The residence time distribution (RTD) of a chemical reactor is a probability distribution function that describes the amount of time a fluid element could spend inside the reactor. Chemical engineers use the RTD to characterize the mixing and flow within reactors and to compare the behavior of real reactors to their ideal models. This is useful, not only for troubleshooting existing reactors, but in estimating the yield of a given reaction and designing future reactors.
The concept was first proposed by MacMullin and Weber in 1935, but was not used extensively until P.V. Danckwerts analyzed a number of important RTDs in 1953.
Read more about Residence Time Distribution: Theory, Determining The RTD Experimentally, RTDs of Ideal and Real Reactors
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