A mixer is a piece of equipment that mixes two components together. In order for two components to mix, in most cases they must me miscible in each other. That is, they must have similar polarities as to avoid their separation upon contact with each other. It is necessary to mix substances together for many reasons. A reaction may proceed too quickly unless the reactants are first diluted. One easy way to dilute the reactants is to mix them with a solvent thus lowering the solute concentration. Another use for the mixer is to facilitate a chemical reaction. In many cases, the surface
area of the components reacting affects the rate of reaction. If we mix the two reactants (or a component with a catalyst), we can increase the reaction rate.

A basic schematic of a mixer is shown below:

 

 

Two or more feed streams enter the mixer, where the components are stirred or shaken. There is usually one stream leaving the mixer containing the mixture of the two inputs.
 

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