Modeling and Statistical Analysis on the Viscosity of Aqueous Solution of Xanthan Gum as Drag Reducing Agent Using RSM

Document Type : Research Article

Author

Department of Chemical Engineering, Mahs. C., Islamic Azad University, Mahshahr, Iran.

Abstract

Polymeric drag-reducing agents (DRAs) have shown significant advantages for industrial applications following over seven decades of study. An experiment and statistical study were carried out to develop an equation for the viscosity of XG solution in water as a DRA using response surface methodology (RSM). The research was conducted under experimental settings with a concentration range of C=50-1000 ppm and temperature between T=30-50 °C. Different models were evaluated based on a series of quality metrics and plots. After examining the quality metrics and plots of different models, it was concluded that the quadratic model was the most appropriate choice. The values of standard deviation (Std.Dev), coefficient of determination (R2) and coefficient of variation (C.V) for the quadratic model were 0.0001, 0.9959, and 4.37, respectively. The outcomes of the RSM model were compared with 6 equations found in the literature. The results indicated that the RSM model had the smallest average absolute relative deviation (AARD=5.39%) when estimating the dynamic viscosity of aqueous XG solution. Finally, the prediction quality of the RSM model was examined with experimental data from literature. The results showed that the proposed equation can predict the viscosity of water-soluble DRAs with acceptable accuracy with a relative deviation of less than 19%. The application of RSM cuts down on experimental costs and time, in addition to helping identify the most suitable model.

Keywords

References

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Chemical Process Design
Volume 5, Issue 2
December 2026
Pages 103-117

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