Flow Pattern Prediction in Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) Under Gassy Flow Conditions Using Transient Multiphase CFD Methods With Visualization Experimental Validation

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jianjun Zhu ◽  
Ruben Cuamatzi-Melendez ◽  
Jose Alberto Martinez Farfan ◽  
Haiwen Zhu ◽  
Jiecheng Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Flow Pattern ◽  
Liquid Flow ◽  
Flow Patterns ◽  
Numerical Results ◽  
Submersible Pump ◽  
Eulerian Model ◽  
Cfd Simulations ◽  
Flow Rates ◽  
Electrical Submersible Pump ◽  
Multiphase Cfd

This paper presents a numerical study of flow pattern recognition inside the rotating impeller of electrical submersible pump (ESP) using the transient multiphase CFD simulations. Based on the previous experimental facility for visualizing flow patterns in an ESP, the entire flow domain is constructed. The high-quality structured mesh comprising hexahedral grids is generated using multi-block technique in ANSYS ICEM. Mesh independence is confirmed by comparing numerical results with catalog curves. For transient two-phase simulation, the realized RNG k-ε turbulence model with volume of fluid (VOF) and Eulerian multiphase models is successfully implemented in ANSYS Fluent solver. The sliding mesh technique is applied to interfaces where rotating and stationary parts interact. By incorporating the same boundary conditions as experimental study, two different cases with fixed liquid flow rates and varying gas flow rates are selected to conduct CFD simulations. The comparison of numerical results against experimental visualizations shows that the two-fluid Eulerian model is superior to VOF model in simulating gas/liquid flow in a rotating ESP. The single-phase simulation results match catalog curves of ESP, which validates the numerical methodology. For gas-liquid simulations, the simulated flow patterns with Eulerian model agree well with visualization experiments. The distinct flow patterns prevailing inside the rotating ESP impeller are captured by CFD simulations, including dispersed bubble flow, bubbly flow, and intermittent flow.

Gas-liquid downward flow through narrow vertical conduits: effect of angle of entry and tube-diameter on flow patterns

2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Amit Kumar ◽  
Gargi Das ◽  
Subhabrata Ray ◽  
Jay Mant Jha ◽  
Amit K. Thakur ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Flow Pattern ◽  
Liquid Flow ◽  
Glass Tube ◽  
Stratified Flow ◽  
Flow Patterns ◽  
Tube Diameter ◽  
Downward Flow ◽  
Flow Rates ◽  
Included Angle ◽  
Flow Through

Abstract The present study investigates the flow pattern characteristics of air-water co-current down-flow in millichannels. The experiments have been performed in glass tube of diameter 0.0042 and 0.008 m. The fluids are injected through Y entry the included angle between the Y arms being 45°, 90°, 135°, and 180° (T Entry). The investigation reveals that the flow patterns are function of tube-diameter, and angle of fluid entry. Interestingly, stratified flow has been observed for steeper Y entry section at low liquid flow rates.

Modeling flow pattern transitions in electrical submersible pump under gassy flow conditions

2019 ◽  
Vol 180 ◽  
pp. 471-484 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jianjun Zhu ◽  
Jiecheng Zhang ◽  
Guangqiang Cao ◽  
Qingqi Zhao ◽  
Jianlin Peng ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Flow Pattern ◽  
Submersible Pump ◽  
Flow Conditions ◽  
Electrical Submersible Pump ◽  
Modeling Flow

Simulation on Flow Pattern Transition With Liquid Nitrogen and its Vapor Using a Droplet Entrainment Model

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rui Zhou ◽  
Tao Xia ◽  
Xiaobin Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Flow Pattern ◽  
Liquid Nitrogen ◽  
Slug Flow ◽  
Flow Patterns ◽  
Eulerian Model ◽  
Ansys Fluent ◽  
Droplet Entrainment ◽  
Flow Pattern Transition ◽  
Churn Flow ◽  
Two Fluid

Abstract A droplet entrainment model was applied to characterize the flow pattern transition in the countercurrent horizontal flow with liquid nitrogen (LN2) and vapor nitrogen (VN2). A two-fluid three-field model consisting of liquid film, gas, and droplet was implemented based on the Eulerian-Eulerian model in ANSYS Fluent®. In the droplet entrainment model, the condition and position of the droplet generation were realized by calculating the velocity gradient in the normal direction of the interface towards the gas core. The droplet entrainment and deposition rates were also included and validated according to the available data of water/air in the literature. Three flow patterns, including stratified-wavy flow, churn flow, and pseudo-slug flow, were identified in simulation results with LN2/VN2. Furthermore, ligament breakup was found to be the main droplet entrainment mechanism in the churn and pseudo-slug flow, and there can be a high probability of the occurrence of bubble burst as well. Compared with water/air, the droplets are more easily to be entrained in LN2/VN2 due to the smaller viscosity and surface tension according to the results of droplet mass flow rate. Pressure drop signals of the three flow patterns were also obtained and analyzed.

Experimental Study on Flow Patterns of Decaying Swirling Gas-Liquid Flow in a Horizontal Pipe

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shuai Liu ◽  
Li Liu ◽  
Jiarong Zhang ◽  
Hanyang Gu
Keyword(s):  
Flow Pattern ◽  
Liquid Flow ◽  
Separation Efficiency ◽  
Swirling Flow ◽  
Flow Patterns ◽  
Two Phase ◽  
Horizontal Pipe ◽  
Gas Removal ◽  
Swirl Vane ◽  
Gas Liquid Flow

Abstract Swirling flow is one of the well-recognized techniques to control the working process. This special flow is widely adopted in swirl vane separators in nuclear steam generator (SG) for water droplet separation and the fission gas removal system in Thorium Molten Salt Reactor (TMSR) for gas bubble separation. Since the parameters such as separation efficiency, pressure drop and mass and heat transfer rate are strongly dependent on the flow pattern, the accurate prediction of flow patterns and their transitions is extremely important for the proper design, operation and optimization of swirling two-phase flow systems. In this paper, using air and water as working fluids, a visualization experiment is carried out to study the gas-liquid flow in a horizontal pipe containing a swirler with four helical vanes. The test pipe is 5 m in length and 30 mm in diameter. Firstly, five typical flow patterns of swirling gas-liquid flow at the outlet of the swirler are classified and defined, these being spiral chain, swirling gas column, swirling intermittent, swirling annular and swirling ribbon flow. Being affected by the different gas and liquid flow rate of non-swirling flow, it is found that the same non-swirling flow can change into different swirling flow patterns. After that, the evolution of various swirling flow patterns along the streamwise direction is analyzed considering the influence of swirl attenuation. The results indicate that the same swirling flow pattern can transform into a variety of swirling flow patterns and subsequent non-swirling flow patterns. Finally, the flow pattern maps at different positions downstream of the swirler are presented.

scholarly journals Gas–liquid Flow Pattern Recognition Based on Wavelet Packet Energy Entropy of Vortex-induced Pressure Fluctuation

2013 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 83-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhiqiang Sun ◽  
Shuai Shao ◽  
Hui Gong
Keyword(s):  
Pattern Recognition ◽  
Flow Pattern ◽  
Liquid Flow ◽  
Pressure Fluctuation ◽  
Bluff Body ◽  
Flow Direction ◽  
Wavelet Packet ◽  
Flow Patterns ◽  
Energy Entropy ◽  
Gas Liquid Flow

Here we report a novel flow-pattern map to distinguish the gas-liquid flow patterns in horizontal pipes at ambient temperature and atmospheric pressure. The map is constructed using the coordinate system of wavelet packet energy entropy versus total mass flow rate. The wavelet packet energy entropy is obtained from the coefficients of vortex-induced pressure fluctuation decomposed by the wavelet packet transform. A triangular bluff body perpendicular to the flow direction is employed to generate the pressure fluctuation. Experimental tests confirm the suitability of the wavelet packet energy entropy as an ideal indicator of the gas-liquid flow patterns. The overall identification rate of the map is 92.86%, which can satisfy most engineering applications. This method provides a simple, practical, and robust solution to the problem of gas-liquid flow pattern recognition.

Modeling Oscillatory Behavior of Electrical Submersible Pump Wells Under Two-Phase Flow Conditions

2014 ◽  
Vol 136 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rinaldo Antonio de Melo Vieira ◽  
Mauricio Gargaglione Prado
Keyword(s):  
Flow Rate ◽  
Liquid Flow ◽  
Two Phase Flow ◽  
Liquid Flow Rate ◽  
Oscillatory Behavior ◽  
Phase Flow ◽  
Submersible Pump ◽  
Flow Conditions ◽  
Two Phase ◽  
Electrical Submersible Pump

The effect of free gas on electrical submersible pump (ESP) performance is well known. At a constant rotational speed and constant liquid flow rate, a small amount of gas causes a mild head reduction when compared to the single phase liquid head. However, at higher gas rates, a drastic reduction in the head is observed. This critical condition, known as the surging point, is a combination of liquid and gas flow rates that cause a maximum in the head performance curve. The first derivative of the head with respect to the liquid flow rate changes sign as the liquid flow rate crosses the surging point. In several works on ESP two-phase flow performance, production conditions to the left of the surging region are described or reported as unstable operational conditions. This paper reviews basic concepts on stability of dynamical systems and shows through simulation that ESP oscillatory behavior may result from two-phase flow conditions. A specific drift flux computation code was developed to simulate the dynamic behavior of ESP wells producing without packers.

Surfactant Use for Slug Flow Pattern Suppression in a Horizontal Pipe

2003 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. J. Wilkens ◽  
S. R. Glassmeyer ◽  
G. J. Rosebrock ◽  
K. M. Storage ◽  
T. M. Storage
Keyword(s):  
Flow Pattern ◽  
Liquid Flow ◽  
Pipe Flow ◽  
Slug Flow ◽  
Flow Patterns ◽  
Flow Transition ◽  
Horizontal Pipe ◽  
Surfactant Additive ◽  
Gas Liquid Flow

A set of experiments was performed to study flow pattern suppression in gas-liquid pipe flow by means of surfactant additive. Results suggest that addition of the surfactant to gas-liquid flow significantly reduces the occurrence of slug flow. In addition, previously unreported flow patterns were observed to exist between slug and dispersed bubble flows. It is concluded that new mechanisms for slug flow transition need to be considered.

Liquid-Liquid Flow Patterns in Microchannels

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhen Cao ◽  
Zan Wu ◽  
Mehdi Sattari Najafabadi ◽  
Bengt Sunden
Keyword(s):  
Aspect Ratio ◽  
Flow Pattern ◽  
Liquid Flow ◽  
Flow Patterns ◽  
Continuous Phase ◽  
Hydraulic Diameter ◽  
Intermittent Flow ◽  
Dimensionless Number ◽  
Dispersed Phase ◽  
Flow Pattern Map

In the present work, liquid-liquid flow patterns positioned 40 mm downstream the inlet of microchannels were experimentally investigated, including the effect of hydraulic diameter (Dh), liquid properties, aspect ratio of cross section (a) and inlet configuration. Deionized water, butanol, toluene and hexane were selected as probe fluids with water as the continuous phase. Cross-inlet microchannels of 200 μm * 200 μm (Dh = 200 μm), 400 μm * 400 μm (Dh = 400 μm), 600 μm * 600 μm (Dh = 600 μm) and 600 μm * 300 μm (Dh = 400 μm) as well as a T-inlet microchannel of 600 μm * 300 μm (Dh = 400 μm) were tested. For the tests in the microchannels of Dh = 600 μm and 400 μm, the superficial velocities of the dispersed phase and continuous phase varied between 0.3 mm/s and 12 mm/s and between 0.2 mm/s and 50 mm/s, while in the microchannel of Dh = 200 μm the superficial velocities of the dispersed phase and continuous phase ranged from 0.3 mm/s to 21 mm/s and from 0.2 mm/s to 150 mm/s. Annular flow, deformed interface flow, slug flow, intermittent flow, droplet and slug train flow and droplet flow were detected in the experiment. It shows that flow patterns depend on the hydraulic diameter, liquid properties, inlet configuration and aspect ratio significantly. Dimensionless analysis was employed to develop universal flow pattern maps regardless of the hydraulic diameter and liquid properties. It is indicated that an acceptable universal flow pattern map was derived based on the redefined dimensionless number Rei0.2 *Wei0.4, especially for the boundaries of the slug-droplet transitions, which are independent on the hydraulic diameter to some extent. The other dimensionless number Wei*Ohi worked rather effectively to develop a universal flow pattern map independent on liquid properties. The boundaries of the flow pattern transitions in different liquid-liquid flow almost overlap with each other.

Effect of expiratory flow patterns on lung emptying

1963 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-50 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. C. Young ◽  
C. J. Martin ◽  
William R. Pace
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Dioxide ◽  
Flow Pattern ◽  
Body Position ◽  
Volume Ratio ◽  
Flow Patterns ◽  
High Flow ◽  
Low Flow ◽  
Flow Rates ◽  
Single Breath ◽  
Expiratory Flow

Differences in expired alveolar gas concentrations with changes in expiratory flow were studied in single-breath experiments using nitrogen and carbon dioxide meters. High flow rates preferentially emptied lung areas having low ventilation-to-volume ratios and high ventilation-to-perfusion ratios, whereas low flow rates preferentially emptied areas of high ventilation-to-volume and low ventilation-to-perfusion ratios. Selective emptying of different lung areas by varying the expiratory flow pattern was not affected by age, sex, or body position. A model of the lung is proposed to explain how ventilation-to-volume ratio differences can be seen at mouth level during constant slow, varying, and constantly increasing or decreasing expiratory flow. Submitted on May 4, 1962

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