the fluid flow phenomena of interest by solving the flow governing equations numerically through the use of a personal computer. The aim of this present research is to develop a robust and reliable technique which includes a novel aspect for the solution of three dimensional generalized Newtonian fluids in domains including obstructions, and this must be done bearing in mind that both accuracy and cost efficiency have to be achieved. To this end, the finite element method (FEM) is chosen as the CFD computational method. There are many existing FEM techniques namely the streamline upwind Petrov-Galerkin methods, the streamline diffusion methods, the Taylor-Galerkin methods, among others. But after a thorough analysis of the physical conditions (geometries, governing equations, boundary conditions, assumptions …) of the fluid flow problems to be solve in this project, the appropriate scheme chosen is the UVWP family of the mixed finite element methods. It is scheme originally developed to solve two dimensional fluid flow problems but since the scheme produced accurate and stable results for two dimensional problems, then attempt is made in this present study to develop a new version of the UVWP scheme for the numerical analysis of three dimensional fluid flow problems. But, after some initial results obtained using the developed three dimensional scheme, investigations were made during the course of this study on how to speed up solutions' convergence without affecting the cost efficiency of the scheme. The outcomes of these investigations yield to the development of a novel scheme named the modified three dimensional UVWP scheme. Thus a computer model based on these two numerical schemes (UVWP and the Modified UVWP) is developed, tested, and validated through some benchmark problems, and then the model is used to solve some complicated tests problems in this study. Results obtained are accurate, and stable, moreover, the cost efficiency of the computer model must be mentioned because all the simulations carried out are done using a simple personal computer.

Submitted by Maicon Juliano Schmidt (maicons) on 2015-07-13T19:17:40Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Eduardo Schnurr Siqueira.pdf: 1543388 bytes, checksum: 203a2765367b043538126c29889d7be5 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2015-07-13T19:17:40Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Eduardo Schnurr Siqueira.pdf: 1543388 bytes, checksum: 203a2765367b043538126c29889d7be5 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-01-31 / Nenhuma / Fluidos não-Newtonianos apresentam relação não linear entre a tensão de cisalhamento e a taxa de cisalhamento, ou seja, sua viscosidade não é constante. Eles estão presentes na natureza (sangue, lamas, areia movediça), assim como em muitos produtos industriais classificam-se nesta categoria, tais como produtos alimentícios (iogurtes, queijos cremosos, doces de frutas, chocolate ), tintas, borrachas, polímeros fundidos, soluções poliméricas, adesivos e gomas. Nos casos em que a viscosidade diminui com aumento da taxa de cisalhamento, os fluidos são classificados como pseudoplásticos; os que apresentam comportamento inverso são classificados como dilatantes. O modelo Power-Law é utilizado em engenharia para modelar ambos os comportamentos. Computational Fluid Dynamics - CFD (Dinâmica dos Fluidos Computacional) é uma ferramenta utilizada na simulação numérica de escoamentos de fluidos Newtonianos e não-Newtonianos. Inúmeros códigos comerciais e livres são utilizados atualmente, dentre eles o código livre e aberto Multiphase Flow with Interphase Exchanges (MFIX), o qual foi desenvolvido visando a simulação numérica de escoamentos multifásicos reativos do tipo sólido-gás em leitos fluidizados. O objetivo do presente trabalho é implementar no MFIX o modelo Power-Law, validar a modificação e realizar um estudo de caso utilizando o modelo. Com a implementação de um modelo não-Newtoniano ao código, pretende-se abrir caminho para a simulação de escoamentos multifásicos do tipo sólido-líquido não-Newtoniano, bem como aumentar a potencialidade do código, a fim de se estudar casos monofásicos de escoamentos de fluidos não-Newtonianos sujeitos à transferência de calor. O modelo implementado foi validado através da comparação com resultados da literatura para o escoamento em uma cavidade. Posteriormente, foram realizadas simulações do escoamento não isotérmico e isotérmico em torno de um prisma de seção quadrada imerso em um canal. Foram variados os parâmetros número de Prandtl, índice do modelo Power-Law e razão de bloqueio. Verificou-se que o número de Nusselt tem influência direta e é fortemente influenciado pela razão de bloqueio e inversamente, com pouca intensidade, pelo índice Power-Law. O número de Prandtl também influenciou diretamente no número de Nusselt e demonstrou que, quanto maior o seu valor, mais acentuada fica a variação do número de Nusselt em função da razão de bloqueio. / Non-Newtonian fluids exhibit nonlinear relationship between the shear stress and the shear rate, that is, its viscosity is not constant. They are present in nature (blood, sludge) as well as many industrial products are classified in this category, such as food products (yoghurt, soft cheeses, jams, chocolate), paints, rubber, polymer melts, polymer solutions, adhesives and gums. In cases where viscosity decreases with increasing shear rate, the fluids are classified as shear-thinning, while the opposite behavior is classified as shear-thickening. The Power-Law model is used in engineering to model both behaviors. Computational Fluid Dynamics - CFD is a tool used in the numerical simulation of Newtonian and non-Newtonian fluid flow. Numerous free and commercial codes are used today, including the free and open source Multiphase Flow with Interphase Exchanges (MFIX), which was developed to the numerical simulation of multiphase (fluid-solid) and reactive flows. The goal of this work is to implement the Power-Law model in MFIX, validate the implementation and conduct a case study using the model implemented. With the implementation of a non-Newtonian model to the code, a new possibility for the simulation of multiphase flows of solid-non-Newtonian liquids is opened, as well as there is an increase in the capability of the code regarding the study of single-phase fluid flows of Non-Newtonian fluids subject to heat transfer. The model was implemented and validated by comparison with literature results for the flow in a lid driven cavity. Subsequently, simulations were carried out concerning isothermal and non-isothermal flows around a square cylinder immersed in a channel. Parameters of analyses consisted of Prandtl number, Power-Law index and blockage ratio, for a fixed Reynolds number. It was found that the Nusselt number is strongly influenced by the blockage ratio and decreases with the increase of the Power-Law index. The Prandtl number also directly influences the process. With its increase, the dependence of the Nusselt number with the blockage ratio is more pronounced.

Submitted by Silvana Teresinha Dornelles Studzinski (sstudzinski) on 2016-11-17T15:28:54Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Márcio Lembi Teles_.pdf: 1859021 bytes, checksum: 5dc2746be44c5f2b865c68ec0b4c0db0 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-11-17T15:28:54Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Márcio Lembi Teles_.pdf: 1859021 bytes, checksum: 5dc2746be44c5f2b865c68ec0b4c0db0 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-09-16 / Nenhuma / Este trabalho apresenta uma análise fatorial, através de fluidodinâmica computacional, do escoamento e transferência de calor para fluidos viscoplásticos a partir de um cilindro confinado entre paredes paralelas. Considera-se que as propriedades reológicas sensíveis à temperatura, o que acopla os problemas térmico e fluidodinâmico de forma bilateral. Foi desenvolvida uma formulação baseada no método estabilizado de elementos finitos Galerkin Mínimos Quadrados (GLS – Galerkin Leart-Squares) para a aproximação de escoamentos não newtonianos com transferência de calor e propriedades reológicas termodependentes. Esta formulação foi implementada em um código computacional próprio. Para a modelagem das tensões viscosa, foi utilizado um modelo de líquido newtoniano generalizado, com função viscosidade dada pelo modelo de Herschel-Bulkley regularizado conforme Papanastasiou e propriedades termodependentes – a tensão inicial de escoamento e o índice de consistência. Os resultados numéricos foram investigados utilizando os adimensionais: número de Reynolds (Re), número de Herschel-Bulkley (Hb), número de Prandtl (Pr), índice de potência (n) e coeficientes de dependência térmica (a* e b*). Foi realizado um planejamento experimental fatorial completo 2K, com objetivo de avaliar a influência destes parâmetros na taxa de transferência de calor, através do número de Nusselt (Nu), e na perda de carga localizada devido à obstrução do canal pelo cilindro. / This paper presents a factor analysis using computational fluid dynamics, flow and heat transfer for viscoplastic fluids from a cylinder confined between parallel walls. It is considered that the rheological properties sensitive to temperature, which couples the thermal and fluid dynamic problems bilaterally. It was developed a formulation based on stabilized finite element method Galerkin Least Squares (GLS - Galerkin Leart-Squares) for approaching non-Newtonian flow with heat transfer and rheological properties dependent terms. This formulation has been implemented in a proper computer code. For the modeling of viscous stresses, a generalized Newtonian fluid model was used, with viscosity function given by the Herschel-Bulkley regularized model as Papanastasiou and properties dependent terms – the initial yield stress and consistency index. The numerical results were investigated using the dimensionless: Reynolds number (Re), Herschel-Bulkley number (Hb), Prandtl number (Pr), potency index (n) and temperature dependence coefficients (a* and b*). It conducted a full factorial experimental design 2K, with objective to evaluate the influence of these parameters on the heat transfer rate, through the Nusselt number (Nu), and localized head loss due to the cylinder by duct obstruction.

The surface oscillations in a deformable wall are known to induce an instability in the adjacent flow even in the absence of inertia. This instability, if understood properly, can be exploited to generate a well-mixed flow pattern with improved transport coefficients in microfluidic systems, wherein the benefits of inertial instabilities can not be realised. In order to utilise the wall deformability in micro-devices as well as other biotechnological applications, the quantitative knowledge of the critical parameter for the on-set of instability and the nature of bifurcation in the region of transition point are essential. With this objective, a major portion of this thesis deals with the stability analysis of flow past a flexible surface. For Newtonian flow over a deformable solid medium, the analyses of hydrodynamic stability in two flow regimes are presented: the viscous mode instability in the limit of zero Reynolds number, and the wall mode instability in the limit of high Reynolds number. The flexible solid in both analyses is described as a neo-Hookean solid continuum of finite thickness. The previous work on viscous instability using the same solid model ignored the viscous dissipation in the solid. In the present study, a purely elastic neo-Hookean model is augmented to incorporate the viscous stresses accounting for the dissipative mechanism in an aqueous gel-like solid medium. The linear stability analysis for this neo-Hookean viscoelastic solid shows a dramatic influence of solid viscosity on the stability behaviour. The important parameter here is where ηr is the solid viscosity relative to the fluid viscosity and H is the solid-to-fluid thickness ratio. While the effect solid viscosity is stabilizing for a further increase in viscosity in the regime reduces the critical shear rate for transition, indicating a destabilizing influence of solid viscosity. The weakly nonlinear analysis indicates that the bifurcation is subcritical for most values of H when ηr =0. However, for non-zero solid viscosity, the analysis reveals a range of ηr for which the nature of bifurcation is supercritical. The results are in contrast to the behaviour for the Hookean (linear) elastic solid, for which the effect of solid viscosity is always stabilising and the bifurcation is subcritical for all values of H and ηr. For the wall mode instability, critical parameters for the linear and the neo-Hookean elastic solid are found to be very close. The weakly nonlinear analysis of the wall mode instability shows that the instability is driven to a supercritically stable branch, indicating the possibility of a stable complex flow pattern which is ) correction to the base flow. The amplitude of the supercritically bifurcated equilibrium state, A1e, is derived in the vicinity of the critical point, and its scaling with the flow Reynolds number is obtained. The nonlinear analysis is also carried out using the asymptotic analysis in small parameter Re−1/3. The asymptotic results are found to be in good agreement with the numerical solutions for For a polymeric flow over a deformable solid medium, the viscous instability is analysed by extending the viscous mode for the Newtonian fluid to the fluid with finite elasticity. The viscoelastic fluid is described by an Oldroyd-B model which introduces two additional parameters: the Weissenberg number, W , and β, the ratio of solvent-to-solution viscosity. The polymer viscosity parameter β is an indirect measure of polymer concentration with the extreme cases of β =1 representing the Newtonian fluid and β =0the upper convected Maxwell fluid. The analysis considers both the linearly elastic and the neo-Hookean models to describe the deformable solid. The analysis reveals the presence of two classes of modes: the finite wavelength modes and the shortwave modes. The behaviour of the finite wavelength modes is similar for both the models of solid medium. The effect of increasing fluid Weissenberg number and also increasing polymer concentration (achieved by reducing β below 1) on the finite wavelength instability is stabilising. The viscous instability ceases to exist for W larger than a certain maximum value Wmax. The behaviour of the shortwave mode is remarkably different for both the models of solid. Using the shortwave asymptotic, the differences are elucidated and it is shown that the shortwave instabilities in both the models are qualitatively different modes. For a linear elastic solid model, the shortwave mode is attributed to the normal-stresses in polymeric fluid with high Weissenberg number. This mode does not exist for the Newtonian flow and is a downstream travelling disturbance wave. On the other hand, the shortwave mode for the neo-Hookean model is attributed to the normal-stress difference in the elastic solid. Hence, this mode does exist for the Newtonian fluid and is an upstream travelling disturbance wave. The role of polymer concentration in the criticality of finite wavelength and shortwave modes is examined for a wide range of Weissenberg number. The results are condensed in a map showing the stability boundaries in parametric space covering β, W and H. The weakly nonlinear analysis reveals that the bifurcation of linear instability is subcritical when there is no dissipation in the solid. The nature of bifurcation, however, changes to supercritical when the viscous effects in the solid are taken into account. The final problem of this thesis deals with the flow past a rigid surface. Here, the stability of base profile in a plane Couette flow of dilute polymeric fluid is studied at moderate Reynolds number. Three variants of Oldroyd-B model have been analysed, viz. the classical Oldroyd-B model, the diffusive Oldroyd-B model, and the non-homogeneous Oldroyd-B model. The Newtonian wall modes are modified marginally for the polymeric fluid described by the classical Oldroyd-B model. The Oldroyd-B model with artificial diffusivity introduces the additional ‘diffusive modes’ which scale with P´eclet number. The diffusive modes become the slowest decaying modes, in comparison to the wall modes, for large wavenumber disturbances. For these two models, the polymeric flow is linearly stable. Using the equilibrium flow method, wherein the nonlinear flow is assumed to be at the transition point, the finite amplitude disturbances are analysed, and the threshold energy necessary for subcritical transition is estimated. The third variant of Oldroyd-B model accounts for non-homogeneous polymer concentration coupled with the stress field. This model exhibits an instability in the linear analysis. The ‘concentration mode’ becomes unstable when the fluid Weissenberg number exceeds a certain transition value. This instability is driven by the stress-induced fluctuations in polymer number density.

Chemical modification is an important way to improve the properties of existing polymers, and one of the important examples is the hydrogenation of nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR) in organic solvent by homogeneous catalysis in order to extend its application. This process has been industrialized for many years to provide high performance elastomers (HNBR) for the automotive industry, especially those used to produce components in engine compartments. In the current commercial process, a batch reactor is employed for the hydrogenation step, which is labor intensive and not suitable for large volume of production. Thus, novel hydrogenation devices such as a continuous process are being developed in our research group to overcome these drawbacks. In order to make the process more practical for industrial application, high concentration polymer solutions should be targeted for the continuous hydrogenation. However, many problems are encountered due to the viscosity of the high concentration polymer solution, which increases tremendously as the reaction goes on, resulting in severe mass transfer and heat transfer problems. So, hydrogenation kinetics in high concentration NBR solution, as well as the rheological properties of this viscous solution are very essential and fundamental for the design of novel hydrogenation processes and reactor scale up. In the present work, hydrogenation of NBR in high concentration solution was carried out in a batch reactor. A commercial rhodium catalyst, Wilkinson’s catalyst, was used with triphenylphosphine as the co-catalyst and chlorobenzene as the solvent. The reactor was modified and a PID controller was tuned to fit this strong exothermic reaction. It was observed that when NBR solution is in a high concentration the kinetic behavior was greatly affected by mass transfer processes, especially the gas-liquid mass transfer. Reactor internals were designed and various agitators were investigated to improve the mechanical mixing. Experimental results show that the turbine-anchor combined agitator could provide superior mixing for this viscous reaction system. The kinetic behavior of NBR hydrogenation under low catalyst concentration was also studied. It was observed that the hydrogenation degree of the polymer could not reach 95% if less than 0.1%wt catalyst (based on polymer mass) was used, deviating from the behavior under a normal catalyst concentration. The viscosity of the NBR-MCB solutions was measured in a rotational rheometer that has a cylinder sensor under both room conditions and reaction conditions. Parameters that might affect the viscosity of the solutions were studied, especially the hydrogenation degree of polymer. Rheological properties of NBR-MEK solutions, as well as NBR melts were also studied for relevant information. It is concluded that the hydrogenation kinetics deviates from that reported by Parent et al. [6] when polymer is in high concentration and/or catalyst is in low concentration; and that the reaction solution (HNBR/NBR-MCB solution) deviates from Newtonian behavior when polymer concentration and hydrogenation degree are high.

Single ventricle congenital heart defects afflict 2 per every 1000 births. They are characterized by cyanotic mixing between the de-oxygenated blood coming back from the systemic circulation and the oxygenated blood from the pulmonary circulation. Prior to introduction of the Fontan procedure in 1971, surgical options for single ventricle patients were limited. The Fontan operation involves a series of three palliative procedures aimed at the separation of systemic and pulmonary circulations and reducing the long term effects of chronic hypoxia and ventricular volume overload. The total cavopulmonary connection (TCPC) is completed in the final stage of the surgery with the anastomosis of the inferior vena cava (IVC) and superior vena cava to the pulmonary arteries. Improved quantification and visualization of flow structures within the TCPC has the potential to aid in the planning and design of the Fontan operation. Despite significant development of phase contrast magnetic resonance imaging (PC MRI) for in vivo flow measurements, it is not routinely applied in children with single ventricle congenital heart disease. Limited technologies available for post-processing of PC MRI data has prevented clinicians and scientists from conducting the detailed hemodynamic analyses necessary to better understand the physiology of the single ventricle circulation. This thesis attempts to bridge the gap between PC MRI and fluid dynamics, by developing the necessary post-processing technologies for PC MRI, and then applying these techniques for characterizing single ventricle hemodynamics.

Chemical modification is an important way to improve the properties of existing polymers, and one of the important examples is the hydrogenation of nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR) in organic solvent by homogeneous catalysis in order to extend its application. This process has been industrialized for many years to provide high performance elastomers (HNBR) for the automotive industry, especially those used to produce components in engine compartments. In the current commercial process, a batch reactor is employed for the hydrogenation step, which is labor intensive and not suitable for large volume of production. Thus, novel hydrogenation devices such as a continuous process are being developed in our research group to overcome these drawbacks. In order to make the process more practical for industrial application, high concentration polymer solutions should be targeted for the continuous hydrogenation. However, many problems are encountered due to the viscosity of the high concentration polymer solution, which increases tremendously as the reaction goes on, resulting in severe mass transfer and heat transfer problems. So, hydrogenation kinetics in high concentration NBR solution, as well as the rheological properties of this viscous solution are very essential and fundamental for the design of novel hydrogenation processes and reactor scale up. In the present work, hydrogenation of NBR in high concentration solution was carried out in a batch reactor. A commercial rhodium catalyst, Wilkinson’s catalyst, was used with triphenylphosphine as the co-catalyst and chlorobenzene as the solvent. The reactor was modified and a PID controller was tuned to fit this strong exothermic reaction. It was observed that when NBR solution is in a high concentration the kinetic behavior was greatly affected by mass transfer processes, especially the gas-liquid mass transfer. Reactor internals were designed and various agitators were investigated to improve the mechanical mixing. Experimental results show that the turbine-anchor combined agitator could provide superior mixing for this viscous reaction system. The kinetic behavior of NBR hydrogenation under low catalyst concentration was also studied. It was observed that the hydrogenation degree of the polymer could not reach 95% if less than 0.1%wt catalyst (based on polymer mass) was used, deviating from the behavior under a normal catalyst concentration. The viscosity of the NBR-MCB solutions was measured in a rotational rheometer that has a cylinder sensor under both room conditions and reaction conditions. Parameters that might affect the viscosity of the solutions were studied, especially the hydrogenation degree of polymer. Rheological properties of NBR-MEK solutions, as well as NBR melts were also studied for relevant information. It is concluded that the hydrogenation kinetics deviates from that reported by Parent et al. [6] when polymer is in high concentration and/or catalyst is in low concentration; and that the reaction solution (HNBR/NBR-MCB solution) deviates from Newtonian behavior when polymer concentration and hydrogenation degree are high.