[aferrick]

I'm trying to design a continuous crystallization/precipitation process in which a solid feed is added to a liquid and the resulting product is also a solid.

My boss wants to start off simple with a batch or semi-batch process, which is fine and easy, but I want to try and get an understanding of the continuous aspect should we wish to pursue that avenue in the future.

I've read a bit in Perry's handbook on the subject and there are crystallizer tanks such as draft-tube-baffle that enable good circulation and sedimentation, but I'm unsure on how to guarantee the feed solids wouldn't be mixed with the product crystals. Would this just be a function of residence time? I.e. I'd need to know how long it takes for the solid feed to react/dissolve completely so that the steady state residence time exceeds the dissolution time?