scholarly journals Foam Quality of Foams Formed on Capillaries and Porous Media Systems

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 10
Author(s):  
Victor Starov ◽  
Anna Trybala ◽  
Phillip Johnson ◽  
Mauro Vaccaro

Foams are of great importance as a result of their expansive presence in everyday life—they are used in the food, cosmetic, and process industries, and in detergency, oil recovery, and firefighting. There is a little understanding of foam formation using soft porous media in terms of the quality of foam and foam formation. Interaction of foams with porous media has recently been investigated in a study by Arjmandi-Tash et al., where three different regimes of foam drainage in contact with porous media were observed. In this study, the amount of foam generated using porous media with surfactant solutions is investigated. The aim is to understand the quality of foam produced using porous media. The effect of capillary sizes and arrangement of porous in porous media has on the quality of foam is investigated. This is then followed by the use of soft porous media for foam formation to understand how the foam is generated on the surface of the porous media and the effect that different conditions (such as concentration) have on the quality of the foam. The quality of foam is a blanket term for bubble size, liquid volume fraction, and stability of the foam. The liquid volume fraction is calculated using a homemade dynamic foam analyser, which is used to obtain the distribution of liquid volume fraction along with the foam height. Soft porous media does not influence substantially the rate of decay of foam produced, however, it decreases the average diameter of the bubbles, whilst increasing the range of bubble sizes due to the wide range of pore sizes present in the soft porous media. The foam analyser showed the expected behaviour that, as the foam decays and becomes drier, the liquid volume fraction of the foam falls, and therefore the conductivity of foam also decreases, indicating the usefulness of the home-made device for future investigations.

Author(s):  
G. Luret ◽  
T. Me´nard ◽  
J. Re´veillon ◽  
A. Berlemont ◽  
F. X. Demoulin

Among the different processes that play a role during the atomization process, collisions are addressed in this work. Collisions can be very important in dense two-phase flows. Recently, the Eulerian Lagrangian Spray Atomization (ELSA) model has been developed. It represents the atomization by taking into account the dense zone of the spray. Thus in this context, collisions modeling are of the utmost importance. In this model results of collisions are controlled by the value of an equilibrium Weber number, We*. It is defined as the ratio between the kinetic energy to the surface energy. Such a value of We* has been studied in the past using Lagrangian collision models with various complexity. These models are based on analysis of collisions between droplets that have surface at rest. This ideal situation can be obtained only if droplet agitation created during a collision has enough time to vanish before the next collision. For a spray, this requirement is not always fulfill depending for instance on the mean liquid volume fraction. If there is not enough time, collisions will occur between agitated droplets changing the issue of the collision with respect to the ideal case. To study this effect, a DNS simulation with a stationary turbulence levels has been conducted for different liquid volume fractions in a cubic box with periodic condition in all directions. For liquid volume fraction close to zero the spray is diluted and collisions between spherical droplets can be identified. For a volume fraction close to one, collisions between bubbles are found. For a middle value of the volume fraction no discrete phase can be observed, instead a strong interaction between both liquid and gas phases is taking place. In all this case the equilibrium value of the Weber number We* can be determined. First propositions to determine We* as a function of the kinetic energy, density ratio, surface tension coefficient and the volume fraction will be proposed.


2005 ◽  
Vol 40 ◽  
pp. 179-184 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Bock ◽  
H. Eicken

AbstractThe microstructural evolution of brine inclusions in granular and columnar sea ice has been investigated through magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for temperatures between –28 and –3˚C. Thin-section and salinity measurements were completed on core samples obtained from winter sea ice near Barrow, Alaska, USA. Subsamples of granular (2–5cm depth in core) and columnar sea ice (20–23 cm depth) were investigated with morphological spin-echo and diffusion-weighted imaging in a Bruker 4.7T MRI system operating at field gradients of 200 mTm–1 at temperatures of approximately –28, –15, –6 and –3˚C. Average linear pore dimensions range from 0.2 to 1 mm and increase with bulk liquid volume fraction as temperatures rise from –15 to –3˚C. Granular ice pores are significantly larger than columnar ice pores and exhibit a higher degree of connectivity. No evidence is found of strongly non-linear increases in pore connectivity based on the MRI data. This might be explained by shortcomings in resolution, sensitivity and lack of truly three-dimensional data, differences between laboratory and field conditions or the absence of a percolation transition. Pore connectivity increases between –6 and –3˚C. Pore-number densities average at 1.4±1.2mm–2. The pore-number density distribution as a function of cross-sectional area conforms with power-law and lognormal distributions previously identified, although significant variations occur as a function of ice type and temperature. At low temperatures (< –26˚C), pore sizes were estimated from 1H self-diffusivity measurements, with self-diffusivity lower by up to an order of magnitude than in the free liquid. Analysis of diffusional length scales suggests characteristic pore dimensions of <1 μm at < –26˚C.


Author(s):  
P. A. Beau ◽  
T. Me´nard ◽  
R. Lebas ◽  
A. Berlemont ◽  
S. Tanguy ◽  
...  

The main objective of our work is to develop direct numerical simulation tools for the primary break up of a jet. Results can help to determine closure relation in the ELSA model [1] which is based on a single-phase Eulerian model and on the transport equation for the mean liquid/gas interface density in turbulent flows. DNS simulations are carried out to obtain statistical information in the dense zone of the spray where nearly no experimental data are available. The numerical method should describe the interface motion precisely, handle jump conditions at the interface without artificial smoothing, and respect mass conservation. We develop a 3D code [2], where interface tracking is ensured by Level Set method, Ghost Fluid Method [3] is used to capture accurately sharp discontinuities, and coupling between Level Set and VOF methods is used for mass conservation [4]. Turbulent inflow boundary conditions are generated through correlated random velocities with a prescribed length scale. Specific care has been devoted to improve computing time with MPI parallelization. The numerical methods have been applied to investigate physical processes that are involved in the primary break up of an atomizing jet. The chosen configuration is close as possible of Diesel injection (Diameter D = 0.1 mm, Velocity = 100m/s, Liquid density = 696kg/m3, Gas density = 25kg/m3). Typical results will be presented. From the injector nozzle, the turbulence initiates some perturbations on the liquid surface, that are enhanced by the mean shear between the liquid jet and the surrounding air. The interface becomes very wrinkled and some break-up is initiated. The induced liquid parcels show a wide range of shapes. Statistics are carried out and results will be provided for liquid volume fraction, liquid/gas interface density, and turbulent correlations.


Author(s):  
Luis San Andrés ◽  
Xueliang Lu

Wet gas compression systems and multiphase pumps are enabling technologies for the deep sea oil and gas industry. This extreme environment determines both machine types have to handle mixtures with a gas in liquid volume fraction (GVF) varying over a wide range (0 to 1). The gas (or liquid) content affects the system pumping (or compression) efficiency and reliability, and places a penalty in leakage and rotordynamic performance in secondary flow components, namely seals. In 2015, tests were conducted with a short length smooth surface annular seal (L/D = 0.36, radial clearance = 0.127 mm) operating with an oil in air mixture whose liquid volume fraction (LVF) varied to 4%. The test results with a stationary journal show the dramatic effect of a few droplets of liquid on the production of large damping coefficients. This paper presents further measurements and predictions of leakage, drag power, and rotordynamic force coefficients conducted with the same test seal and a rotating journal. The seal is supplied with a mixture (air in ISO VG 10 oil), varying from a pure liquid to an inlet GVF = 0.9 (mostly gas), a typical range in multiphase pumps. For operation with a supply pressure (Ps) up to 3.5 bar (a), discharge pressure (Pa) = 1 bar (a), and various shaft speed (Ω) to 3.5 krpm (ΩR = 23.3 m/s), the flow is laminar with either a pure oil or a mixture. As the inlet GVF increases to 0.9 the mass flow rate and drag power decrease monotonically by 25% and 85% when compared to the pure liquid case, respectively. For operation with Ps = 2.5 bar (a) and Ω to 3.5 krpm, dynamic load tests with frequency 0 < ω < 110 Hz are conducted to procure rotordynamic force coefficients. A direct stiffness (K), an added mass (M) and a viscous damping coefficient (C) represent well the seal lubricated with a pure oil. For tests with a mixture (GVFmax = 0.9), the seal dynamic complex stiffness Re(H) increases with whirl frequency (ω); that is, Re(H) differs from (K-ω2M). Both the seal cross coupled stiffnesses (KXY and −KYX) and direct damping coefficients (CXX and CYY) decrease by approximately 75% as the inlet GVF increases to 0.9. The finding reveals that the frequency at which the effective damping coefficient (CXXeff = CXX-KXY/ω) changes from negative to positive (i.e., a crossover frequency) drops from 50% of the rotor speed (ω = 1/2 Ω) for a seal with pure oil to a lesser magnitude for operation with a mixture. Predictions for leakage and drag power based on a homogeneous bulk flow model match well the test data for operation with inlet GVF up to 0.9. Predicted force coefficients correlate well with the test data for mixtures with GVF up to 0.6. For a mixture with a larger GVF, the model under predicts the direct damping coefficients by as much as 40%. The tests also reveal the appearance of a self-excited seal motion with a low frequency; its amplitude and broad band frequency (centered at around ∼12 Hz) persist and increase as the gas content in the mixture increase. The test results show that an accurate quantification of wet seals dynamic force response is necessary for the design of robust subsea flow assurance systems.


1982 ◽  
Vol 22 (06) ◽  
pp. 962-970 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Novosad

Novosad, J., SPE, Petroleum Recovery Inst. Abstract Experimental procedures designed to differentiate between surfactant retained in porous media because of adsorption and surfactant retained because Of unfavorable phase behavior are developed and tested with three types of surfactants. Several series of experiments with systematic changes in one variable such as surfactant/cosurfactant ratio, slug size, or temperature are performed, and overall surfactant retention then is interpreted in terms of adsorption and losses caused by unfavorable phase behavior. Introduction Adsorption of surfactants considered for enhanced oil recovery (EOR) applications has been studied extensively in the last few years since it has been shown that it is possible to develop surfactant systems that displace oil from porous media almost completely when used in large quantities. Effective oil recovery by surfactants is not a question of principle but rather a question of economics. Since surfactants are more expensive than crude oil, development of a practical EOR technology depends on how much surfactant can be sacrificed economically while recovering additional crude oil from a reservoir.It was recognized earlier that adsorption may be only one of a number of factors that contribute to total surfactant retention. Other mechanisms may include surfactant entrapment in an immobile oil phase surfactant precipitation by divalent ions, surfactant precipitation caused by a separation of the cosurfactant from the surfactant, and surfactant precipitation resulting from chromatographic separation of different surfactant specks. The principal objective of this work is to evaluate the experimental techniques that can be used for measuring surfactant adsorption and to study experimentally two mechanisms responsible for surfactant retention. Specifically, we try to differentiate between the adsorption of surfactants at the solid/liquid interface and the retention of the surfactants because of trapping in the immobile hydrocarbon phase that remains within the core following a surfactant flood. Measurement of Adsorption at the Solid/Liquid Interface Previous adsorption measurements of surfactants considered for EOR produced adsorption isotherms of unusual shapes and unexpected features. Primarily, an adsorption maximum was observed when total surfactant retention was plotted against the concentration of injected surfactant. Numerous explanations have been offered for these peaks, such as a formation of mixed micelles, the effects of structure-forming and structurebreaking cations, and the precipitation and consequent redissolution of divalent ions. It is difficult to assess which of these effects is responsible for the peaks in a particular situation and their relative importance. However, in view of the number of physicochemical processes taking place simultaneously and the large number of components present in most systems, it seems that we should not expect smooth monotonically increasing isotherms patterned after adsorption isothemes obtained with one pure component and a solvent. Also, it should be realized that most experimental procedures do not yield an amount of surfactant adsorbed but rather a measure of the surface excess.An adsorption isotherm, expressed in terms of the surface excess as a function of an equilibrium surfactant concentration, by definition must contain a maximum if the data are measured over a sufficiently wide range of concentrations. SPEJ P. 962^


2019 ◽  
Vol 245 ◽  
pp. 106859
Author(s):  
Joaquín López ◽  
Julio Hernández ◽  
Pablo Gómez ◽  
Claudio Zanzi ◽  
Rosendo Zamora

2020 ◽  
Vol 61 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lukas Weiss ◽  
Michael Wensing ◽  
Joonsik Hwang ◽  
Lyle M. Pickett ◽  
Scott A. Skeen

2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 248-262 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Markt ◽  
Ashish Pathak ◽  
Mehdi Raessi ◽  
Seong-Young Lee ◽  
Roberto Torelli

This article uniquely characterizes the secondary droplets formed during the impingement of a train of ethanol drops, using three-dimensional direct numerical simulations performed under conditions studied experimentally by Yarin and Weiss. Our numerical results have been previously validated against experimental data demonstrating the ability to accurately capture the splashing dynamics. In this work, the predictive ability of the model is leveraged to gain further insight into secondary droplet formation. We present a robust post-processing algorithm, which scrutinizes the liquid volume fraction field in the volume-of-fluid method and quantifies the number, volume and velocity of secondary droplets. The high-resolution computational simulations enable secondary droplet characterization within close proximity of the impingement point at small length and time scales, which is extremely challenging to achieve experimentally. By studying the temporal evolution of secondary droplet formation, direct connections are made between liquid structures seen in the simulation and the instantaneous distribution of secondary droplets, leading to detailed insight into the instability-driven breakup process of lamellae. Time-averaged secondary droplet characteristics are also studied to describe the global distribution of secondary droplets. Such analysis is vital to understanding fuel drop impingement in direct injection engines, facilitating the development of highly accurate spray–wall interaction models for use in Lagrangian solvers.


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