Thèses sur le sujet « Fluid (gas and liquid) »

Simultaneous flow of gas-liquid in pipes presents considerable challenges and difficulties due to the complexity of the two-flow mixture. Oil-gas industries need to handle highly viscous liquids, hence studying the effect of changing the fluid viscosity becomes imperative as this is typically encountered in deeper offshore exploration. This work looks at the effect of liquid viscosity on gas-liquid flows. The work was carried out using two different pipes of 67mm and 127mm internal diameter. For the experiments carried out on the 67mm diameter pipe, air and three different liquids were used with viscosities 1, 42 and 152cp. With these experiments, the effect of viscosity on the entrainment process from the Taylor bubble in a vertical tube was investigated with the Taylor bubble being held stationary in a downward liquid flow with the use of three different gas injection methods. Taylor bubble length, the gas flow rate and the liquid flow rate approaching the stationary bubble were varied. In addition, the wake length below the stationary bubble was measured at different conditions of gas and liquid superficial velocities and comparison was made with the work by previous authors. Videos were taken with high speed camera to validate the measurement taken on wake lengths. A Wire Mesh Sensor system was placed at two different positions below the air injection point on the 67mm diameter pipe of the stationary bubble facility whose data acquisition provided time and cross-sectionally resolved information about spatial distribution. This information was used to generate time averaged void fraction, bubble size distribution and contour plots of the two-phase flow structure. A Probability Density Function (PDF) of void fraction can be obtained from the former, with PDFs of the wake section of the stationary bubbles showing that the flows are in the bubbly region while the PDF for the entire slug unit assumed that for a typical twin-peaked slug flow. The interpretation of this is that holding a bubble stationary can simulate real slug flow. Results on the bubble length measurement and gas loss into a bubble wake have shown good agreement with existing work by other authors. Experiments on the 127 mm diameter pipe were carried out because most published work on gas/liquid flow were on smaller diameter pipes with air and water, yet many of the industrial applications of such flows in vertical pipes are in larger diameter pipes and with liquids which are much more viscous than water. Another important parameter considered in the study is pressure because of its effect on gas density. This part of the research goes some way to rectify this lack and presents void fraction and pressure gradient data for sulphur hexafluoride with gas densities of 28 and 45 kg/m3 and oil (viscosity 35 times water). The gas and liquid superficial velocities were varied in the ranges 0.1-3 and 0.1-1 m/s respectively. The void fraction was also measured with a Wire Mesh Sensor system. Flow patterns were identified from the signatures of the Probability Density Function of cross-sectionally averaged void fraction. These showed the single peak shapes associated with bubbly and churn flow but not the twin-peaked shape usually seen in slug flow. This confirms previous work in larger diameter pipes but with less viscous liquids. For the bubble to churn flows investigated, the pressure gradients decreased with increasing superficial gas velocity. The change in pressure ultimately affects the density of gas in the two-phase flow mixture. Though there was little effect of pressure on void fraction below certain transitional flow rates, the effect became significant beyond these values. Different statistical analysis techniques such as power spectral density, probability density function, mean, standard deviation and time series of the acquired data have been used which also show the significant effect of pressure on void fraction at high gas density which have not been measured previously.

Liquid hold-up is seen to increase as liquid viscosity and fraction of gas taken off increases suggesting corresponding increase in partial separation of phases. However, effect of liquid viscosity does not become significant until a threshold is exceeded when fraction of gas taken off equals 0.40. In all cases examined, periodicity of flow structures is observed to increase as liquid viscosity increases. Considering the results of the three investigations carried out, it can be concluded that periodicity of two-phase flow structure increases as liquid viscosity increases and transition to co-current annular flow occurs at gas superficial velocity of 21 m/s.

"Liquid piston gas compression utilizes a liquid to directly compress gas. The benefit of this approach is that liquid can conform to irregular compression chamber volume. The compression chamber is divided into many small little bores in order to increases the surface area to volume ratio. The heat transfer rate increases with increasing surface area to volume ratio. However, as the bore diameter becomes smaller, the viscous force increases. In order to maximize the heat transfer rate and to minimize the viscous force, computational fluid dynamics is used. ANSYS Fluent is used to simulate the liquid piston gas compression cycle. Having created the model in Fluent, different factors, including diameter, length, liquid temperature, and the acceleration are varied in order to understand how each factor affects the heat transfer and viscous energy loss. The results show that both viscous force and heat transfer rate increase as the diameter decreases. The viscous force increases and the heat transfer decreases as the length increases. Both the viscous force and heat transfer increase as the acceleration increases. The viscous force decreases as the liquid temperature increases. Results show that the highest compression efficiency of 86.4% is found with a 3mm bore radius and a short cylinder. The piston acceleration is advised to be below 0.5g in order to avoid surface instability problem."

The influence of geometrical parameters on the development of intermittent flow is studied in this thesis. The geometrical parameters considered are the diameter of the pipe, the angle of inclination of the pipe, and the distribution of the area of the gas injection. Intermittent flow in gas-liquid two-phase flows occurs when, from a fixed point, a gas dominated structure followed by a liquid dominated structure seems to repeat at a certain mean frequency. It is mainly slug flow but churn and cap bubble flow also fall into this broad category. Intermittent gas-liquid two-phase flow was investigated in a 67 mm diameter, 6 m long rig and also in a 127 mm diameter, 12 m long rig. The test section of the 67 mm rig was mounted in a steel frame supported by a pivot that allowed changing the inclination of the pipe from vertical to horizontal in steps of 15°. The 127 mm rig can only be operated in the upwards vertical position. The fluids utilised were air and silicon oil of viscosity = 5 cP and density = 0.912 kg/m3. The interfacial surface tension was measured at 0.02 N/m. The facilities were both operated at atmospheric pressure. The gas superficial velocity (Ugs) was varied from 0.17 to 2.9 m/s and liquid superficial velocity (Uls) from 0.023 to 0.47 m/s. The void fraction generated by each set of conditions was captured for 60 seconds using a Wire Mesh Sensor and a twin plane Electrical Capacitance Tomography probe. The effect of the diameter and the angle of inclination of the pipe under different gas and liquid superficial velocities was reported. The main findings can be summarised as that the velocity of the periodic structures was found to be higher in large diameter pipes and increases with increasing the angle of inclination reaching a maximum around 50° then decreases. In addition, the frequency of the gas structures was found to be higher in small diameter pipes and increases with increasing the inclination of the pipe for all the gas and liquid superficial velocities investigated. Additionally, two correlations to predict the velocity and the frequency of the periodic gas structures as a function of the diameter, the inclination of the pipe, the gas superficial velocity and the liquid superficial velocity were developed. The proposed correlations were found to not only be in excellent agreement with the present experimental results (less than 20% difference), but also in good agreement with data published by other researchers. This include data produced using different fluids, different diameters of pipe and different gas and liquid superficial velocities to the ones investigated in this work. It was also found that the gas injection area, modified using different gas-liquid mixers, do not have an influence on the development of the intermittent two-phase flows at 75 diameters axial length from the mixing point.

This thesis focuses on the hydrodynamics of gas-liquid Taylor flow (or slug flow) in microchannels. These flows, which are generally dominated by surface tension forces, have been investigated in rectangular channels of various cross-sectional aspect ratios by means of both experimental visualizations and numerical simulations. The first experimental part aims at characterizing the bubble generation process (bubble length and frequency of break-up) depending on the operating conditions, the fluid properties, as well as the junction where both fluids merge. Numerical simulations of fully developed Taylor flow have been carried out with the JADIM code. The computation of such surface tension dominated flows requires an accurate calculation of the surface tension force. Some limitations of the Volume of Fluid method have been highlighted and a Level Set method has been developed in order to improve the calculation of capillary effects. Both methods have been compared in detail in terms of spurious currents. 3D numerical simulations have been performed and the influence of the capillary number, as well as the effects of geometry have been highlighted. Inertial effects have been taken into account and their influence on the pressure drop has been shown to be non-negligible. Mixing in the liquid slug has also been studied.

The separation of gas-liquid flows is an integral part of many industrial processes. Traditionally, such separations are performed in large vessels under the effect of gravity. However, such vessels can contain inherently large inventories of potentially flammable and/or toxic material. The main objective of this thesis is to combine the knowledge of partial phase separation at T-junctions with control strategies to enhance the development of continuous compact partial phase separators. Such applications would form an integral part of more intensive phase separation systems that allow for smaller downstream separator vessels. This would be especially beneficial to the petroleum industry where safety, space, weight and cost are all issues related to off-shore oil platforms. For such applications a simple definition for a partial phase separator would be one that produced two streams, one rich in gas and the other rich in liquid, each containing less than 10% v/v of the unwanted phase. A series of optimisation experiments produced the final T-junction configuration. This comprised of two horizontal T-junctions placed in series, the first with a vertically upwards side-arm, the second with a vertically downwards one. The addition of control valves on the exit streams of the T-junctions extended previous fundamental studies, incorporating the concept of control and flexibility. An automatic liquid level control on the down leg provided a physical barrier against gas entrainment by maintaining a constant liquid presence within that pipe. A further control valve beyond the second junction then optimised the liquid hold-up above this down leg. Experiments showed that the run valve setting was only dependent on the approaching flow regime and independent of the inlet phase flowrates. A simple active control strategy was developed based around these control valves such that for stratified flows the run arm control valve was set at 20% open, while for slug flows the valve was required to be 55% open. Under this control scheme it was possible to obtain a liquid only stream and a gas-rich stream which always satisfied the simple separation criterion of less than 10% v/v liquid-in-gas. Within industrial situations it is rare to operate under steady-state flow conditions continuously and there will be at least one time dependent variable. Examples of general transient situations involve plant shutdown and start-up, changes in flowrates in response to planned operating conditions and emergency situations. Even more relevant to the petroleum industry however, is bringing an additional well on line. Within the petroleum industry the problem of multiphase transient flows has lead to the development of many commercially available prediction packages but none that handle branched pipe networks. A series of experiments were performed to compare the outlet phase mass flowrate responses for a straight pipe and the T-junction separator. The results indicate that in general the T-junction responses are analogous to those observed in a pipe. However, the existence of pipe branches adds another level of complexity as the flow splits exhibit a very non-linear nature.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2005.
Title from first page of PDF file. Document formatted into pages; contains xxiii, 187 p.; also includes graphics Includes bibliographical references (p. 179-187). Available online via OhioLINK's ETD Center

The physical behaviour of air-water plumes during upward injection in ladle-shaped vessels has been investigated. The study involved the experimental determination of the spatial distribution of the flow parameters characterizing the behaviour of the gas phase : gas fraction, bubble frequency, mean bubble velocity and pierced length, and the spectrum of the bubble velocity and pierced length. A computer-aided electroresistivity sensor was developed to determine simultaneously the several local parameters. In particular the accurate measurement of the bubble rise velocity and bubble pierced length, under the turbulent conditions studied, necessitated an instrument capable of ensuring that sequential voltage pulses originating at the probe tips corresponded to a single bubble travelling axially and undisturbed between the tip contacts. To achieve this, special electronic instrumentation and software was built to analyse, in real time, the signals produced by the contact of the bubbles with the sensor. The extensive evaluation of the measuring system indicated a high accuracy and reproducibility of the results. The plumes were investigated under various conditions of air flow rate, orifice diameter and bath depth. The measurements indicate that the radial gas fraction profiles, at different axial positions in the plume, exhibit similarity. The reduced gas fraction profiles can be approximated by a single Gaussian distribution for all the conditions studied. Thus a full description of the spatial distribution of gas could be obtained through the correlation of the axial gas fraction and half-value radius with the modified Froude number. The development of flow in gas-liquid plumes is evidenced by changes in the bubble frequency, mean bubble velocity and mean pierced length distributions. In the region close to the injection point, there is a steep change radially in bubble velocity and the motion of the bubbles is strongly affected by the gas injection velocity. Measurements of bubble frequency and pierced length indicate that bubble break-up occurs in this zone before a dynamic process of break-up and coalescence establishes a nearly constant bubble size distribution. In the region of fully developed flow in the plume, the mean bubble velocity and the standard deviation of the bubble velocity spectrum exhibit relatively flat radial profiles and the bubbles affect the flow only through buoyancy. The spectra of bubble pierced length and diameter in this zone can be fitted to a log-normal distribution. Injection conditions have only a slight Influence in determining the size of the bubbles in this region. Close to the bath surface a third zone is identified in which bubble velocity decreases more rapidly as liquid begins to flow radially outward from the plume. A mathematical model proposed in the literature for bubble plumes has been used for comparison with the experimental results.
Applied Science, Faculty of
Materials Engineering, Department of
Graduate

Within the oil industry there is a need to measure and predict the form of the multiphase liquid and gas flows that are present within oil production and processing pipelines. Knowledge of the flow regimes present allows the engineer to optimise the configuration of the pipeline and downstream processes to achieve the most, economic and reliable design. The applications of these technologies are collectively known as flow assurance. Within oil production systems, one component which has received little attention is the characterisation of the multiphase flow around bends under various process conditions. To predict the flow regimes in greater details requires the development of instrumentation that can measure and characterise the flow within the pipes. To circumvent this challenge, two experimental investigations were carried out in two rigs available in the Chemical and Environmental Engineering Laboratories at the University of Nottingham. These are: (1) a 67 mm internal diameter pipe joined to a 90o bend, in which air/silicone oil flows were investigated using advanced instrumentation: Electrical Capacitance Tomography (ECT), Wire Mesh Sensor Tomography (WMS), and high-speed video. The first two provide time and cross-sectionally resolved data on void fraction. The ECT probes were mounted 10 diameters upstream of the bend whilst the WMS was positioned either immediately upstream or immediately downstream of the bend. The downstream pipe was maintained horizontal whilst the upstream pipe was mounted either vertically or horizontally. The bend (R/D = 2.3) was made of transparent acrylic resin. The superficial velocities of the air ranged from 0.05 to 4.73 ms-1 and for the silicone oil from 0.05 to 0.38 ms-1. (2) a 127 mm internal diameter riser joined to a vertical 180o bend, in which measurements of film fraction and liquid film thickness distribution for an air-water system were obtained using the electrical conductance technique. The former was measured using the ring conductance probes placed 17 and 21 diameters, respectively upstream and downstream of the bend, 45o, 90o and 135o within the bend. The latter were obtained using pin and parallel wire probes. The pin probes were used for thin films measurement whilst the parallel wire probes for thick films. The bend, made of transparent acrylic resin, has a curvature ratio (R/D = 3). The superficial velocities of the air ranged from 3.5 to 16.1 ms-1 and for the water from 0.02 to 0.2 ms-1. The experimental results for the 90o bend study reveal that bubble/spherical cap bubble, slug, unstable slug and churn flows were observed before the bend for the vertical pipe and plug, slug, stratified wavy and annular flows when the pipe was horizontal. Bubble, stratified wavy, slug, semi-annular and annular flows are seen after the bend for the vertical 90o bend, the flow patterns remained the same as before the horizontal 90o bend. These results were confirmed by the high-speed videos taken around the bend. For the vertical 180o return bend, the average film fraction was identified to be higher in straight pipes than in bends. For low liquid and higher gas flow rates, due to the action of gravity drainage, film breakdown occurs at the 45o bend. A previously proposed criterion, to determine stratification after the 90o bend, based on a modified Froude number have been shown to be valid for a liquid different from that tested in the original paper. Similarly, for the 180o return bend, the condition for which the liquid goes either to the inside or outside of the bend are identified based on published material. Variations between average liquid film thickness and bend angles are reported for the vertical 180o bend. Contrary to the conclusions reached by Hills (1973) and Anderson and Hills (1974), the liquid film thickness becomes annular flow in the 180o bend at low liquid flow rates and stratified flow at higher liquid superficial velocities. In addition, a CFD code has been used to successfully model the hydrodynamics of the slug flow pattern in a riser and vertical 90o bend, using the Volume of Fluid model based on the Eulerian approach, implemented in the commercial CFD package Star-CCM+. The modelling results are validated with the experiments and also provide more detailed information on the flow such as the velocity field.

This dissertation focuses on the development of computational tools capable of predicting the complex fluid dynamics behavior of industrial scale gas-liquid systems. In the past, the description of such systems for design purposes was performed through the use of correlations, formulated by means of very expensive experimental campaigns. The limits of this approach can be overcome by the use of modern simulation tools, such as Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). However the momentum and mass transfer description of gas-liquid systems is characterized by the intrinsic poly-dispersity of the gas phase, namely the different dispersed bubbles are usually distributed over a certain range of size, velocity and chemical composition values. Then a proper methodology must be applied to tackle this issue: Population Balance Modeling (PBM), originally formulated for crystallization problems, can be successfully adopted to describe any generic dispersed system in which the combination of different phenomena (i.e., physical space advection, diffusion, aggregation, breakage, growth, nucleation) determines the state of the dispersed system. All these considerations explain the interest of the multiphase flow community in efficient coupled PBM-CFD methods, especially when such methodologies are employed to investigate large scale systems with complex phenomena involved, such as mass transfer and chemical reactions. Moreover, the knowledge of more than one property of the disperse phase can be required to properly describe the problem (i.e., multivariate description instead of monovariate), as in the case of reacting multiphase systems, and this fact represents a challenge from the modeling point of view. At this point, it is very important to reduce the computational costs introduced by the Population Balance Equation (PBE), by recurring to approximate but reliable methods. In this sense, it is also recent the formulation of Quadrature-Based Moments Methods (QBMM) for particulate flows, a class of solution methods particularly suitable for the purposes of this work. Therefore in this dissertation the issues related to the application of these methods for the description of industrial scale bubble columns and aerated stirred tank reactors will be discussed. In the first part of this work, the derivation of PBE and the Eulerian-Eulerian methodology for gas-liquid systems is shown, especially concerning the description of the mass transfer problem in air-water system, in which the information on the bubble size distribution is needed to estimate the interfacial area and the distribution of bubble composition may be required to calculate the local mass transfer driving force. Moreover the QBMM solution methods, both for monovariate and multivariate cases, are here presented and discussed in detail. In the second part, a preliminary study of QBMM stability and accuracy for simplified zero-dimensional systems is performed through comparison with accurate PBE solution methods, then the implementation is verified through the simulation of one and two-dimensional systems in order to point out the numerical issues than may arise when physical space advection is considered. Eventually, the simulation of realistic gas-liquid systems (i.e., a stirred tank reactor and a bubble column), for which experimental data are available relating to the local bubble size distribution (BSD) and mass transfer, are performed for validation purposes. The shown results prove the effectiveness of the proposed PBM-CFD approach: in general a very good agreement with the experimental data is observed with a reasonable computational costs.

Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2014.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: A Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model was developed for the prediction of flotation rate constants in a stirred flotation tank and validated against experimental data. The model incorporated local, time-varying values of the turbulent flow field into an existing kinetic flotation model based on the Generalised Sutherland Equation to predict the overall flotation rate constant. Simulations were performed for the flotation of various minerals at different operational conditions and the predictions were compared with experimental data. It was found that the CFD-based model yielded improvements in the prediction of flotation rate constant for a range of hydrophobicities, agitation speeds and gas flow rates compared with existing methodologies, which use volume-averaged empirical expressions for flow variables. Moreover, comparing to the available CFD alternatives for the flotation modelling this approach eliminates the need for solving an extra partial differential equation resulting in a more computationally economic model. The model was developed in three stages. In the first, a single-phase model was used to establish the requirements for successful modelling of the velocity components and turbulent properties of water inside flotation tanks. Also, a novel use of the Grid Convergence Index for this application was carried out, which allowed determination of the maximum achievable reduction in numerical uncertainties through systematic grid refinement and adaptation. All subsequent simulations were performed at the optimal discretization level determined in this manner. It was found that the Moving Reference Frames (MRF) method was adequate for representation of the impeller movement when the rotational zone was located close to the impeller, using a time step advance of between 10◦ and 15◦ of impeller rotation. Comparison of the different turbulence models for the single-phase modelling revealed that the standard k-e and Large Eddy Simulation turbulence models both performed equally well and that the computational requirement was lower for the standard k-e model, making it the method of choice. Validation of the methodology was done by comparison with experimental data for two different stirred tanks including an unbaffled mixer and a fully baffled standard Rushton turbine tank. The validation against experimental data showed that the model was capable of predicting the flow pattern, turbulent properties and the generation of trailing vortices. The second stage of modelling used an Eulerian-Eulerian formulation for gasliquid modelling of gas-sparged fully baffled vessels (2.25 l, 10 l and 50 l) using a Rushton turbine. It was determined that the minimum model uncertainty resulting from simulation of the sparger was achieved using a disk sparger with a diameter equal to 40% of the impeller diameter. The only significant interfacial force was found to be the drag force, and this was included in the multiphase methodology. A parametric study on the available formulations for the drag coefficient was performed which showed that the effect of turbulence on the air bubbles can accurately be represented using the proposed model of Lane (Lane, 2006). Validation of the methodology was conducted by comparison of the available experimental gas holdup measurements with the numerical predictions for three different scales of Rushton turbine tanks. The results verified that the application of the designed sparger in conjunction with Lane drag coefficient can yield accurate predictions of the gas-liquid flow inside the flotation tank with the error percentage less than 6%, 13%, and 23% for laboratory, pilot and industrial scale Rushton turbine tanks, respectively. The last stage of this study broadened the Eulerian-Eulerian framework to predict the flotation rate constant. The spatially and temporally varying flow variables were incorporated into an established fundamental flotation model due to Pyke (Pyke, 2004) based on the Generalized Sutherland equation for the flotation rate constant. The computation of the efficiency of the flotation sub-processes also incorporated the turbulent fluctuating flow characteristics. Values of the flotation rate constants were computed and volume-weight averaged for validation against available experimental data. The numerical predictions of the flotation rate constants for quartz particles for a range of particle diameters showed improvements in the predictions when compared with values determined from existing methodologies which use spatially uniform values for the important hydrodynamic variables as obtained from empirical correlations. Further validations of the developed CFD-kinetic model were carried out for the prediction of the flotation rate constants of quartz and galena floating under different hydrophobicities, agitation speeds and gas flow rates. The good agreement between the numerical predictions and experimental data (less than 12% error) confirmed that the new model can be used for the flotation modelling, design and optimization. Considering the limited number of CFD studies for flotation modelling, the main contribution of this work is that it provides a validated and optimised numerical methodology that predicts the flotation macro response (i.e., flotation rate constant) by integrating the significance of the hydrodynamic flow features into the flotation micro-processes. This approach also provides a more economical model when it is compared to the available CFD models for the flotation process. Such an approach opens the possibility of extracting maximum advantage from the computed parameters of the flow field in developing more effective flotation devices.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: 'n Wye verskeidenheid van industriële toepassings gebruik meganies geroerde tenks vir doeleindes soos die meng van verskillende vloeistowwe, verspreiding van 'n afsonderlike fase in 'n deurlopende vloeistoffase en die skeiding van verskillende komponente in ‘n tenk. Die hoofdoel van die tesis is om ‘n numeriese model te ontwikkel vir ʼn flotteringstenk. Die kompleksiteit van die vloei (drie-dimensioneel, veelvuldige fases en volledig turbulent) maak die voorspelling van die werksverrigting van die flottasieproses moeilik. Konvensioneel word empiriese korrelasies gebruik vir modellering, ontwerp en die optimalisering van die flotteringstenks. In die huidige studie word ‘Computational Fluid Dynamics’ (CFD) egter gebruik vir die modellerings doel, aangesien dit ‘n alternatief bied vir empiriese vergelykings deurdat dit volledig inligting verskaf aangaande die gedrag van vloei in die tenk. Die model is ontwikkel in drie agtereenvolgende stadiums. Dit begin met ‘n strategie vir enkelfase modellering in die tenk, vorder dan na ‘n gas-vloeistof CFD model en brei dan die tweede stap uit om ‘n CFD model te skep vir die skeidingsproses deur flottering. ‘n Enkelfase model, gebaseer op die kontinuïteits- en momentumvergelykings, dien as basis vir die flottasie model. Die ‘Multiple Reference Frames’ (MRF) metode word gebruik om die rotasie van die stuwer na te boots, terwyl die dimensies van die rotasie-sone gekies is om die gepaardgaande onsekerhede, insluitend die model- en numeriese foute veroorsaak deur die dimensies van die roterende sones, te verminder. Die turbulensie model studie het getoon dat die standaard k-e turbulensie model redelike akkuraatheid kon lewer in die numeriese voorspellings en die resultate verskil in gemiddeld net minder as 15% van die eksperimentele lesings, terwyl die rekenaartyd min genoeg was om die simulasies op 'n persoonlike rekenaar uit te voer. Verder het die ‘Grid Convergence Index’ (GCI) metode die inherente onsekerhede in die numeriese voorspellings gerapporteer en gewys dat die onderskatting van die turbulensie wat algemeen plaasvind reggestel kan word deur van ‘Large Eddie’ (LES) of ‘Direct Numerical Simulations’ (DNS) gebruik te maak. Die metode wat ontwikkel is, is op twee tipes geroerde tenks getoets, naamlik 'n onafgeskorte menger en 'n standaard Rushton turbine tenk. Die numeriese resultate is teen eksperimentele data gevalideer en het gewys dat die model in staat is om die vloeipatrone, turbulensie einskappe en die vorming van agterblywende vortekse te voorspel. Die CFD resultate het getoon dat die vloeipatroon twee simmetriese rotasies siklusse bo en onder die roterende sone vorm, terwyl die vlak van die ooreenkoms tussen die numeriese voorspellings van die turbulente eienskappe en die eksperimentele lesings met minder as 25% verskil. As die tweede stap van hierdie navorsing is 'n Eulerian-Eulerian struktuur ontwikkel vir die gas-vloeistof modellering binne 'n standaard Rushton turbine flotteringstenk. Soos vir die enkelfase modellering is die Reynolds spanningstensor opgelos deur die standaard k-e turbulensie model, terwyl die lugborrels ingevoer/versamel is in/van die tenk deurmiddel van bron/sink terme. Verskeie ‘sparger’ rangskikkings is in die tenk geïmplementeer om die onsekerheid in die model weens die metode van luginspuiting te verminder. Verder is verskillende korrelasies vir die sleursyfer vergelyk vir laminêre en turbulente vloei in die tenk. Daar is gevind dat die skyf ‘sparger’, met 'n deursnee gelykstaande aan 40% van die stuwer deursnee, in samewerking met die voorgestelde model van Lane (Lane, 2006) vir die bepaalde sleursyfer die naaste ooreenkoms met die eksperimentele metings lewer (met 'n gemiddelde verskil van minder as 25%). 'n Vergelykende studie is ook uitgevoer om die gevolge van die gas vloeitempo en roerspoed vir drie verskillende geroerde tenks met volumes van 2.5 l, 10 l en 50 l te ondersoek. Die resultate van hierdie afdeling bevestig dat die CFD metode in staat was om die gas-vloeistof vloei in die flotteringstenk korrek te voorspel. Die veelvuldigefase model wat ontwikkel is, is uitgebrei vir flottasie modellering. Dit behels die integrasie van die CFD resultate met die fundamentele flottasie model van Pyke (Pyke, 2004) vir die flotteringstempo konstant. Die CFD model is toegerus met Pyke se model deur aanvullende gebruiker gedefinieerde funksies. Die CFD-kinetiese model is geëvalueer vir die flottering van kwartsdeeltjies en die resultate het die geloofwaardigheid van die model bevestig, aangesien die gemiddelde verskil tussen die numeriese voorspellings vir die flotteringstempo konstante en die eksperimentele data minder as 5% was. Die resultate is ook vergelyk met die analitiese berekeninge van Newell en daar is bevind dat die model vergelykbare voorspellings van die flotteringtempo konstantes lewer, met die ‘root mean square deviations’ (RMSD) gelyk of minder as die RMSD waardes vir die analitiese berekeninge. Verdere ondersoeke van die CFD-kinetiese model bestaan uit 'n parametriese studie wat die gevolge van die roertempo, gas vloeitempo en die oppervlak hidrofobisiteit op die flottering van kwarts- en galenietdeeltjies bestudeer. Die aanvaarbare ooreenkoms tussen die numeriese voorspellings en eksperimentele data (oor die algemeen minder as 12% fout) bewys dat die nuwe model gebruik kan word vir flotterings modellering en optimalisering.

In two-phase gas/liquid flow, the phenomenon of maldistribution of the phases occurring downstream of a splitting T-junction has been the topic of investigation of several authors. The negative consequences of this maldistribution on the operation of downstream unit have often led to the conclusion that T-junctions in two-phase pipelines are to be avoided. However, the large degree of segregation of the phases obtained at the outlets of a T-junction for certain flow rates and geometries, has encouraged Industry and researchers to exploit this simple device as a partial phases separator. In this work, experiments and interpretations are carried out in two experimental rigs, one with a horizontal main pipe (0.127 ID) and the other with a vertical main pipe (0-076). These consist of measurement of the split characteristic and, in the case of horizontal annular flow, of film thickness. Comparison with predictive models is carried out for the horizontal geometry. For the vertical main pipe experiments, interpretation and semi-empirical correlations are proposed to fit a large database including the present data and previous findings.

Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 1997
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: An experimental investigation on gas-liquid counterflow in inclined rectangular ducts is conducted. The pressure drop across the sharp-edged gas inlet and the pressure gradient inside the duct are measured. Combinations of water, methanol, propanol, air, argon, helium and hydrogen are tested. The duct height and width are varied from 50 mm to 150 mm and 10 mm to 20 mm respectively. The emphasis is on high void fraction flow, i.e. low liquid flow rates as encountered in air-cooled reflux condensers. At low to moderate gas flow rates the pressure gradient is gas Reynolds number related while it becomes dependent on the superficial densimetric gas Froude number as the gas flow is increased. According to experiment the hydraulic diameter is the required length dimension in the gas Reynolds number while the duct height becomes the characteristic dimension in the Froude number regime. Flooding curves are generated for duct inclinations from close to the horizontal to the vertical. The data correlate in terms of the phase Froude numbers and a dimensionless liquid property parameter containing the hydraulic diameter, density, surface tension and the viscosity. The flooding gas velocity is found to be strongly dependent on the duct height, the phase densities and the duct inclination. The liquid viscosity has a stronger effect than the surface tension. Both these properties however playa secondary role. Flooding is not related to the gas Reynolds number. A theoretical model, based on the phenomenological findings of the adiabatic counterflow investigation, is derived to evaluate the performance of an air-cooled reflux condenser. Field tests are conducted on a full scale reflux condenser and the measured performance is compared to the model prediction. The reflux condenser is found to achieve only 60% of the predicted heat rejection rate due to the existence of so-called cold or dead zones. Indications are that excessive entraiment in the bottom header and the subsequent accumulation of condensate in the finned tubes causes a maldistribution of the steamside flow. In the process noncondensable gases accumulate and form dead zones, causing ineffective performance. Flooding as found in single-ducts does not appear to contribute to the formation of the dead zones.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die teenvloei van gas en vloeistof in reghoekige skuins buise is eksperimenteel ondersoek. Die drukverlies oor die skerp gasinlaat en die drukval in die buis is gemeet vir verskillende kombinasies van water, propanol, metanol, lug, argon, helium en waterstof. Buishoogtes en breedtes van 50 mm tot 150 mm en 10 mm tot 20 mm respektiewelik is getoets. Die klem van die ondersoek is op lae vloeistofvloeitempos soos teenwoordig tydens kondensasie van stoom in lugverkoelde teenvloeikondensors. Vir lae tot matige gasvloeitempos is die drukval afhanklik van die gas Reynolds-getal terwyl die densimetriese gas Froude-getal die heersende parameter word soos die gasvloei toeneem. Die hidrouliese diameter verteenwoordig die dimensie in die Reynolds-getal maar die buishoogte word die karakteristieke dirnensie in die Froude-getal gebied. Vloedingskurwes is vir 'n reeks van buishoeke gegenereer. Die vloedingdata korreleer in terme van die Froude-getal en 'n dimensielose parameter bestaande uit die hidrouliese diameter, oppervlakspanning, vloeistofdigtheid en die vloeistofviskositeit. Die vloeidingsnelheid is primêr van die buishoogte, vloeierdigthede en die buishoek afhanklik. Die vloeistofviskositeit-effek is sterker as die van die oppervlakspanning. Beide die eienskappe speel egter 'n sêkondere rol. Die gas Reynolds-getal beïnvloed nie die vloeidingsproses nie. Die fundamentele bevindinge van die teenvloeiondersoek is toegepas om die werkverigting van 'n lugverkoelde teenvloeikondenser teoreties te modelleer. Werkverigtingstoetse is uitgevoer op 'n volskaal teenvloeikondenser. Die toetsresultate word vergelyk met die teoretiese voorspelling. Die teenvloeikondensor behaal slegs sowat 600% van die voorspelde warmteoordrag omdat van die gevinde buise gedeeltelik by omgewingstemperatuur is. Hierdie verskynsel heet koue of dooie sones. Dit blyk dat die kondensaat in die onderste spruitstuk nie vrylik kan dreineer nie en in die vorm van druppels deur die stoom opgesleur word. Gevolglik versamel kondensaat binne die buise en sodoende kan nie-kondenseerbare gasse nie effektief uit die teenvloeikondensor verwyder word nie. Soos die gasse versamel word koue sones gevorm. Dit blyk dat vloeding soos waargeneem in enkelbuise nie tot die vorming van koue sones bydra nie.

This thesis describes the unstable dynamics of a gas jet impinging on a falling liquid film. This flow configuration is encountered in the jet wiping process, used in continuous coating applications such as the hot-dip galvanizing to control the thickness of a liquid coat on a moving substrate. The interaction between these flows generates a non-uniform coating layer, of great concern for the quality of industrial products, and results from a complex coupling between the interface instabilities of the liquid film and the confinement-driven instabilities of the impinging jet.Combining experimental and numerical methods, this thesis studied the dynamics of these flows on three simplified flow configurations, designed to isolate the key features of their respective instabilities and to provide complementary information on their mutual interaction. These configurations include the gas jet impingement on a falling liquid film perturbed with controlled flow rate pulsation, the gas jet impingement on a solid interface reproducing stable and unstable liquid film interfaces and a laboratory scaled model of the jet wiping process. Each of these configurations was reproduced on dedicated experimental set-up, instrumented for non-intrusive measurement techniques such as High-Speed Flow Visualization (HSFV) and Time-resolved Particle Image Velocimetry (TR-PIV) for the gas jet flow analysis, Laser Induced Fluorescence (LIF) tracking of the liquid interface, and 3D Light Absorption (LAbs) measurement of the liquid film thickness. To optimize the performances of these measurement techniques, several advanced data processing routines were developed, including a novel image pre-processing method for background removal in PIV and a dynamic feature tracking for the automatic detection of the jet flow and the liquid film interface from HSFV, LIF, and PIV videos.To identify the flow structures driving the unstable response of the jet flow, a novel data-driven modal decomposition was developed. This decomposition, referred to as Multiscale Proper Orthogonal Decomposition (mPOD), was validated on synthetic, numerical and experimental test cases and allowed for better feature extraction than classical alternatives such as Proper Orthogonal Decomposition (POD) or Dynamic Mode Decomposition (DMD).The experimental work on these laboratory models was complemented with the analysis of several numerical simulations, including a classical 2D Unsteady Reynolds Averaged Navier Stokes (URANS) modeling of the gas jet impingement on a fixed interface, a 2D Variational Multiscale Simulation (VMS) with anisotropic mesh refinement of the gas jet impingement on a pulsing interface, and a 3D simulation of the jet wiping process combining Large Eddy Simulation (LES) on the gas side with Volume of Fluid (VOF) treatment of the liquid film flow. The experimental modal analysis on the dynamic response of the gas jet and the characterization of the pressure-velocity coupling in the numerical investigation allowed for a complete picture of the mechanism driving the jet oscillation and its possible impact on the liquid film.In parallel, several flow control strategies to prevent the jet oscillation were developed, tested numerically and experimentally in simplified conditions, and later implemented on the design of a new nozzle for the jet wiping process. This new nozzle was finally tested on a laboratory scale of the wiping process and its performances compared to single jet and multiple jet wiping configurations. In these three cases, the experimental work presents the modal analysis of the gas field using TR-PIV and mPOD, the liquid interface tracking via LIF, and the final coating thickness characterization via LAbs.The large spatiotemporally resolved experimental database allowed to give a detailed description of the jet wiping instability and to provide new insights on this fascinating fundamental and applied problem of fluid dynamics.
Doctorat en Sciences de l'ingénieur et technologie
info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

The transient effects of the breakup and atomization of liquid jets in a crossflow on the size of droplets within the spray plume was experimentally determined. Water and water/methanol mixtures were injected normal to a high velocity air stream at Mach numbers of 0.48 and 3.0 with ambient stagnation temperature and respective stagnation pressures of 1.4 and 4.3 atm. The liquids were injected at liquid-to-gas momentum flux ratios ranging from 4 to 12. Droplet size distributions were obtained using a Fraunhofer diffraction technique at sampling rates of up to 9 kHz. Liquid mass flow rates were inferred from measurements of the extinction of a laser beam traversing the plume. The droplet sizes were found to fluctuate with frequencies of the order of 1 to 10 kHz. The fluctuations were characterized by a sudden and relatively brief increase in the mean diameter of the droplets caused by the passage of fractured clumps through the spray plume. Also evident in the droplet size distributions was the very small size of the droplets that had been sheared off the windward surfaces of the jet. The jet fracture frequency was related to the frequency of waves propagating along the initial jet column. The column waves are postulated to have been caused by jet perturbations created by vortices in the air flow around the jet column.
Ph. D.

The production from an oil reservoir is a mixture of liquids (oil and water) and gas, and is often maintained by using a pump placed in the well to ensure a continuous flow to the surface. Electrical Submersible Pumps consist of stacked centrifugal pump stages, each comprising a bladed impeller (rotating part) and diffuser (stationary part). In multiphase conditions, the gas tends to accumulate in the impeller, severely reducing the pressure produced by the pump. Radial-flow pumps operate in a plane perpendicular to their rotation axis, while mixed-flow pumps are characterised by a lower meridional angle (generally 40 to 80 degrees), and are generally better at handling gas-liquid mixtures. We first describe the impact of gas on the whole pumping system, from the reservoir to the storage facility, and give context to the subject. The available literature shows that the size of the gas bubbles present in the fluid is critical to the pump performance. A transparent, full-scale pump was built in order to explore the flow features in single and multiphase flows. Laser Doppler Velocimetry and high speed imaging in single phase flow showed a high turbulence level in the wake of the impeller blades, and recirculation cells at low flow rates. In gas-liquid conditions, we demonstrated that the bubble size varies within a pump stage, as break-up occurs at the impeller tip, and coalescence is dominant in the diffuser, especially because of recirculation. The first impeller acted as a mixer, and at moderate to high gas fractions (10 to 30%), the flow patterns at the stage level alternated between bubbly and radially separated flows. Finally, a dispersed-gas model was developed to predict the pressure rise in a mixed-flow pump impeller under gas-liquid conditions. This model based on the forces acting on a single spherical gas bubble, was implemented with a simplified, parametric representation of the flow field in a mixed-flow impeller. In the meridional direction, the Coriolis force opposes the centrifugal force and the adverse pressure gradient. Both forces tend to retain the gas bubble within the impeller. The relative magnitude of the drag force strongly depends on the maximal bubble diameter, which was determined as a function of the flow conditions and used to calculate the gas velocity through the impeller. This method resulted in a better agreement with the experimental data than a one-dimensional two-fluid model where the gas phase follows the same path as the liquid. We used the dispersed-gas model to give quantitative evidence that low blade and meridional angles reduce the gas accumulation and the associated performance degradation.

The scope of supercritical fluid chromatography continues to enlarge. The use of open tublar and packed columns, nearly universal detectors and the introduction of new mobile phases make it more important. In this work sulfur hexafluoride is evaluated as a mobile phase for supercritical fluid chromatography. The separation of a model aromatic hydrocarbon mixture using different packed columns and operational parameters with UV as a detector is presented. The chromatographic properties of supercritical sulfur hexafluoride and supercritical carbon dioxide are compared under corresponding chromatographic parameters.
Master of Science

This thesis deals with the experimental and numerical analysis of the water hammer phenomenon generated by the discharge of a pressurized liquid into a pipeline kept under vacuum conditions. This flow configuration induces several multiphase phenomena such as cavitation and gas desorption that cannot be ignored in the water hammer behavior.

The motivation of this research work comes from the liquid propulsion systems used in spacecrafts, which can undergo fluid hammer effects threatening the system integrity. Fluid hammer can be particularly adverse during the priming phase, which involves the fast opening of an isolation valve to fill the system with liquid propellant. Due to the initial vacuum conditions in the pipeline system, the water hammer taking place during priming may involve multiphase phenomena, such as cavitation and desorption of a non-

condensable gas, which may affect the pressure surges produced in the lines. Even though this flow behavior is known, only few studies model the spacecraft hardware configuration, and a proper characterization of the two-phase flow is still missing. The creation of a reliable database and the physical understanding of the water hammer behavior in propulsion systems are mandatory to improve the physical models implemented in the numerical codes used to simulate this flow configuration.

For that purpose, an experimental facility modeling a spacecraft propulsion system has been designed, in which the physical phenomena taking place during priming are generated under controlled conditions in the laboratory using inert fluids. An extended experimental campaign was performed on the installation, aiming at analyzing the effect of various working parameters on the fluid hammer behavior, such as the initial pressure in the line, liquid saturation with the pressurant gas, liquid properties and pipe configuration. The influence of the desorbed gas during water hammer occurrence is found to have a great importance on the whole process, due to the added compressibility and lower speed of sound by an increasing amount of non-condensable gas in the liquid + gas mixture. This results in lower pressure levels and faster pressure peaks attenuation, compared to fluids without desorption. The two-phase flow was characterized by means of flow visualization of the liquid front at the location where the fluid hammer is generated. The front arrival was found to be preceded by a foamy mixture of liquid, vapor and non-condensable gas, and the pressure wave reflected at the tank may induce the liquid column separation at the bottom end. While column separation takes place, the successive pressure peaks are generated by the impact of the column back against the bottom end.

The resulting experimental database is then confronted to the predictions of the 1D numerical code EcosimPro/ESPSS used to assess the propulsion system designs. Simulations are performed with the flow configuration described before, modeling the experimental facility. The comparison of the numerical results against the experimental data shows that aspects such as speed of sound computation with a dissolved gas and friction modeling need to be improved.
Doctorat en Sciences de l'ingénieur
info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

The main aim of the work was to produce scale-up methods for the design of aerated stirred tanks using a combined computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and population balance approach. First a modeling study of single phase stirred tanks was performed to evaluate the best model features (turbulence model, impeller's model, discretisation, grid etc). Good agreement was obtained between the CFD simulation and the LDA measurement on the time-averaged mean velocities and turbulence quantities. The angle-resolved mean velocities and turbulence quantities were also predicted very well as were the power number and the positions of the vortex cores. The next stage involved the development of a population balance model (PBM) which was carried out first using a well-mixed single compartment implemented in MATLAB to reduce the modeling complexity. The algorithm was validated for various mechanisms, namely breakage, aggregation, nucleation and growth which have an analytical solution available from literature. Tests using realistic models for bubble coalescence and breakage were also carried out with the results showing a reasonable agreement with the Sauter mean bubble sizes obtained from empirical correlations. The algorithm also responded well to changes in the turbulence dissipation rate, the initial bubble size distribution and the local gas hold-up, which suggest that the final bubble size is not affected by the initial bubble size. A fully predictive model must combine both the fluid mechanics and bubble dynamics models which can be performed either by a four-way or three-way coupling simulation. The disadvantage of the latter is that is does not consider the effect of the bubble dynamics in- the two-phase modelling. A four-way coupling (CFD-PBM) method was carried out by implementing the PBM within the CFD code. Various drag models which take into account the effect of distorted bubbles and dense gas dispersion are also considered. Mass transfer models are also implemented using the bubble sizes obtained from the PBM. The CFD-PBM model showed a reasonable prediction of the power number, local bubble sizes, gas hold-up, dissolved oxygen concentration and the mean velocities of the two-phase flow in comparison to experimental data taken from the literature. Finally, the CFD-PBM model was employed to evaluate the consequences of scale-up on the mass transfer rate in aerated stirred tanks agitated either by Rushton turbine or CD-6 impeller with operating volume ranged from 14L to 1500L. Three scale-up rules, namely a constant P IV combined with either constant Fig, Vg and VVM were studied. The simulation results suggest, that a successful scale-up may be achieved by keeping the P IV and VVM constant, which led to a slightly higher (kLa) representing a more conservative approach. In contrast, constant P/V and Vg led to a slight reduction in the rate of mass transfer at larger scale which is in agreement with experimental measurement . from the literature. Results from the CFD-PBM simulation also suggest a similar scale-up rule may be applicable for an advanced gas dispersion impeller such as the CD-6 which yielded a similar scale-up trend to that of a Rushton turbine.

Z-Pinch IFE (Inertial Fusion Energy) reactor designs will likely utilize high yield targets (~ 3 GJ) at low repetition rates (~ 0.1 Hz). Appropriately arranged thick liquid jets can protect the cavity walls from the target x-rays, ions, and neutrons. However, the shock waves and mechanical loadings produced by rapid heating and evaporation of incompressible liquid jets may be challenging to accommodate within a small reactor cavity. This investigation examines the possibility of using two-phase compressible (liquid/gas) jets to protect the cavity walls in high yield IFE systems, thereby mitigating the mechanical consequences of rapid energy deposition within the jets. Two-phase, free, vertical jets with different cross sections (planar, circular, and annular) were examined over wide ranges of liquid velocities and void fractions. The void fraction and bubble size distributions within the jets were measured; correlations to predict variations of the slip ratio and the Sauter mean diameter were developed. An exploding wire system was used to generate a shock wave at the center of the annular jets. Attenuation of the shock by the surrounding single- or two-phase medium was measured. The results show that stable coherent jets can be established and steadily maintained over a wide range of inlet void fractions and liquid velocities, and that significant attenuation in shock strength can be attained with relatively modest void fractions (~ 1%); the compressible two-phase jets effectively convert and dissipate mechanical energy into thermal energy within the gas bubbles. The experimental characteristics of single- and two-phase jets were compared against predictions of a state-of-art CFD code (FLUENT®). The data obtained in this investigation will allow reactor system designers to predict the behavior of single- and two-phase jets and quantify their effectiveness in mitigating the consequences of shock waves on the cavity walls in high yield IFE systems.

The topic of this thesis is the interaction between gas jet flow and a liquid film dragged by a solid substrate. This method, known as jet-wiping, is used in several industrial processes. Hot-dip galvanization of steel strips is an important application, where jet wiping is used to control the thickness of the liquid zinc that is applied on a continuous steel substrate. Unsteady phenomena in the process lead to the creation of waves on the liquid film, which is known as undulation. This unwanted phenomenon deteriorates the quality of the final product.

The aim of the current study is to identify the causes of the undulation and propose possible solutions to tackle the problem. This is achieved through studying the hydrodynamic interaction between the gas jet flow and the liquid film. Experiments on a laboratory test facility and numerical simulations with 3 different Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) codes are employed for that purpose.
Doctorat en Sciences de l'ingénieur
info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Submerged flat sheet membranes are mostly used in membrane bioreactors for wastewater treatment. The major problems for these modules are concentration polarization and subsequent fouling. By using gas-liquid two-phase flow, these problems can be ameliorated. This thesis aimed to optimize the use of gas-liquid two-phase flow as a cleaning mechanism for submerged flat sheet membrane. The effect of various hydrodynamic factors such as airflow rate, nozzle size, nozzle geometry, intermittent bubbling, intermittent filtration, channel gap width, feed concentration and membrane baffles were investigated for model feed materials (yeast suspensions and mixed liquor from activated sludge plants). Insights into mechanisms by which two-phase flow reduces fouling for submerged flat sheet membranes were obtained by using Computational Fluid Dynamics. Experiments conducted showed that an optimal airflow rate exists beyond which no further flux enhancement was achieved. Fouling reduction increased with nozzle size at constant airflow. Nozzles of equal surface area but different geometries performed differently in terms of fouling reduction. Bubble size distribution analyses revealed that the percentage of larger bubbles and bubble rise velocities increased with the airflow rate and nozzle size. Thus the results of this study suggest that the effectiveness of two-phase flow depends on the bubble size. CFD simulations revealed that average shear stress on the membrane increased with airflow rate and bubble size and further indicated that an optimal bubble size possible exists. Using intermittent filtration as an operating strategy was found to be more beneficial than continuous filtration. This study also showed the importance of the size of the gap between the submerged flat sheet membranes. Increasing the gap from 7 mm to 14 mm resulted in an increase in fouling by about 40% based on the rate of increase in suction pressure (dTMP/dt). Finally, this is the first study which investigated the effect of baffles in improving air distribution across a submerged flat sheet membrane. It was found that baffles decreased the rate of fouling at least by a factor of 3.0 based on the dTMP/dt data.

In modern gas turbines parts of combustion chamber and turbine section are under heavy heat load, for example, the rotor inlet temperature is far higher than the melting point of the rotor blade material. These high temperatures causes thermal stresses in the material, therefore it is very important to cool the components for safe operation and to achieve desired component life. But on the other hand the cooling reduces the turbine efficiency, for that reason it is vital to understand and optimize the cooling technique.

In this project Thermochromic Liquid Crystals (TLCs) are used to measure distribution of heat transfer coefficient over a scaled up combustor liner section. TLCs change their color with the variation of temperature in a particular temperature range. The color-temperature change relation of a TLC is sharp and precise; therefore TLCs are used to measure surface temperature by painting the TLC over a test surface. This method is called Liquid Crystal Thermography (LCT). LCT is getting popular in industry due to its high-resolution results, repeatability and ease of use.

Test model in present study consists of two plates, target plate and impingement plate. Cooling of the target plate is achieved by impingement of air coming through holes in the impingement plate. The downstream surface of the impingement plate is then cooled by cross flow and re-impingement of the coolant air.

Heat transfer on the target plate is not uniform; areas under the jet which are called stagnation points have high heat transfer as compare to the areas away from the center of jet. It is almost the same situation for the impingement plate but the location of stagnation point is different. A transient technique is used to measure this non-uniform heat transfer distribution. It is assumed that the plates are semi-infinitely thick and there is no lateral heat transfer in the plates. To fulfill the assumptions a calculated time limit is followed and the test plates are made of Plexiglas which has very low thermal conductivity.

The transient technique requires a step-change in the mainstream temperature of the test section. However, in practical a delayed increase in mainstream temperature is attained. This issue is dealt by applying Duhamel’s theorem on the step-change heat transfer equation. MATLAB is used to get the Hue data of the recorded video frames and calculate the time taken for each pixel to reach a predefined surface temperature. Having all temperatures and time values the heat transfer equation is iteratively solved to get the value of heat transfer coefficient of each and every pixel of the test surface.

In total fifteen tests are conducted with different Reynolds number and different jet-to-target plate distances. It is concluded that for both the target and impingement plates, a high Reynolds number provides better overall heat transfer and increase in jet-to-target distance

decreases the overall heat transfer.

The aim of this study is to measure the three characteristic agitator speeds (loading speed, complete dispersion speed and just drawdown speed) in a mechanically agitated vessel containing three phases (gas, solid and liquid phases). The gas phase is air, the liquid phase is a water solution with 15% (by weight) concentration of glucose and the solid phase is made by particles of polyethylene that present two different mean values of diameter (dp = 3,025mm and dp = 4,025mm). The first system considered was a vessel agitated by only one impeller (Smith turbine) and the second system was one vessel agitated by two impellers (Smith turbine and pitched blade turbine). The aim of the experiment was to understand how the solid concentration, the volumetric gas flow rate and the mean diameter of the solid particles can affect the 3 characteristic speeds in the two different mechanically agitated systems. A comparison between the two system was made in different conditions of: - solid particles concentration - volumetric gas flow rate - diameter of the solid particles

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2005.
D. William Tedder, Committee Member ; Minami Yoda, Committee Member ; Tom McDonough, Committee Member ; Andrei G. Fedorov, Committee Member ; S. Mostafa Ghiaasiaan, Committee Chair ; Seppo Karrila, Committee Member. Includes bibliographical references.

Richtmyer-Meshkov instability is studied in shock tube experiments with an Atwood number of 0.7. The interface is formed in a vertical shock tube using opposed gas flows, and three-dimensional random initial interface perturbations are generated by the vertical oscillation of gas column producing Faraday waves. Planar Laser Mie scattering is used for flow visualization and for measurements of the mixing process. Experimental image sequences are recorded at 6 kHz frequency and processed to obtain the time dependent variation of the integral mixing layer width. Measurements of the mixing layer width are compared with Mikaelian's [1] model in order to extract the growth exponent. where a fairly wide range of values is found varying from theta approximate to 0.2 to 0.6.

The performance of ebullated bed hydroprocessors depends on the fluids distribution system and liquid recycle pan. Given that bubbles do not readily coalesce in the bed, the original bubble size distribution generated at the bubble cap distributor likely impacts buoyancy-based phase separation at the recycle pan. Gas entrained in the liquid recycle increases bed gas holdup at the expense of liquid holdup and product yield. The aim of this work was to investigate the impact of gas-liquid distribution system on resulting bubble properties and dynamics and incorporate a distributor sub-model into an existing fluid dynamics model of the industrial hydroprocessor. The size of initial bubbles formed in the plenum chamber was found to have negligible impact on phase holdups above the distributor. However, resulting bubble properties were found to depend on distributor geometry, distributor power dissipation and gas-liquid velocity ratio. In addition, a new set of scaling laws for gas-liquid distributors, based on dimensional analysis and similitude, was proposed. Geometric scaling was based on matching distributor fractional open area and ratios of critical dimensions. Dynamic similarity was based on matching three dimensionless groups and bubble coalescence behaviour. A bubble size distribution model was then developed. Both pressure and distributor were found to have an impact on individual bubble drag coefficients, as they both altered bubble size distribution. A novel drag model was thus also developed at industrially relevant conditions. Finally, a new gas-liquid distributor sub-model, including bubble size distribution and drag models previously developed, was incorporated into an overall fluid dynamics model of the hydroprocessor. The bubble size distribution model was also coupled with existing gas-liquid separation sub-model to better predict recycled gas and liquid fractions. A sensitivity analysis performed with the overall model revealed distributor configurations with potential of improving the processing capacity of the hydroprocessor.

Gravity on Earth limits the study of the properties of pure fluids near critical point because they become stratified under their own weight. Near the critical point, all thermodynamic properties either diverge or converge and the heating and cooling cause instabilities of the convective flow as a consequence of the expansibility divergence. In order to study boiling, fluctuation and phase separation processes near the critical point of pure fluids without the influence of the Earth's gravity, a number of experiments were performed in the weightlessness of Mir space station. The experimental setup called ALICE II instrument was designed to suppress sedimentation and buoyancy-driven flow. Another set of experiments were carried out on Earth using a carefully density matched system of deuterated methanolcycloxexane to observe critical fluctuations directly. The set of experiments performed on board of Mir space station studied boiling and wetting film dynamics during evaporation near the critical point of two pure fluids (sulfur hexafluoride and carbon dioxide) using a defocused grid method. The specially designed cell containing the pure fluid was heated and, as a result, a low contrast line appeared on the wetting film that corresponded to a sharp change in the thickness of the film. A large mechanical response was observed in response to the cell heating and we present quantitative results about the receding contact lines. It is found that the vapor recoil force is responsible for the receding contact line. Local density fluctuations were observed by illuminating a cylindrical cell filled with the pure fluid near its liquid- gas critical point and recorded using a microscope and a video recorder. Microscopic fluctuations were analyzed both in sulfur hexafluoride and in a binary mixture of methanol cyclohexane. Using image processing techniques, we were able to estimate the properties of the fluid from the recorded images showing fluctuations of the transmitted and scattered light. We found that the histogram of an image can be fitted to a Gaussian relationship and by determining its width we were able to estimate the position of the critical point. The characteristic length of the fluctuations corresponding to the maximum of the radial average of the power spectrum was also estimated. The power law growth for the early stage of the phase separation was determined for two different temperature quenches in pure fluid and these results are in agreement with other experimental results and computational simulations.

This thesis presents a compendium of work on superheated liquid releases. Superheated liquid releases are often subject to flashing. Nucleation has been identified as an important process in the early stage of flashing. The presence of strong nucleation and therefore flashing depends on the output of the balance of the promoting forces and dissipation forces inside the fluid released. A one dimensional model to classify the type of jet to be formed after the release has been developed based on the balance of these forces. The analysis is based on the assumption that the nucleation process can be modelled as a second order damped system. The model parameters are defined as a function of the pressure, temperature, fluid properties and geometric characteristic of the system. The results obtained have good agreement with the experimental results available for releases of different fluids, including both hydrocarbons and water. The calculation of the velocity discharge, void fraction and mass flow of a flashing jet generated after the release is made based on the thermodynamics jump formulation approach. Due to the nature of the nucleation process, the assumptions of adiabatic flow with non reversible work for the surface tension forces are made. Those considerations are found to be more realistic that the isentropic condition used until now by different authors. Numerical techniques are only applied after the flashing jet is formed, no droplets generation or vapour generation are included. Droplets are imposed as part of the boundary conditions of a gas jet. Droplets transport mechanics and momentum exchange with the gas current is made using Droplet Disperse Model (DDM) on the commercial code Fluent Ò. DDM determines the distribution of the disperse phase over the continuous phase using a Lagrangian Eulerian approach. The influence of velocity, the dimension of the nozzle and mass flow used in the CFD modelling were analysed. Nozzle dimensions have a large impact on the core region length of the velocity profile. The k −e turbulent model was used. As expected, the numerical results do approach experimental values in the far region, suggesting that the momentum of the two phase jet is conserved. The one dimensional model thus provides the necessary boundary conditions for the application of numerical methods to superheated liquid releases including flashing.

This study aims at understanding the effect of fluid rheology on gas dispersion and mixing in mechanically agitated vessels. Bulk flow is linked with the two-phase flow in the impeller region and the power drawn by the rotating agitator(s). A base case study using a Rushton Disc Turbine in water is initially reported. Model Newtonian, viscoelastic and shear-thinning fluids (corn syrup, Boger fluids and Carbopol solutions respectively) and a typical fluid (CMC solution) were then used to determine the effects of fluid rheology on flow phenomena and power consumption for single agitators (Disc Turbines and Angle-Bladed Impellersl dual combinations thereof, and InterMIGs under gassed and ungassed conditions in a 0.61 m diameter vessel. Similar experiments were performed in smaller vessels. The relative effectiveness of all the agitator configurations studied at achieving bulk liquid mixing was also determined using a redox reaction technique. The most energy efficient configuration proved to be a large Disc Turbine combined with an equisized Angle-Bladed Impeller (pumping upwards) in both the gassed and ungassed cases. The results presented in this thesis are also related to process design considerations and a technique which predicts the agitator rotational speed and diameter required for achieving optimal mass transfer is developed.