Numerical Simulation of Forced Convective Boiling in a Microchannel

Author(s):  
Yun Whan Na ◽  
J. N. Chung

Forced convective flow boiling in a single microchannel with different channel heights was studied through a numerical simulation method to investigate bubble dynamics, two-phase flow patterns, and boiling heat transfer. The momentum and energy equations were solved using a finite volume (FV) numerical method, while the liquid–vapor interface of a bubble is captured using the volume of fluid (VOF) technique. The effects of different constant wall heat fluxes and different channel heights on the boiling mechanisms were investigated. The effects of liquid velocity on the bubble departure diameter were also analyzed. The predicted bubble shapes and distribution profiles together with two-phase flow patterns are also provided.

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chunlei Shao ◽  
Ning Bao ◽  
Sheng Wang ◽  
Jianfeng Zhou

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to propose a prediction method of gas-liquid two-phase flow patterns and reveal the flow characteristics in the suction chamber of a centrifugal pump. Design/methodology/approach A transparent model pump was experimentally studied, and the gas-liquid two-phase flow in the pump was numerically simulated based on the Eulerian–Eulerian heterogeneous flow model. The numerical simulation method was verified from three aspects: the flow pattern in the suction chamber, the gas spiral length and the external characteristics of the pump. The two-phase flow in the suction chamber was studied in detail by using the numerical simulation method. Findings There are up to eight flow patterns in the suction chamber. However, at a certain rotational speed, only six flow patterns are observed at the most. At some rotational speeds, only four flow patterns appear. The gas spiral length has little relationship with the gas flow rate. It decreases with the increase of the liquid flow rate and increases with the increase of the rotational speed. The spiral flow greatly increases the turbulence intensity in the suction chamber. Originality/value A method for predicting the flow pattern was proposed. Eight flow patterns in the suction chamber were identified. The mechanism of gas-liquid two-phase flow in the suction chamber was revealed. The research results have reference values for the stable operation of two-phase flow pumps and the optimization of suction chambers.


Micromachines ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 510
Author(s):  
Yan Huang ◽  
Bifen Shu ◽  
Shengnan Zhou ◽  
Qi Shi

In this paper, two-phase pressure drop data were obtained for boiling in horizontal rectangular microchannels with a hydraulic diameter of 0.55 mm for R-134a over mass velocities from 790 to 1122, heat fluxes from 0 to 31.08 kW/m2 and vapor qualities from 0 to 0.25. The experimental results show that the Chisholm parameter in the separated flow model relies heavily on the vapor quality, especially in the low vapor quality region (from 0 to 0.1), where the two-phase flow pattern is mainly bubbly and slug flow. Then, the measured pressure drop data are compared with those from six separated flow models. Based on the comparison result, the superficial gas flux is introduced in this paper to consider the comprehensive influence of mass velocity and vapor quality on two-phase flow pressure drop, and a new equation for the Chisholm parameter in the separated flow model is proposed as a function of the superficial gas flux . The mean absolute error (MAE ) of the new flow correlation is 16.82%, which is significantly lower than the other correlations. Moreover, the applicability of the new expression has been verified by the experimental data in other literatures.


Author(s):  
Jacqueline Barber ◽  
Khellil Sefiane ◽  
David Brutin ◽  
Lounes Tadrist

Boiling in microchannels remains elusive due to the lack of full understanding of the mechanisms involved. A powerful tool in achieving better comprehension of the mechanisms is detailed imaging and analysis of the two phase flow at a fundamental level. We induced boiling in a single microchannel geometry (hydraulic diameter 727 μm), using a refrigerant FC-72, to investigate several flow patterns. A transparent, metallic, conductive deposit has been developed on the exterior of rectangular microchannels, allowing simultaneous uniform heating and visualisation to be conducted. The data presented in this paper is for a particular case with a uniform heat flux of 4.26 kW/m2 applied to the microchannel and inlet liquid mass flowrate, held constant at 1.33×10−5 kg/s. In conjunction with obtaining high-speed images and videos, sensitive pressure sensors are used to record the pressure drop profiles across the microchannel over time. Bubble nucleation, growth and coalescence, as well as periodic slug flow, are observed in the test section. Phenomena are noted, such as the aspect ratio and Reynolds number of a vapour bubble, which are in turn correlated to the associated pressure drops over time. From analysis of our results, images and video sequences with the corresponding physical data obtained, it is possible to follow visually the nucleation and subsequent both ‘free’ and ‘confined’ growth of a vapour bubble over time.


2008 ◽  
Vol 131 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jong Chull Jo ◽  
Woong Sik Kim ◽  
Chang-Yong Choi ◽  
Yong Kab Lee

This paper addresses the numerical simulation of two-phase flow heat transfer in the helically coiled tubes of an integral type pressurized water reactor steam generator under normal operation using a computational fluid dynamics code. The shell-side flow field where a single-phase fluid flows in the downward direction is also calculated in conjunction with the tube-side two-phase flow characteristics. For the calculation of tube-side two-phase flow, the inhomogeneous two-fluid model is used. Both the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute wall boiling model and the bulk boiling model are implemented for the numerical simulations of boiling-induced two-phase flow in a vertical straight pipe and channel, and the computed results are compared with the available measured data. The conjugate heat transfer analysis method is employed to calculate the conduction in the tube wall with finite thickness and the convections in the internal and external fluids simultaneously so as to match the fluid-wall-fluid interface conditions properly. Both the internal and external turbulent flows are simulated using the standard k-ε model. From the results of the present numerical simulation, it is shown that the bulk boiling model can be applied to the simulation of two-phase flow in the helically coiled steam generator tubes. In addition, the present simulation method is considered to be physically plausible in the light of discussions on the computed results.


Author(s):  
Claudi Marti´n-Callizo ◽  
Bjo¨rn Palm ◽  
Wahib Owhaib ◽  
Rashid Ali

The present work reports on flow boiling visualization of refrigerant R-134a in a vertical circular channel with internal diameter of 1.33 mm and 235 mm in heated length. Quartz tube with a homogeneous ITO-coating is used allowing heating and simultaneous visualization. Flow patterns have been observed along the heated length with the aid of a digital camera with close-up lenses. From the flow boiling visualization, seven distinct two-phase flow patterns have been observed: Isolated bubbly flow, confined bubbly flow, slug flow, churn flow, slug-annular flow, annular flow, and mist flow. Two-phase flow pattern observations are presented in the form of flow pattern maps. Finally, the experimental flow pattern map is compared to models developed for conventional sizes as well as to a microscale map for air-water mixtures available in the literature, showing a large discrepancy.


Author(s):  
Jong Chull Jo ◽  
Woong Sik Kim ◽  
Chang-Yong Choi ◽  
Yong Kab Lee

This paper addresses the numerical simulation of two phase flow heat transfer in the helically coiled tubes of an integral type pressurized water reactor steam generator under normal operation using a CFD code. The single phase flow which flow downward direction in the shell side is also calculated together. For the calculation of tube side two-phase flow the inhomogeneous two-fluid model is used. Both the RPI (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute) wall boiling model and the bulk boiling model are implemented for the numerical simulation and the computed results are compared with the available measured data. The conjugate heat transfer analysis method is employed to calculate the conduction in the tube wall with finite thickness and the convections in the internal and external fluids simultaneously so as to match the fluid-wall-fluid interface conditions properly. Both the internal and external turbulent flows are simulated using the standard k-ε model From the results of present numerical simulation, it is shown that the bulk boiling model can be applied to the simulation of two-phase flow in the helically coiled steam generator tubes. The results also show that the present simulation method is considered to be physically plausible when the computed results are compared with available previous experimental and numerical studies.


2004 ◽  
Vol 126 (3) ◽  
pp. 288-300 ◽  
Author(s):  
Weilin Qu ◽  
Seok-Mann Yoon ◽  
Issam Mudawar

Knowledge of flow pattern and flow pattern transitions is essential to the development of reliable predictive tools for pressure drop and heat transfer in two-phase micro-channel heat sinks. In the present study, experiments were conducted with adiabatic nitrogen-water two-phase flow in a rectangular micro-channel having a 0.406×2.032mm2 cross-section. Superficial velocities of nitrogen and water ranged from 0.08 to 81.92 m/s and 0.04 to 10.24 m/s, respectively. Flow patterns were first identified using high-speed video imaging, and still photos were then taken for representative patterns. Results reveal the dominant flow patterns are slug and annular, with bubbly flow occurring only occasionally; stratified and churn flow were never observed. A flow pattern map was constructed and compared with previous maps and predictions of flow pattern transition models. Features unique to two-phase micro-channel flow were identified and employed to validate key assumptions of an annular flow boiling model that was previously developed to predict pressure drop and heat transfer in two-phase micro-channel heat sinks. This earlier model was modified based on new findings from the adiabatic two-phase flow study. The modified model shows good agreement with experimental data for water-cooled heat sinks.


2000 ◽  
Vol 2000.75 (0) ◽  
pp. _6-51_-_6-52_
Author(s):  
Koji ARAKI ◽  
Katsuteru HASHIMOTO ◽  
Tomio OKAWA ◽  
Kenji YOSHIDA ◽  
Tadayoshi MATSUMOTO ◽  
...  

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