NUPAC® High Surface Area Media

Rolled Construction: A Different Manufacturing Principle

Q-PAC and LANPAC-XL use stacked needle-grid layers. LANPAC uses single-piece injection molding. NUPAC uses neither. Instead, a continuous sheet bearing projecting baffle tabs is rolled into concentric convolutions — like a jelly roll of needle-covered mesh. This rolling process creates geometry impossible to release from any mold, enabling higher complexity than injection molding permits.

The angled baffle tabs serve dual functions: they act as drip points for mass transfer, and they create the tortuous flow path that makes NUPAC an effective mist eliminator.

The Tradeoff: Surface Area vs. Pressure Drop

NUPAC sits at the high end of the plastic packing family on both axes — highest surface area and highest pressure drop. This is the right tradeoff when:

• Tower footprint is the binding constraint
• Maximum contact surface per unit depth is required
• Blower capacity can accommodate higher head
• Mist elimination would otherwise require a separate section

For applications where pressure drop matters more than minimum bed depth, Q-PAC or LANPAC may be more appropriate.

Integral Mist Elimination

The tightly-wound concentric layers with angled tabs create a geometrically inevitable capture mechanism for liquid droplets — the same principle as a mesh pad, but in a random packing form factor. Documented installations show:

• 99%+ droplet capture at 10 microns and larger
• Effective operation to 700 fpm gas velocity
• Proven in HCl, HNO₃, H₂SO₄, and MEK service

A 12" bed depth of #2 NUPAC provides effective mist elimination while maintaining good drainage — no standing liquid, easy washout, no separate demister section required.

In one space-constrained urban installation, NUPAC was the only packing that could deliver the required efficiencies within the available footprint — serving as both mass transfer packing and demister in a single section (Case History 40).