Impedance-Based Void Fraction Measurement and Flow Regime Identification in Microchannel Flows

Author(s):  
Sidharth Paranjape ◽  
Susan N. Ritchey ◽  
Suresh V. Garimella

Electrical impedance of a two-phase mixture is a function of void fraction and phase distribution. The difference in the electrical conductance and permittivity of the two phases can be exploited to measure electrical impedance for obtaining void fraction and flow regime characteristics. An electrical impedance meter is constructed for the measurement of void fraction in microchannel two-phase flow. The experiments are conducted in air-water two-phase flow under adiabatic conditions. A transparent acrylic test section of hydraulic diameter 780 micrometer is used in the experimental investigation. The impedance void meter is calibrated against the void fraction measured using analysis of images obtained with a high-speed camera. Based on these measurements, a methodology utilizing the statistical characteristics of the void fraction signals is employed for identification of microchannel flow regimes.

2004 ◽  
Vol 126 (1) ◽  
pp. 107-118 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. L. Pawloski ◽  
C. Y. Ching ◽  
M. Shoukri

The void fractions, flow regimes, and pressure drop of air-oil two-phase flow in a half-inch diameter pipe over a wide range of test conditions have been investigated. The flow regimes were identified with the aid of a 1000 frames per second high-speed camera. A capacitance sensor for instantaneous void fraction measurements was developed. The mean and probability density function of the instantaneous void fraction signal can be used to effectively identify the different flow regimes. The current flow regime data show significant differences in the transitional boundaries of the existing flow regime maps. Property correction factors for the flow regime maps are recommended. The pressure drop measurements were compared to the predictions from four existing two-phase flow pressure drop models. Though some of the models performed better for certain flow regimes, none of the models were found to give accurate results over the entire range of flow regimes.


Author(s):  
J. Pawloski ◽  
C. Ching ◽  
M. Shoukri

The flow regimes and pressure drop of air-oil two-phase flow in a half-inch diameter pipe over a wide range of test conditions have been investigated. The flow regimes were identified with the aid of a 1000 frames per second high-speed camera. The current flow regime data show significant differences in the transitional boundaries from the flow regime maps of Mandhane et al. (1974), Taitel and Dukler (1974) and Spedding and Nguyen (1980). The pressure drop measurements were compared to the predictions from four existing pressure drop models: Homogeneous, Martinelli (1948), Chisolm (1973) and Olujic (1985). The Chisolm and Martinelli models were found to be the most accurate, with an average error of about 35 percent. A capacitance sensor for instantaneous void fraction measurement was developed. Results indicate the data from the sensor could be used to identify the different flow regimes.


2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad A. Rahman ◽  
Johana Gomez ◽  
Ted Heidrick ◽  
Brian A. Fleck ◽  
Jennifer McMillan

Experimentally accurate void fraction measurements are a challenge in an air/water, two-phase flows through an industrial nozzle assembly, as a highly non-uniform void fraction exists in the feeding conduit prior to the nozzle. In this study, average void fractions were measured by isolating a section in the feeding conduit of a horizontal nozzle assembly, termed as the quick-closing-valve (QCV) technique. A high-speed video camera was utilized to capture the asynchronization closing time, tac. The average closing time and asynchronization for the pneumatically controlled valves were 200 ms and 2 ms, respectively. Based on the equation of 100umtac (1−α)/αlc, the synchronization error between the two valves was 1.12%, 1.26%, and 1.79% for the 1%, 2% and 4% ALR cases, respectively; here um is the mixture velocity, α is the void faction, and lc is the closing length. Higher synchronization error at 4% ALR occurs due to enhanced momentum in the flow regime. Experimental results indicate that the average α over the 33.4 cm feeding conduit (6.25 mm ID) was 76% (αtheoretical = 75%) for the 2% ALR, and 85% (αtheoretical = 83%) for the 3.3% ALR. In the two-phase, two-component flow the α affects the drop size and stability of the spray produced from an industrial nozzle assembly. Learning from this study will yield insights and conceptual understanding of two-phase flow phenomena in conduit, which would affect stability, pulsation tendency, and possibly atomization performance of the nozzle downstream. Two-phase flow nozzles have wide applications in the industries, e.g. petrochemical, pharmaceutical, and others.


1982 ◽  
Vol 117 ◽  
pp. 91-106 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. A. Drew ◽  
R. T. Lahey

The radial distribution of the volumetric vapour (or void) fraction in steady, fully developed turbulent two-phase flow is described for vertical low-quality bubbly flows in a circular pipe. The analysis is based on the phasic equations of conservation of momentum in the axial and radial directions. Mixing-length theory is used to model the turbulent stresses in the continuous phase. The predicted flow structure shows three distinct regions. The ‘outer’ region, that is, the region away from the wall and the centre-line, has a uniform void distribution. For upflow, a bubble layer is predicted near the wall, while for downflow, vapour coring is predicted, with a peak in void fraction at the centre-line. These predictions are in agreement with observed void profiles.


2010 ◽  
Vol 49 (5) ◽  
pp. 1147-1160
Author(s):  
Leonor Hernández ◽  
J. Enrique Juliá ◽  
Sidharth Paranjape ◽  
Takashi Hibiki ◽  
Mamoru Ishii

2020 ◽  
Vol 846 ◽  
pp. 289-295
Author(s):  
Sukamta ◽  
Sudarja

Two-phase flow has been used in so many industrial processes, such as boilers, reactors, heat exchangers, geothermal and others. Some parameters which need to be studied include flow patterns, void fractions, and pressure changes. Research on void fractions aims to determine the composition of the gas and liquid phases that will affect the nature and value of the flow property. The purpose of this study is to find out the characteristics of the void fraction of various patterns that occurs and to determine the characteristics of the velocity, length, and frequency of bubbly and plug. Data acquisition was used to convert the data from analog to digital so that it can be recorded, stored, processed, and analyzed. High-speed camera Nikon type J4 was used to record the flow. The condition of the study was adiabatic with variation of superficial gas velocity (JG), superficial fluid velocity (JL), and also working fluid. To determine the void fraction by using the digital image processing method. The results of the study found that the flow patterns which occurred in this study were bubbly, plug, annular, slug-annular and churn flows. It also showed that the void fraction value is determined by the superficial velocity of the liquid and air. The higher the superficial velocity of the air, the lower the void fraction value.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document