Heat Transfer from a Cylinder in Cross-Flow of Single and Multiphase Flows

In this paper, the average heat transfer characteristics for a cross flow cylinder of 16 mm diameter in a vertical pipe has been studied for single-phase flow (water/oil) and multicomponent (non-boiling) flow (water-air, water-oil, oil-air and water-oil-air). The cylinder is uniformly heated by electrical heater placed at the centre of the element. The results show that the values of average heat transfer coefficients for water are around four times the values for oil flow. Introducing air as a second phase with water has very little effect on heat transfer rate, while the heat transfer increased by 70% in case of oil. For water–oil flow, the heat transfer coefficient values are reflecting the percentage of water up to 50%, but increasing the water more than 50% leads to a sharp increase in the heat transfer coefficients to become close to the values of pure water. The enhancement of heat transfer by mixing two phases may be attributed to the changes in flow structure near to cylinder surface which lead to thinner boundary layer and higher turbulence. For three-phase flow, the heat transfer coefficients for all cases fall within the limit of single-phase flow of water and oil and are very close to pure water values. The net effect of the turbulence augmentation due to the introduction of air and the attenuation due to the introduction of oil leads to a thinner boundary layer of oil over the cylinder surface covered by a mixture of water and air bubbles.

Experimental and CFD Simulation of the Jet Pump for Air Bubbles Formation

A jet pump is a type of pump that accelerates the flow of a secondary fluid (driven fluid) by introducing a motive fluid with high velocity into a converging-diverging nozzle. Jet pumps are also known as adductors or ejectors depending on the motivator phase. The ejector's motivator is of a gaseous nature, usually steam or air, while the educator's motivator is a liquid, usually water. Jet pumps are devices that use air bubbles and are widely used in wastewater treatment processes. In this work, we will discuss about the characteristics of the jet pump and the computational simulation of this device. To find the optimal angle and depth for the air pipe, so as to achieve the maximal air volumetric flow rate, an experimental apparatus was constructed to ascertain the best geometrical configuration for this new type of jet pump. By using 3D printing technology, a series of jet pumps was printed and tested whilst aspiring to maximize air flow rate dependent on angle and depth of the air pipe insertion. The experimental results show a major difference of up to 300% in performance between the different pumps (ratio of air flow rate to supplied power) where the optimal geometric model has an insertion angle of 600 and air pipe insertion depth ending at the center of the mixing chamber. The differences between the pumps were further explained by using CFD for better understanding the reasons that affect the airflow rate. The validity of the computational simulation and the corresponding assumptions have been proved experimentally. The present research showed high degree of congruence with the results of the laboratory tests. This study demonstrates the potential of using of the jet pump in many practical applications.

Influence of the Flow Rate Ratio in a Jet Pump on the Size of Air Bubbles

In wastewater treatment processes, aeration introduces air into a liquid. In these systems, air is introduced by different devices submerged in the wastewater. Smaller bubbles result in more bubble surface area per unit of volume and higher oxygen transfer efficiency. Jet pumps are devices that use air bubbles and are widely used in wastewater treatment processes. The principle of jet pumps is their ability to transfer energy of one fluid, called primary or motive, into a secondary fluid or gas. These pumps have no moving parts and are able to work in remote areas under extreme conditions. The objective of this work is to study experimentally the characteristics of the jet pump and the size of air bubbles in the laboratory water tank. The effect of flow rate ratio on pump performance is investigated in order to have a better understanding about pump behavior under various conditions, in order to determine the efficiency of receiving air bubbles different sizes. The experiments show that we should take care when increasing the flow rate ratio while seeking to decrease bubble size in the outlet flow. This study will help improve and extend the use of the jet pump in many practical applications.

Numerical Simulation of a Single Air Bubble Rising in Water with Various Models of Surface Tension Force

Different numerical methods are employed and developed for simulating interfacial flows. A large range of applications belong to this group, e.g. two-phase flows of air bubbles in water or water drops in air. In such problems surface tension effects often play a dominant role. In this paper, various models of surface tension force for interfacial flows, the CSF, CSS, PCIL and SGIP models have been applied to simulate the motion of small air bubbles in water and the results were compared and reviewed. It has been pointed out that by using SGIP or PCIL models, we are able to simulate bubble rise and obtain results in close agreement with the experimental data.

Capacitive Air Bubble Detector Operated at Different Frequencies for Application in Hemodialysis

Air bubbles have been detected in human circulation of end-stage renal disease patients who are treated by hemodialysis. The consequence of air embolism, air bubbles, is under recognized and usually overlooked in daily practice. This paper shows results of a capacitor based detection method that capable of detecting the presence of air bubbles in the blood stream in different frequencies. The method is based on a parallel plates capacitor made of platinum with an area of 1.5 cm2 and a distance between the two plates is 1cm. The dielectric material used in this capacitor is Dextran70 solution which mimics blood rheology. Simulations were carried out using RC circuit at two frequencies 30Hz and 3 kHz and results compared with experiments and theory. It is observed that by injecting air bubbles of different diameters into the device, there were significant changes in the capacitance of the capacitor. Furthermore, it is observed that the output voltage from the circuit increased with increasing air bubble diameter. These results demonstrate the feasibility of this approach in improving air bubble detection in Hemodialysis.