Formation of mono-dispersed droplets with electric periodic dripping regime in electrohydrodynamic (EHD) atomization

The formation of controllable size and dripping frequency in electrohydrodynamic (EHD) atomization with electric periodic dripping regime are of much interest and importance because of significant and wide applications, such as micro-encapsulation and ink-printing. In the present study, the experimental and theoretical works were carried out to explore droplet formation in periodic dripping regime in presence of an electric field. The dimensionless electric charge carried by each droplet produced is smaller than the 50% of critical value of the Rayleigh limit, where charge-to-mass ratio of droplets was obtained through the deflection distance in the presence of an electric field. The droplet in electric periodic dripping regime usually undergoes oscillating deformation, and finally forms a spherical droplet below the tip no more than ten times out diameter of tube. The droplet size tens of microns to one hundreds of microns decreases with an increase in applied potential. In the electric dripping mode, droplets size is independent of flow rate and affected by flow rate due to adsorption of surface active species in micro-dripping. The simplified model to predict droplets size was derived from the balance of electric, surface tension and gravity forces. The droplets size calculated in good agreement with the experiments. Meanwhile, the dripping frequency of droplets with rang of a few to several hundred hertz obtained from timeresolved images is highly dependent of liquid flow rate and electric potential. The largest dripping frequency was predicted and in reasonable agreement with the experimental results. In electric periodic dripping regime drop-on-demand droplets in size and dripping frequency further our understanding on the formation of identical droplets and are beneficial to many practical applications.     

十字交叉微通道内微液滴生成过程的数值模拟

采用VOF模型对十字交叉微通道内微液滴的生成进行三维数值模拟,获得了拉伸挤压、滴状剪切、单分散射流等单分散微液滴的生成机制以及紊乱射流、节状形变流、管状流和滑移流等两相流型,模拟与实验结果相吻合验证了模拟的有效性。液液两相流型主要受两相流速、两相界面张力以及连续相黏度的影响,发现随着连续相的流量增大,微液滴的生成尺寸减小,生成频率增大;而离散相流量的影响则相反。两相表面张力与连续相黏度分别在低连续相Ca数和高连续相Ca数条件下分别起主导作用。在低连续相Ca数(U_d<0.03 m·s^-1)的拉伸挤压和滴状剪切流流型下,微液滴生成尺寸随着表面张力系数的减小而减小,在射流条件下反而增大,微液滴的生成频率变化则相反。在高连续相Ca数(U_d>0.03 m·s^-1)下,微液滴的生成尺寸随着连续相黏度的增大而减小,微液滴的生成频率变化则相反。另外,壁面接触角在拉伸挤压流型下对微液滴生成无太大影响,但在滴状剪切和单分散射流流型下,接触角减小会导致微液滴无法稳定生成。     

Experimental and computational study of microfluidic flow‐focusing generation of gelatin methacrylate hydrogel droplets

This work presents the experimental and computational study of droplet generation for hydrogel prepolymer solution in oil using a flow‐focusing device. Effects of different parameters on hydrogel droplet generation and droplet sizes in a flow‐focusing device were investigated experimentally and computationally. First, three dimensional (3D) computational simulations were conducted to describe the physics of droplet formation in each regime and mechanism of three different regimes: squeezing, dripping, and jetting regime of hydrogel were investigated. Subsequently, the effects of viscosity, inertia force, and surface tension force on droplet generation, and droplet size were studied through these experiments. The experiments were carried out using different concentration of gelatin methacrylate (GelMA) hydrogel (5 wt % and 8 wt %) as the dispersed phase and two different continuous phase liquids (light mineral oil and hexadecane) with various concentrations of surfactant (0 wt %, 3 wt %, and 20 wt %). All experimental data was summarized by capillary number of dispersed phases and the continuous phases to characterize the different regimes of droplet generation and to predict the transition of dripping to a jetting regime for GelMA solution in flow‐focusing devices. It is shown that the transition of dripping to a jetting regime for GelMA happens at lower capillary numbers compared to aqueous solutions. Moreover, by increasing the viscous force of continuous phase or decreasing the interfacial force, the size of GelMA droplets was decreased. By controlling these parameters, the droplet sizes can be controlled between 30 μm and 200 μm, which are very suitable for cell encapsulation. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2016 , 133, 43701.     

The liquid–liquid flow dynamics and droplet formation in a modified step T-junction microchannel

The droplet generation mechanism in the asymmetrically enhanced step T-junction remains unknown, especially for the transition stage from dripping to jetting regimes. In this work, the droplet generation mechanism was systematically investigated in a modified step T-junction by modulating a large flowrate range and altering different interfacial tensions. We found that under different fluid regimes, both the capillary number and flow rate ratio of continuous and dispersed phase showcase completely different impacts over droplet generation. In dripping regime, the interfacial tension, which was controlled by changing the surfactant concentration, dominated the formation mechanism when the surfactant concentration was found below micelle concentration. In jetting regime, our experimental results showed that the influence of the surfactant concentration on the size of generated droplets was rather negligible while the flow rate ratio of continuous and dispersed phase indeed determined such a parameter. In the dripping-jetting transition stage, an increase of droplet size was observed despite the increase of continuous phase flow. After reaching a peak, the droplet dimension started to decrease with the increase of continuous phase flow as expected. To the best for our knowledge, it is the first study to report generation mechanism in modified step T-junction from dripping to jetting regimes.     

Visualization study of emulsion droplet formation in a coflowing microchannel

An experimental visualization study is conducted to investigate the hydrodynamic characteristics of emulsion droplet formation in a coflowing microchannel. Both monodisperse and polydisperse patterns of drop formation are observed, including dripping regime, jetting regime (widening jetting and narrowing jetting). Especially, two dripping-to-jetting transition regimes and wavy regime with no individual droplet produced are captured and analyzed. A corresponding phase diagram is provided to characterize the transitions between different emulsification patterns through the control of flow rate of continuous phase. In addition, the dependence of generated droplet size on the Capillary number of the continuous phase (Ca) and the Weber number of the dispersed phase (We) is presented. It is indicated that, when Ca is below 3, the generated droplet size is sensitive to the viscous force and the drop formation regime is widening jetting and dripping. However, when Ca exceeds 3, the generated droplet size is approximately independent of Ca, and the droplet formation regime is thinning jetting.     

Emulsification using tubular metallic membranes

Tubular metallic membranes with pore diameters of 5 and 10 μm have been used in a cross-flow unit to prepare monodisperse oil-in-water emulsions (O/W) with span values as low as 0.67, significantly lower than for emulsions prepared with a rotor–stator homogenizer. The influence of typical operating parameters (continuous phase flow rate and transmembrane pressure) on droplet size distribution was studied. The smallest droplets were obtained at low transmembrane pressures and high continuous phase flow rates. The droplet production with tubular metallic membranes was higher than with other types of tubular membranes, such as SPG or ceramic.Experimental results were compared with those obtained in a stirred tank unit operating under similar conditions and using flat metallic membranes with the same pore diameter. Droplet size prediction models based on simple force balances were applied to compare theoretical and experimental droplet diameters. The droplet formation regime (dripping, jetting) was also studied for both types of membranes.     

旋流压力式喷嘴低压喷淋液滴粒径的实验研究

以自来水为喷淋介质,对旋流压力式喷嘴低压喷淋液滴粒径进行了测试,分析了压力、喷孔直径和喷嘴流量对液滴索特平均直径(d_(SMD))的影响规律,研究了旋流压力式喷嘴液滴尺寸的分布规律。采用跨径(K)和均匀度指数(N)来揭示喷嘴低压喷淋质量。实验结果表明,d_(SMD)较大,超过250μm；d_(SMD)随喷孔直径增大而增大,随压力和喷嘴流量增大而减小；喷淋液滴尺寸分布均匀性较好,K小于0．65,N大于4。实验结果可以为旋流压力式喷嘴设计和改进提供重要的实验依据。     

阶梯式T型微通道内液滴、气泡分散规律

采用高速摄像仪对嵌入毛细管的阶梯式T型微通道内液滴和气泡的分散规律进行研究。考察了两相流量、黏度、表面活性剂浓度等因素对分散流型及分散尺寸的影响规律。结果表明，对于液滴分散过程，表面活性剂的浓度和连续相流量决定了分散流型，随二者增大，流型从dripping流向jetting流转变。对于气泡分散过程，实验范围内仅存在squeezing、dripping流型，表面活性剂的加入对气泡分散过程影响可忽略。嵌入毛细管的阶梯式T型微通道内获得的液滴、气泡直径小于微通道直径，根据实验结果基于两相流量和毛细管数分别建立了计算液滴、气泡分散尺寸的半经验模型，模型与实验结果符合良好。     

Parametric study of droplet size in an axisymmetric flow-focusing capillary device

A conventional technique for microfluidic droplet generation is Co-axial Flow Focusing(CFF) in which a contraction zone is placed downstream of the dispersed phase nozzle. In this contraction zone, the dispersed-phase(dphase) fluid is pinched off by continuous-phase(c-phase) fluid to generate micro-droplets. Studying the influence of multiple parameters such as the fluids velocities and viscosities, the interfacial tension, and nozzle and orifice diameters on the droplet size is of great importance for the design and application of CFF devices. Thus,development of more complete numerical models is required. In this paper, we show our model is compatible with experimental data and then numerically investigate the effects of aforementioned parameters on the droplet generation in a CFF microfluidic device. Simulation results showed that the c–phase flow rate, viscosity and the interfacial tension had great impacts on the droplet size. The effect of the nozzle diameter on the generated droplet size was small compared to that of the orifice in a CFF device. Using the simulation results, a correlation was also developed and suggested which predicts the droplet size with less than 15% error in a wide range of the introduced dimensionless parameters.     

Characterization of the surface area of overflow droplets generated by a gas-lift pump under reduced pressure

Water-modelling experiments were carried out to characterize the surface area of overflow droplets generated by a gas-lift pump under reduced pressure as a function of various operating parameters, namely, top pressure, gas flow rate, nozzle submergence, lift ratio and riser diameter. The liquid phase mass transfer coefficient was obtained by applying the penetration theory (Treybal, 1980; Bird et al., 1960) to the overflow generated from the riser. Under reduced pressure, churn-turbulent flow, consisting of distorted bullet-shaped bubbles, was predominant in the flow regime. The increase of liquid circulation rate and flight time and the decrease of droplet size increased the refining rate. Because of the large droplet size, the refining rate of molten metals was smaller than that of water.     

Y聚焦型微通道内磁流体液滴的生成与调控

利用高速摄像仪研究了截面为400 μm×400 μm Y聚焦型微通道内磁流体液滴在矿物油中的生成过程。以水基磁流体EMG 807为分散相,含4%表面活性剂Span-20的矿物油为连续相。实验观察到了3种流型：弹状流、滴状流和喷射流。分别考察了两相流量、连续相毛细数及磁感应强度对液滴尺寸及生成过程的影响。结果表明：可通过改变两相流量及磁场调控液滴尺寸。当分散相流量不变时,液滴尺寸随着两相流量比的增加而减小。液滴尺寸随着连续相毛细数及磁感应强度的增加而减小,随着分散相流量的增加而增加。以两相流量比、连续相毛细数和磁Bond数为参数提出了一个液滴尺寸的关联式,预测值与实验值吻合良好。     

喷动床脱硫压力旋流喷嘴的雾化性能

雾化喷嘴是半干式喷动床的关键部件之一,其雾化性能直接影响脱硫效率。为了得到喷嘴雾化的详细信息,用激光粒度测试仪对空心锥压力旋流式喷嘴和实心锥压力旋流式喷嘴雾化性能进行了实验研究,得出不同类型、不同孔径的喷嘴的流量,索太尔直径DSM,雾滴粒径分布DSP等与压力的关系。实验表明:流量与压力平方根成正比关系;DSM与压力为e函数的单调减函数关系;实心锥喷嘴出口直径越大,雾滴粒径平均分布(■)越小,粒径分布范围越窄,雾化性能越好,空心锥喷嘴则变化不明显;压力增大,实心锥喷嘴的DSP变大,雾滴粒径在压力低时分布比较均匀。     

T-型微通道中液滴形成机制的CFD模拟

对微米级窄型T-型微通道中微液滴的形成机制进行了CFD模拟,验证了随毛细准数Ca的增加,液滴的形成会经历"squeezing"和"dripping"机制,且2个机制之间明显的存在着一个"transient"机制。通道壁的润湿性能对液滴的形成过程有显著影响,只有当通道壁更亲连续相时,微液滴才能形成。但与"dripping"机制不同,在"squee-zing"机制下,通道壁的润湿性对形成液滴的体积有明显的影响。     

Drag-induced breakup mechanism for droplet generation in dripping within flow focusing microfluidics

Based on viscous drag-induced breakup mechanism, a simple model was proposed to predict the dripping drop-let size as a function of controllable parameters in flow focusing micro devices. The size of t...     

十字聚焦型微通道内弹状液滴在黏弹性流体中的生成与尺寸预测

利用高速摄像仪对十字聚焦微通道内液滴在黏弹性流体中的生成过程进行了实验研究。微通道截面为600μm×600 μm 的正方形结构,采用硅油作为分散相,含0.3%表面活性剂十二烷基硫酸钠(SDS)的聚环氧乙烷(PEO)水溶液(质量分数分别为0.1%,0.3%,0.6%)为连续相。实验观察到了弹状流、滴状流和喷射流3 种流型。对弹状流型下液滴生成过程的颈部动力学进行了研究,考察了两相流率、连续相毛细数及弹性数对液滴尺寸的影响。结果表明:弹状液滴尺寸随连续相流率、毛细数及弹性数的增加而减小,随分散相流率的增加而增加,连续相弹性对液滴尺寸的影响相对较小。以油水两相流率比和连续相的毛细数及Reynolds 数为变量建立了弹状液滴尺寸的预测关联式,预测值与实验值吻合良好。     

Experimental investigation and model improvement on the atomization performance of single-hole Y-jet nozzle with high liquid flow rate

Y-jet nozzle, as an efficient multi-hole internal-mixing twin-fluid atomizer, has been widely used for liquid fuel spray in many industrial processes. However, single-hole Y-jet nozzle with high liquid flow rate is indispensable in some confined situations due to a small spray cone angle. In this paper, the atomization performance of single-hole Y-jet nozzles with high liquid mass flow rates ranging from 400 to 1500 kg/h for practical semidry flue gas desulfurization processes was investigated by the laser particle size analyzer, and the effects of spray water pressure, atomizing air pressure and air to liquid mass flow ratio on the liquid mass flow rate and the droplet size distribution were analyzed. Moreover, the secondary atomization model was modified on the basis of previous random atomization model of Y-jet nozzle. The predicted results agreed well with the experimental ones, and the improved atomization model of Y-jet nozzle was well validated to design the nozzle geometry and to predict the droplet size distributions for single-hole Y-jet nozzle with high liquid mass flow rate.     

Micro-computed tomography for the 3D time-resolved investigation of monodisperse droplet generation in a co-flow setup

Droplet generation in microfluidic devices has emerged as a promising approach for the design of highly controllable processes in the chemical and pharmaceutical industry. However, droplet generation is still not fully understood due to the complexity of the underlying physics. In this work, micro-computed tomography is applied to investigate droplet formation in a circular channel in a co-flow configuration at different flow conditions (Ca < 0.001). The application of an in-house developed scanning protocol assisted by comprehensive image processing allows for the time-resolved investigation of droplet formation. By tracking different droplet parameters (length, radii, volume, surface, Laplace pressure) the effect of flow conditions on droplet progression is determined. As characteristic for the squeezing regime, final droplet size was nearly independent of Ca for higher Ca tested. For lower Ca, the final droplet size increased with decreasing Ca, which points to the leaking regime that was recently introduced in the literature.     

压力旋流喷嘴雾化滴径分布的模型预测和实验

利用激光片光荧光诱导技术（PLIF）测得不同液体流量下的压力旋流喷嘴雾化滴径分布,用平均粒径约束的三参数最大熵模型对雾化滴径分布进行预测。将理论预测分布与实验结果进行拟合,得到广义伽玛参数α随着液体流量变化的一般表达式。用拟合模型对粒径分布的特点和规律进行总结,结果表明：拟合模型能很好地预测粒径的数量分布,且不受小液滴的影响;随着液体流量的增加,液滴粒径分布范围逐渐变窄,峰值液滴粒径呈线性减小趋势,峰值液滴百分数呈线性增加趋势。     

微流控聚焦流液滴产生过程中的力学机制(英文)

Based on viscous drag-induced breakup mechanism, a simple model was proposed to predict the dripping drop-let size as a function of controllable parameters in flow focusing micro devices. The size of thread before breakup was also investigated through laminar flow theory. Experiments and numerical simulations by VOF are carried out simultaneously to validate the theoretical analysis, showing that droplet size decreases rapidly with the in-crease of the flow rate ratio and capil ary number.     

Production of Highly Monodisperse Millimeter‐Sized Double‐Emulsion Droplets in a Coaxial Capillary Device

An innovative coaxial capillary device with a size‐comparable outlet channel was designed to meet the challenges for controllable production of highly monodisperse millimeter‐sized double‐emulsion droplets by one‐step dripping. The technique of two angled junctions, coaxial capillaries, and compound channel geometry was introduced to convert the millifluidics to microfluidic hydrodynamic features. The relevant nondimensional numbers for a typically regular dripping in this kind of millifluidic flows were similar to those in common microfluidic devices. Effects of the rival forces due to the fluid factors on droplet formation were clarified to explain the dynamic behaviors of double‐emulsion formation and to establish the mechanism of droplet breakup. The results helped to understand the coaxial flow pattern for obtaining a more precise droplet size control and to develop high‐throughput setups for chemistry, physics, and biology.