scholarly journals Effect of Modifying the Membrane Surface with Microcapsules on the Flow Field for a Cross-Flow Membrane Setup: A CFD Study

Membranes ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 555
Author(s):  
Sebastian Osterroth ◽  
Christian Neumann ◽  
Michael Weiß ◽  
Uwe Maurieschat ◽  
Alexandra Latnikova ◽  
...  

In this study, the attachment of microcapsules on the membrane surface and its influence on the flow field for a cross-flow membrane setup are investigated. The microcapsules were placed on the top layer of the membrane. The overall purpose of this modification was the prevention of membrane biofouling. Therefore, in a first step, the influence of such a combination on the fluid flow was investigated using computational fluid dynamics (CFD). Here, different properties, which are discussed as indicators for biofouling in the literature, were considered. In parallel, different fixation strategies for the microcapsules were experimentally tested. Two different methods to add the microcapsules were identified and further investigated. In the first method, the microcapsules are glued to the membrane surface, whereas in the second method, the microcapsules are added during the membrane fabrication. The different membrane modifications were studied and compared using CFD. Therefore, virtual geometries mimicking the real ones were created. An idealized virtual geometry was added to the comparison. Results from the simulation were fed back to the experiments to optimize the combined membrane. For the presented setup, it is shown that the glued configuration provides a lower transmembrane pressure than the configuration where microcapsules are added during fabrication.

2013 ◽  
Vol 68 (12) ◽  
pp. 2534-2544 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Ratkovich ◽  
T. R. Bentzen

Membrane bioreactors (MBRs) have been used successfully in biological wastewater treatment to solve the perennial problem of effective solids–liquid separation. A common problem with MBR systems is clogging of the modules and fouling of the membrane, resulting in frequent cleaning and replacement, which makes the system less appealing for full-scale applications. It has been widely demonstrated that the filtration performances in MBRs can be greatly improved with a two-phase flow (sludge–air) or higher liquid cross-flow velocities. However, the optimization process of these systems is complex and requires knowledge of the membrane fouling, hydrodynamics and biokinetics. Modern tools such as computational fluid dynamics (CFD) can be used to diagnose and understand the two-phase flow in an MBR. Four cases of different MBR configurations are presented in this work, using CFD as a tool to develop and optimize these systems.


Author(s):  
Li-feng Song ◽  
Rui-feng Tian ◽  
Lan-xin Sun ◽  
Cong Shi ◽  
Peng Li

With the dramatic progress in the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) methodology, this technology can be used in researching the knowledge of thermal–hydraulic characteristics in the rod bundles, particularly with the spacer grids. These characteristics, including fluid flow, turbulence, and heat transfer and so on, all of this information can be applied in design and the improvement of rod bundles. This paper calculated the single-phase flow field in rod bundles with different spacer grids respectively by numerical method, which was based on the experiment performed by Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI). Two types of grid designs are used, including the Split-type and Swirl-type, respectively. By analyzing the calculated results, discussing the feasibility of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) methodology in thermal-hydraulic analysis of nuclear reactor, and obtaining the hydrodynamic performance of the two different types of spacer grids. The result showed that both of the two spacer grids led to intense cross-flow in the channel, and the cross-flow intensity decayed with the increasing of downstream distance after the spacer grids. Axial velocities were distributed uniformly in the channel.


2013 ◽  
Vol 368-370 ◽  
pp. 619-623
Author(s):  
Zhen Liu ◽  
Xiao Ling Wang ◽  
Ai Li Zhang

For the purpose of avoiding the deficiency of the traditional construction ventilation, the ventilation of the underground main powerhouse is simulated by the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) to optimize ventilation parameters. A 3D unsteady RNG k-ε model is performed for construction ventilation in the underground main powerhouse. The air-flow field and CO diffusion in the main powerhouse are simulated and analyzed. The two construction ventilation schemes are modelled for the main powerhouse. The optimized ventilation scheme is obtained by comparing the air volume and pressure distributions of the different ventilation schemes.


2017 ◽  
Vol 77 (3) ◽  
pp. 647-654 ◽  
Author(s):  
Haoming Yang ◽  
David Z. Zhu ◽  
Yanchen Liu

Abstract Determining the proper installation location of flow meters is important for accurate measurement of discharge in sewer systems. In this study, flow field and flow regimes in two types of manholes under surcharged flow were investigated using a commercial computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code. The error in measuring the flow discharge using a Doppler flow meter (based on the velocity in a Doppler beam) was then estimated. The values of the corrective coefficient were obtained for the Doppler flow meter at different locations under various conditions. Suggestions for selecting installation positions are provided.


Author(s):  
Hasham H. Chougule ◽  
Alexander Mirzamoghadam

The objective of this study is to develop a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) based methodology for analyzing and predicting leakage of worn or rub-intended labyrinth seals during operation. The simulations include intended tooth axial offset and numerical modeling of the flow field. The purpose is to predict total leakage through the seal when an axial tooth offset is provided after the intended/unintended rub. Results indicate that as expected, the leakage for the in-line worn land case (i.e. tooth under rub) is higher compared to unworn. Furthermore, the intended rotor/teeth forward axial offset/shift with respect to the rubbed land reduces the seal leakage. The overall leakage of a rubbed seal with axial tooth offset is observed to be considerably reduced, and it can become even less than a small clearance seal designed not to rub. The reduced leakage during steady state is due to a targeted smaller running gap because of tooth offset under the intended/worn land groove shape, higher blockages, higher turbulence and flow deflection as compared to worn seal model without axial tooth offset.


Membranes ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 111
Author(s):  
Alexander J. Charlton ◽  
Boyue Lian ◽  
Gaetan Blandin ◽  
Greg Leslie ◽  
Pierre Le-Clech

In an effort to improve performances of forward osmosis (FO) systems, several innovative draw spacers have been proposed. However, the small pressure generally applied on the feed side of the process is expected to result in the membrane bending towards the draw side, and in the gradual occlusion of the channel. This phenomenon potentially presents detrimental effects on process performance, including pressure drop and external concentration polarization (ECP) in the draw channel. A flat sheet FO system with a dot-spacer draw channel geometry was characterized to determine the degree of draw channel occlusion resulting from feed pressurization, and the resulting implications on flow performance. First, tensile testing was performed on the FO membrane to derive a Young’s modulus, used to assess the membrane stretching, and the resulting draw channel characteristics under a range of moderate feed pressures. Membrane apex reached up to 67% of the membrane channel height when transmembrane pressure (TMP) of 1.4 bar was applied. The new FO channels considerations were then processed by computational fluid dynamics model (computational fluid dynamics (CFD) by ANSYS Fluent v19.1) and validated against previously obtained experimental data. Further simulations were conducted to better assess velocity profiles, Reynolds number and shear rate. Reynolds number on the membrane surface (draw side) increased by 20% and shear rate increased by 90% when occlusion changed from 0 to 70%, impacting concentration polarisation (CP) on the membrane surface and therefore FO performance. This paper shows that FO draw channel occlusion is expected to have a significant impact on fluid hydrodynamics when the membrane is not appropriately supported in the draw side.


2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brent S. Paul

The successful integration of aviation capabilities aboard ships is a complex endeavor that must balance ship design with the flight envelope of the helicopter. This can be particularly important when considering air wakes and other flow around the superstructure as it impacts the flight deck. This flow can generate unsteady structures that may interfere with safe helicopter operations. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is commonly used to characterize the flow field and assess potential impacts to the flight envelope, which can be used to help define an operating envelope for helicopter operations.


Author(s):  
Melih Demir ◽  
Govert de With ◽  
Arne E. Holdo̸

At present a large number of fluid dynamics applications are found in aerospace, civil and automotive engineering, as well in medical related fields. In many applications the flow field is turbulent and the computational modelling of such flows remains a difficult task. To resolve all turbulent flow phenomena for flow problems where turbulence is of key interest is a priori not feasible in a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) investigation with a conventional mesh. The use of a Dynamic Grid Adaptation (DGA) algorithm in a turbulent unsteady flow field is an appealing technique which can reduce the computational costs of a CFD investigation. A refinement of the numerical domain with a DGA algorithm requires reliable criteria for mesh refinement which reflect the complex flow processes. At present not much work has been done to obtain reliable refinement criteria for turbulent unsteady flow. The purpose of the work is to implement a new refinement technique for the boundary layer in the vicinity of the wall. It is aimed to model the flow around an airfoil with a LES turbulence model and a new DGA algorithm. In addition to that several simulations have been carried out for parametric studies. In these studies the incompressible solver in REACFLOW has been used. This Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) code REACFLOW was developed in collaboration with the joint Research Centre (JRC) in Italy. The following aims are aspired: • A new mesh refinement criteria method suitable for boundary layers; • To carry out LES simulations to establish the performance of the refinement criteria. The new criteria which are created in this work are for the near wall region. This criteria uses the wall shear stresses for the refinement technique. For the main flow stream the refinement criteria proposed by de With et al [6] will be used.


2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yue Zhou ◽  
Chunhian Lee ◽  
Jingying Wang

Arterial stenosis plays an important role in the progressions of thrombosis and stroke. In the present study, a standard axisymmetric tube model of the stenotic artery is introduced and the degree of stenosis η is evaluated by the area ratio of the blockage to the normal vessel. A normal case (η=0) and four stenotic cases of η=0.25, 0.5, 0.625, and 0.75 with a constant Reynolds number of 300 are simulated by computational fluid dynamics (CFD), respectively, with the Newtonian and Carreau models for comparison. Results show that for both models, the poststenotic separation vortex length increases exponentially with the growth of stenosis degree. However, the vortex length of the Carreau model is shorter than that of the Newtonian model. The artery narrowing accelerates blood flow, which causes high blood pressure and wall shear stress (WSS). The pressure drop of the η=0.75 case is nearly 8 times that of the normal value, while the WSS peak at the stenosis region of η=0.75 case even reaches up to 15 times that of the normal value. The present conclusions are of generality and contribute to the understanding of the dynamic mechanisms of artery stenosis diseases.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document