Ethanol, C2H5OH, flows in a thin film down the outside surface of an inclined plane, 2 m wide and 4 m long. The liquid temperature is 289 K. Ethanol-free air at 303 K and 1 atm flows across the width of the plate parallel to the surface.
At the average temperature of the gas film, the diffusivity of ethanol vapor in air is 1:32 × 10-5 m2/s, The vapor pressure of ethanol is 6:45 × 10-2 atm at 289 K.
If the air velocity is 3 m/s, determine the rate at which the ethanol should be supplied to the top of the plate so that evaporation will prevent it from reaching the very bottom of the plate.