3-D Numerical Simulation of Gas-Liquid Flow in a Minichannel With a Non-Uniform GDL Surface

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yulong Ding ◽  
Xiaotao T. Bi ◽  
David P. Wilkinson
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Flow Pattern ◽  
Liquid Flow ◽  
Two Phase Flow ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Phase Flow ◽  
Two Phase ◽  
Corner Flow ◽  
Side Walls ◽  
Simulation Results

Gas-liquid two-phase flow in rectangular minichannels of polymer-electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) has a major impact on the fuel cell performance and durability. Different from traditional two-phase flow in other applications, water in the PEMFCs is introduced into the minichannel from the gas diffusion layers (GDLs) through random pores of different sizes. Meanwhile, the four channel surfaces may have different wettabilities due to the different materials used. Thus, the microstructure of GDLs and the surface wettability should be considered in investigating the two-phase flow in PEMFC channels. One challenge in simulating PEMFCs is that, full consideration of detailed microstructure of GDL needs extremely large computational time. In this work, we simplified the microstructure of GDL to a number of representative pores on the 2D GDL surface. A 3-D minichannel with 1.0 mm × 1.0 mm square cross section and 100 mm long was used in the simulation. Operating conditions and material properties were selected according to realistic fuel cell operating conditions. Volume of fluid (VOF) method was employed to explicitly track the droplet surfaces emerging from the non-uniform GDLs. Simulation results show that, as the flow develops along the channel, the flow pattern evolves from corner flow on the bottom and side wall to corner flow on the top wall, annular flow and slug flow. The effects of liquid injection rates were studied, and it is found that the high liquid flow rate would accelerate the flow pattern development. The effect of wall surface material wettability was also studied by changing the hydrophobicity of GDL surface and side walls, separately. Simulation results show that the material wettability has a strong impact on the two-phase flow pattern, with a more hydrophilic side walls and/or a more hydrophobic GDL surface being more beneficial for expelling water out of the channel.

An Analytical Solution to Predict the Inception of Two-Phase Flow in a Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell

2010 ◽  
Vol 7 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
A. S. Bansode ◽  
T. Sundararajan ◽  
Sarit K. Das
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Analytical Model ◽  
Current Density ◽  
Proton Exchange Membrane ◽  
Two Phase Flow ◽  
Proton Exchange ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Phase Flow ◽  
Two Phase ◽  
Exchange Membrane

The presence of liquid water at the cathode of proton exchange membrane fuel cell hinders the reactant supply to the electrode and is known as electrode flooding. The flooding at the cathode due to the presence of two-phase flow of water is one of the major performance limiting conditions. A pseudo-two-dimensional analytical model is developed to predict the inception of two-phase flow along the length of the cathode channel. The diffusion of the water is considered to take place only across the gas diffusion layer (GDL). The current density corresponding to the inception of two-phase flow, called the threshold current density, is found to be a function of the channel length and height, GDL thickness, velocity, and relative humidity of the air at the inlet and cell temperature. Thus, for given design and operating conditions, the analytical model is capable of predicting the inception of two-phase flow, and therefore a flooding condition can be avoided in the first place.

Nonlinear Analysis of Two-Phase Flow in Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell Cathode Microchannels

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Burkholder ◽  
Nicholas Siefert ◽  
Shawn Litster
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte ◽  
Strange Attractor ◽  
Two Phase Flow ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell ◽  
Phase Flow ◽  
Two Phase ◽  
Fuel Cell Cathode ◽  
Cell Cathode

In this work, we apply a nonlinear chaos analysis to the two phase flow in polymer electrolyte fuel cell cathode air-delivery microchannels. The fuel cell voltage signal is analyzed using techniques designed to estimate invariants typical of deterministic systems with high sensitivity to initial conditions, such as chaotic two phase flow. Voltage data are taken under varying fuel cell operating conditions, and noise in the data is reduced using a nonlinear noise reduction algorithm. The chaotic strange attractor of the system is reconstructed in phase space using time-delay embedding. Correlation sums over the strange attractor are calculated to estimate the fractal correlation dimension of the system. Estimations of the Kolmogorov entropy provide an additional measure of the complexity of the strange attractor. The values of the chaotic invariants are compared across varying degrees of cathode flooding to discern how they change with two phase flow regimes and fuel cell operating conditions. Future work will involve leveraging the chaotic understanding of two phase flow with chaos control methods to increase the power stability.

Flow Pattern Transition in Pipes Using Data-Driven and Physics-Informed Machine Learning

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
André M. Quintino ◽  
Davi L. L. N. da Rocha ◽  
Roberto Fonseca Jr. ◽  
Oscar M. H. Rodriguez
Keyword(s):  
Machine Learning ◽  
Experimental Data ◽  
Flow Pattern ◽  
Liquid Flow ◽  
Two Phase Flow ◽  
Data Driven ◽  
Phase Flow ◽  
Two Phase ◽  
Flow Pattern Transition ◽  
Gas Liquid Flow

Abstract Flow pattern is an important engineering design factor in two-phase flow in the chemical, nuclear and energy industries, given its effects on pressure drop, holdup, and heat and mass transfer. The prediction of two-phase flow patterns through phenomenological models is widely used in both industry and academy. In contrast, as more experimental data become available for gas-liquid flow in pipes, the use of data-driven models to predict flow-pattern transition, such as machine learning, has become more reliable. This type of heuristic modeling has a high demand for experimental data, which may not be available in some industrial applications. As a consequence, it may fail to deliver a sufficiently generalized transition prediction. Incorporation of physics in machine learning is being proposed as an alternative to improve prediction and also to reduce the demand for experimental data. This paper evaluates the use of hybrid-physics-data machine learning to predict gas-liquid flow-pattern transition in pipes. Random forest and artificial neural network are the chosen tools. A database of experiments available in the open literature was collected and is shared in this work. The performance of the proposed hybrid model is compared with phenomenological and data-driven machine learning models through confusion matrices and graphics. The results show improvement in prediction performance even with a low amount of data for training. The study also suggests that graphical comparison of flow-pttern transition boundaries provides better understanding of the performance of the models than the traditional metric

Flow Regime Evolution in Long, Serpentine Microchannels With a Porous Carbon Paper Wall

2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julie E. Steinbrenner ◽  
Eon Soo Lee ◽  
Fu-Min Wang ◽  
Chen Fang ◽  
Carlos H. Hidrovo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Flow Regime ◽  
Liquid Flow ◽  
Liquid Water ◽  
Two Phase Flow ◽  
Pem Fuel Cells ◽  
Carbon Paper ◽  
Phase Flow ◽  
Two Phase ◽  
Flow Rates

An important function of the gas delivery channels in Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cells is the evacuation of liquid water created at the cathode. The resulting two-phase flow can become an obstacle to reactant transport and a source of parasitic losses. The present work examines the behavior of two-phase flow in 500 μm × 500 μm × 60 cm channels with distributed water injection through a porous carbon paper wall to gain understanding of the physics of flows relevant to fuel cell water management challenges. Flow regime maps based on local gas and liquid flow rates are constructed for experimental conditions corresponding to current densities between 0.5 and 1 A/cm2 and stoichiometric coefficients from 1 to 4. Flow structures are analyzed along the entire length of the channel. It is observed that slug flow is favored to plug flow at high air flow rates and low liquid flow rates. Stratified flow dominates at high liquid flow rates. Along the axial flow direction, the flow regime consistently transitions from intermittent to wavy to stable stratified flow. This progression is quantified using a parameter of flow progression which characterizes the degree of development of the two-phase flow toward the stable stratified condition. This parameter is discussed in relation to fuel cell operating conditions. It provides a metric for analyzing liquid water removal mechanisms in the cathode channels of PEM fuel cells.

scholarly journals Liquid Flow and Mass Transfer Behaviors in a Butterfly-Shaped Microreactor

Micromachines ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (8) ◽  
pp. 883
Author(s):  
Haicheng Lv ◽  
Zhirong Yang ◽  
Jing Zhang ◽  
Gang Qian ◽  
Xuezhi Duan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Transfer ◽  
Flow Pattern ◽  
Liquid Flow ◽  
Two Phase Flow ◽  
Flow Behavior ◽  
Dynamics Simulation ◽  
Mixing Efficiency ◽  
Phase Flow ◽  
Two Phase ◽  
Flow Rates

Based on the split-and-recombine principle, a millimeter-scale butterfly-shaped microreactor was designed and fabricated through femtosecond laser micromachining. The velocity fields, streamlines and pressure fields of the single-phase flow in the microreactor were obtained by a computational fluid dynamics simulation, and the influence of flow rates on the homogeneous mixing efficiency was quantified by the mixing index. The flow behaviors in the microreactor were investigated using water and n-butanol, from which schematic diagrams of various flow patterns were given and a flow pattern map was established for regulating the flow behavior via controlling the flow rates of the two-phase flow. Furthermore, effects of the two-phase flow rates on the droplet flow behavior (droplet number, droplet size and standard deviation) in the microreactor were investigated. In addition, the interfacial mass transfer behaviors of liquid–liquid flow were evaluated using the standard low interfacial tension system of “n-butanol/succinic acid/water”, where the dependence between the flow pattern and mass transfer was discussed. The empirical relationship between the volumetric mass transfer coefficient and Reynold number was established with prediction error less than 20%.

Towards Understanding Two-Phase Flow Induced Vibration of Piping Structure With Flow Restricting Orifices

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olufemi E. Bamidele ◽  
Wael H. Ahmed ◽  
Marwan Hassan
Keyword(s):  
Flow Pattern ◽  
Flow Rate ◽  
Liquid Flow ◽  
Slug Flow ◽  
Two Phase Flow ◽  
Liquid Flow Rate ◽  
Liquid Velocity ◽  
Phase Flow ◽  
Flow Induced Vibration ◽  
Two Phase

The current work studies air-water flow through a ½-inch flow restricting orifice installed in a 1-inch pipe. Investigation of two phase flow downstream the orifice and its effects on vibration of the piping structure have been carried out. Several flow regimes from bubbly to stratified-wavy flow have been analyzed to evaluate the effects of flow pattern, phase redistribution, bubble frequency, and liquid flow rate on the vibration of the structure. The liquid velocity fields have been obtained using Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) along with post processing algorithm for phase discrimination. Proximity sensors have been used to capture the pipe response in two orthogonal directions. Also, a capacitance sensor was used to measure the two-phase void fraction. The results show that the magnitude and nature of vibrations of the piping structure is largely affected by the frequency and size of the bubbles upstream, vortex creation by pressure fluctuation downstream, liquid flow rate, and the flow pattern upstream. Slug flow and stratified flow patterns induced significant vibrations in the examined structure. The location of the transition region of slug flow on flow pattern maps, play important role in the dynamic response of the structure to the flow.

Flow Configure in Vertical 180 Degree Turning Duct

2001 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lu Yuanwei ◽  
Zhou Fangde ◽  
Wang Yueshe ◽  
Qian Huanqun ◽  
Hu Zhihua
Keyword(s):  
Flow Pattern ◽  
Liquid Flow ◽  
Two Phase Flow ◽  
Vertical Tube ◽  
Experimental Result ◽  
Phase Flow ◽  
Two Phase ◽  
Vertical Part ◽  
Flow Situation ◽  
Gas Liquid Flow

Abstract Bend is applied in many industries, which exert an influence on fluid and make the flow complicate. The second flow caused by the bend is strong enough that the flow behind it very long can be affected, so it is hard to make the flow in it steady. The long-term unsteady flow can make the pipe fatigue, so make the tube crack and leak. It is important to improve this situation. In this paper a throttle is built in the exit of the bend to control the non-homogeneous flow inside the bend, which can overcome the disadvantage of bend in industrial application. Through computed the flow field behind the bend by water, we can see that the throttle can improve the flow situation and make the flow steady behind it. Applying this method to the gas-liquid flow, the experimental result showed that the void fraction behind the bend is alike the fully developed flow. It means that the throttle can improve the two-phase flow situation in the invert U bend. At last the gas-liquid flow pattern in-bend was studied by experiment and built the flow pattern map in the vertical parts of the invert U bend. It was found that the flow pattern in the vertical part of invert U bend is different from the fully developed gas-liquid flow in vertical tube. The throttle built in the bend make the unsteady region of two-phase flow being reduced.

Effects of Inlet Arrangements on Liquid-Liquid Flow Patterns in Cross-Junction Square Microchannels

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jin-Yuan Qian ◽  
Zan Wu ◽  
Zhen Cao ◽  
Bengt Sunden
Keyword(s):  
Flow Pattern ◽  
Liquid Flow ◽  
Two Phase Flow ◽  
High Surface ◽  
Scale Up ◽  
Flow Patterns ◽  
Continuous Phase ◽  
Phase Flow ◽  
Two Phase ◽  
Circular Microchannels

Due to the high surface area to volume ratios leading to intensified heat and mass transfer rates, microreactors have been subject of interest for some time. Liquid-liquid two-phase flow is a very common phenomenon in microchannels. During the scale-up using a numbering-up approach, rectangular and square microchannels are preferred to circular microchannels in terms of easier integration of the former with a less volume. Therefore, liquid-liquid two-phase flow in non-circular microchannels has been investigated recently. However, there are still gaps in the fundamental understanding of liquid-liquid two-phase flow, such as the effect of inlet junctions or arrangements on flow patterns in non-circular microchannels. The present work aims to study the effect of inlet arrangements on liquid-liquid two-phase flow dynamics and flow patterns of square glass microchannels. In this paper, oil is used as the dispersed phase and de-ionized water is used as the continuous phase. The special inlet arrangement in the cross-junction is compared to these common inlet arrangements of T-junction and cross-junction square microchannels. The effect of the inlet continuous phase velocity on the slug length is studied. Then, the slug lengths with the same inlet velocities of the three inlets and equal velocities of the two phases are carried out, respectively. Meanwhile, typical liquid-liquid flow pattern transitions are achieved at specific conditions. Finally, a special phenomenon without the droplet flow pattern is introduced, due to introduction of the novel inlet arrangement.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document