Improved convective heat transfer correlations for two-phase two-component pipe flow

In this study, six two-phase nonboiling heat transfer correlations obtained from the recommendations of our previous work were assessed. These correlations were modified using seven extensive sets of two-phase flow experimental data available from the literature, for vertical and horizontal tubes and different flow patterns and fluids. A total of 524 data points from five available experimental studies (which included the seven sets of data) were used for improvement of the six identified correlations. Based on the tabulated and graphical results of the comparisons between the predictions of the modified heat transfer correlations and the available experimental data, appropriate improved correlations for different flow patterns, tube orientations, and liquid-gas combinations were recommended.     

Condensation heat transfer correlation for smooth tubes in annular flow regime

Condensation heat transfer coefficients in a 7.92 mm inside diameter copper smooth tube were obtained experimentally for R22, R134a, and R410A. Working conditions were in the range of 30–40°C condensation temperature, 95–410 kg/m²s mass flux, and 0.15–0.85 vapor quality. The experimental data were compared with the eight existing correlations for an annular flow regime. Based on the heat-momentum analogy, a condensation heat transfer coefficients correlation for the annular flow regime was developed. The Breber et al. flow regime map was used to discern flow pattern and the Muller-Steinhagen & Heck pressure drop correlation was used for the term of the proposed correlation. The proposed correlation provided the best predicted performance compared to the eight existing correlations and its root mean square deviation was less than 8.7%.     

Investigation of empirical correlations on the determination of condensation heat transfer characteristics during downward annular flow of R134a inside a vertical smooth tube using artificial intelligence algorithms

The heat transfer characteristics of R134a during downward condensation are investigated experimentally and numerically. While the convective heat transfer coefficient, two-phase multiplier and frictional pressure drop are considered to be the significant variables as output for the analysis, inputs of the computational numerical techniques include the important two-phase flow parameters such as equivalent Reynolds number, Prandtl number, Bond number, Froude number, Lockhart and Martinelli number. Genetic algorithm technique (GA), unconstrained nonlinear minimization algorithm-Nelder-Mead method (NM) and non-linear least squares error method (NLS) are applied for the optimization of these significant variables in this study. Regression analysis gave convincing correlations on the prediction of condensation heat transfer characteristics using ±30% deviation band for practical applications. The most suitable coefficients of the proposed correlations are depicted to be compatible with the large number of experimental data by means of the computational numerical methods. Validation process of the proposed correlations is accomplished by means of the comparison between the various correlations reported in the literature.     

Uncertainty analysis for multiphase flow: A case study for horizontal air-water flow experiments

This work describes the procedure used to define the measurement uncertainties of horizontal two-phase air-water flow experiments conducted to determine influences due to pipe diameter on pressure gradient on such flows. These experiments were performed with 4 different pipe diameters, always using the same test section length, therefore varying the length-to-diameter (L/D) ratio. Several parameters were measured, such as volumetric/mass flow rate, pressures, temperatures and pressure drop; other parameters were calculated, such as the superficial velocities of each fluid, as well as their corresponding properties. The main parameters studied were the flow patterns for different velocity configurations and the two-phase pressure drop to be used for model improvement, thus the importance of uncertainties analysis. The sources of uncertainty were defined, detailed, systematically studied and quantified. Also, the reproducibility capacity of the experimental setups were analysed through the uncertainty analysis and proving them to be able for future similar studies. The flow maps with their uncertainties could help understand the thresholds for each defined flow pattern region, and the plots of two-phase pressure drop variation with diameter confirmed the homogeneous model as a possible approach to calculate pressure drop if the uncertainties are considered.     

A study on pressure drop characteristics of refrigerants in horizontal flow boiling

An experimental investigation on the flow pattern and pressure drop was carried out for both an adiabatic and a diabatic two-phase flow in a horizontal tube with pure refrigerants R134a and R123 and their mixtures as test fluids. The observed flow patterns were compared to the flow pattern map of Kattan et al., which predicted well the present data over the entire regions of mass velocity in this study. The measured frictional pressure drop in the adiabatic experiments increased with an increase in vapor quality and mass velocity. These data were compared to various correlations proposed in the past for the frictional pressure drop. The Chisholm correlation underpredicted the present data both for pure fluids and their mixtures in the entire mass velocity range of 150 to 600 kg/m²s covered in the measurements, while the Friedel correlation was found to overpredict the present data in the stratified and stratified-wavy flow region, and to underpredict in the annular flow region.     

Two-phase flow heat transfer of R-134a in microtubes

The characteristics of the two-phase flow heat transfer of R-134a in microtubes with inner diameters of 430 μm and 792 μm were experimentally investigated. The effect of the heat flux on the heat transfer coefficient for microtubes was significant before the transition quality. The boiling number expressed the interrelation between the heat flux and the mass about the heat transfer coefficients. The smaller microtube had greater heat transfer coefficients; the average heat transfer coefficient for the tube A (D _i = 430 μm) was 47.0% greater than that for the tube B (D _i = 792 μm) at G = 370 kg/m²·s and q″ = 20 kW·m². A new correlation for the evaporative heat transfer coefficients in microtubes was developed by considering the following factors: the laminar flow heat transfer coefficient of liquid-phase flow, the enhancement factor of the convective heat transfer, and the nucleate boiling correction factor. The correlation developed in present study predicted the experimental heat transfer coefficients within an absolute average deviation of 8.4%.     

带亲水层波纹翅片管换热器析湿工况空气侧换热与压降关联式

为得到带亲水层波纹翅片的换热器在析湿工况下空气侧的换热和压降关联式,对7个带亲水层波纹翅片管换热器在23个工况下进行了试验研究。根据试验数据,运用多元线形回归方法拟合得到了带亲水层波纹翅片管换热器析湿工况下空气侧的换热和压降关联式。所拟合的换热和压降关联式平均误差分别为6.5%和9.1%,在±15%误差范围内分别能涵盖90.3%和79.2%的试验数据。将新开发的关联式与目前已有的4个换热与压降关联式进行了对比分析,结果表明新的关联式精度明显好于已有的关联式。     

An adaptive CEEMD-ANN algorithm and its application in pneumatic conveying flow pattern identification

The accurate measurement of dust concentration using electrostatic sensor is serious affected by two-phase flow patterns in practice. In this paper, the electrostatic sensor signals of flow in a pneumatic conveying pipeline were collected, and the electrostatic fluctuation signals of three typical flow patterns of gas–solid two-phase flow in the horizontal pipe were obtained. By combining complementary ensemble empirical mode decomposition (CEEMD) and a back propagation (BP) neural network, an algorithm for flow pattern identification is proposed. This algorithm can adaptively determine the number of layers of the intrinsic mode function (IMF) decomposition and the number of input vectors for the neural network, ensuring the minimum size vector is used. The selected IMF energy feature as the input of the BP neural network can effectively ensure that an accurate flow pattern discrimination rate is obtained. The experimental results show that the algorithm proposed in the paper can guarantee the recognition rate of the flow pattern to reach more than 99%, yet through adaptive adjustment ensure that the size of trained BP neural network input is as small as possible, and the guaranteed algorithm calculation is kept at a minimum.     

Prediction of forced convective boiling heat transfer coefficient of pure refrigerants and binary refrigerant mixtures inside a horizontal tube

Forced convective boiling heat transfer coefficients were predicted for an annular flow inside a horizontal tube for pure refrigerants and nonazeotropic binary refrigerant mixtures. The heat transfer coefficients were calculated based on the turbulent temperature profile in liquid film and vapor core considering the composition difference in vapor and liquid phases, and the nonlinearity in mixing rules for the calculation of mixture properties. The heat transfer coefficients of pure refrigerants were estimated within a standard deviation of 14% compared with available experimental data. For nonazeotropic binary refrigerant mixtures, prediction of the heat transfer coefficients was made with a standard deviation of 18%. The heat transfer coefficients of refrigerant mixtures were lower than linearly interpolated values calculated from the heat transfer coefficients of pure refrigerants. This degradation was represented by several factors such as the difference between the liquid and the overall compositions, the conductivity ratio and the viscosity ratio of both components in refrigerant mixtures. The temperature change due to the concentration gradient was a major factor for the heat transfer degradation and the mass flux itself at the interface had a minor effect.     

板式脉动热管强化传热方法研究

为了研究板式脉动热管的传热性能强化的方法,对原型和改进型两种不同板式脉动热管传热特性进行数值分析比较。基于VOF方法建立板式脉动热管汽液两相流动及相变传热三维非稳态数学模型,仿真得到不同加热功率条件下热管内流型演化和温度分布。仿真结果表明,改进型脉动热管在高功率阶段,整体等效热阻小于原型。     

Comparison of throttle devices to measure two-phase flowrates of wet gas with extremely-low liquid loading

The online measurement of wet gas with extremely-low liquid loading (Lockhart-Martinelli parameter lower than 0.02) remains a challenge. In this study, three types of throttle devices, Venturi, orifice plate and cone, are compared experimentally with air-water two-phase flow in a horizontal pipe of inner diameter of 50 mm. High-precision correlations are established to measure the gas and liquid flowrates via a single throttle device. Results show that the two-phase mass flow coefficient (K) of the three throttle devices all increase linearly with the liquid densiometric Froude number and the K correlations are established respectively to correct the gas mass flowrate deviation. The pressure loss ratio (δ) for Venturi is sensitive and monotonous to the liquid loading, which contributes to the high accuracy of liquid flowrate measurement. By incorporating the K correlations, both the gas and liquid mass flowrates can be predicted precisely. The relative error of the gas mass flowrate predicted by the Venturi is within ±2.0% at 95% confidence level, and that of the liquid mass flowrate is within ±15% at 90% confidence level.     

Imaging stratifying liquid–liquid flow by capacitance tomography

Electrical capacitance tomography offers a non-intrusive technique for on-line visualisation of two-phase liquid–liquid flows. It has been applied on a facility which provides metered flows of water and kerosene to a test section at the start of which they pass through a dispersing multi-hole orifice plate. The test section consists of a sudden expansion with an internal diameter of 63 mm inlet and 100 mm outlet and which can be inclined. Beyond this the mixture is separated into the two constituents and returned to their individual tanks. Tomography measurements were made using a PTL-300 electronic system coupled to a 12-electrode sensor which was built in-house. The sensor is fitted on the outside of one of the plastic pipe lengths of the test section. By varying the input oil fractions from 20% to 70%, using mixture velocities of 0.2, 0.3, and 0.4 m/s and positioning the pipe at angles of +6,+3,0, −4 and −7 to the horizontal, different flow patterns were established in the test section. A specially developed calibration method is used in all experiments and tomographic images of the stratifying liquid–liquid flow were obtained. These images show clearly that the spatial distribution in a pipe cross-section is strongly dependent on the mixture velocity and the distance from expansion in the range studied. Concave interfaces were observed in horizontal and downward inclination flow for all cases while convex interfaces were identified only in an upward inclination flow at the high input oil fractions and high mixture velocities. This application illustrates very clearly the capability of the ECT for on-line imaging of liquid–liquid two-phase flows.     

热管换热器用于LED冷却系统的试验研究

研发了一种将大功率发光二极管(LED)散热和热管传热相结合的用于大功率LED冷却的热管散热器,并对设计出的热管散热器的传热性能进行了试验研究。结果表明,该热管散热器具有良好的散热能力,在输入功率为50W的情况下能控制节点温度在70℃以下,而且热管换热器的散热能力和工作倾角有密切关系,倾角越小,散热能力越好,垂直使用时散热能力最差,最后从理论上加以分析。     

High GVF and low pressure gas–liquid two-phase flow measurement based on dual-cone flowmeter

Parameter measurement of gas–liquid two-phase flows with a high gas volume fraction (GVF) has received great attention in the research field of multiphase flow. The cone meter, as a new proposed differential pressure (DP) meter, is increasingly being applied in flowrate measurement of gas–liquid two-phase flow. A dual-parameter measurement method of gas–liquid two-phase flow based on a dual-cone meter is proposed. The two-phase flow is investigated in a horizontal pipeline with high GVF and low pressure, and exists in the form of annular flow. By adding a second cone meter, both gas mass fraction (GMF) and mass flowrate are measured. The pressure drop performances of five different sized cones have been discussed to make a cooperating cone selection and efficiently position the dual-cone in the pipe. Dual-cone flowmeter experiments of 0.45 and 0.65 equivalent diameter ratio combination, and 0.65 and 0.85 equivalent diameter ratio combination are respectively carried out to analyze the linearity of two-phase flow multiplier with Lockhart–Martinelli parameter and obtain the dual-parameter measurement results. The relative experiment error of GMF, gas mass flowrate and total mass flowrate are respectively within ±7%, ±5% and ±10%. The relative error of the liquid phase is within ±10% when the liquid mass fraction is beyond 40%. The experimental results show that it is efficient to utilize this dual-cone method for high GVF and low pressure gas–liquid two-phase flow measurement.     

Flow pattern identification for gas-oil two-phase flow based on a virtual capacitance tomography sensor and numerical simulation

Gas-oil two-phase flow is widely encountered in oil exploitation and transportation pipelines. It's complex and transient changes of flow regimes present a great challenge for accurate and real-time measurement. As a non-invasion and real-time measuring method, electrical capacitance tomography (ECT) is suitable for the transient measurement of non-conductive gas-oil flow. However, the highly random and nonlinear nature of multiphase flow make it difficult and limited to investigate the flow parameters based on either static or dynamic measurement. In this research, the whole process of dynamic measurement of ECT applying in gas-oil two-phase flow is thoroughly studied, including simulation calculation, experimental validation and comprehensive data analysis. A simulation approach by coupling the flow and electrostatic field is proposed based on a virtual ECT sensor, in order to monitor the gas-oil two-phase flow characteristics. Based on FLUENT and COMSOL platform, the numerical simulation under six typical flow patterns in a horizontal pipe is carried out. Combining the visualized image generated by ECT measurement and the theory of flow pattern transition, the formation mechanism and structural characteristics of different gas-oil flow patterns are analyzed in detail. Furthermore, this research attempts to analyze the signal fluctuation characteristics caused by flow pattern change, in order to access more in-depth flow information implied in the original capacitance data, via time-series analysis as well as frequency domain analysis based on Flourier Transform. At last, a series of dynamic experiment is conducted to verify the feasibility of the simulation and data analysis approach. The experiment focuses on the flow pattern transition, gas-liquid dynamic characteristics and noise influence in the actual process. It can be concluded from the results of simulation and experiment tests, combining the visualized images and the dynamic characteristics of capacitance signals can make it more effective and intuitive for flow pattern identification, which might be used for the online measurement in real-industry process.     

Heat transfer characteristics of liquid-solid suspension flow in a horizontal pipe

Particles in liquid-solid suspension flow might enhance or suppress the rate of heat transfer and turbulence depending on their size and concentration, The heat transfer characteristics of liquid-solid suspension in turbulent flow are not well understood due to the complexibility of interaction between solid particles and turbulence of the carrier fluid. In this study, the heat transfer coefficients of liquid-solid mixtures are investigated using a double pipe heat exchanger with suspension flows in the inner pipe. Experiments are carried out using spherical fly ash particles with mass median diameter ranging from 4 to 78 μm. The volume concentration of solids in the slurry ranged from 0 to 50% and Reynolds number ranged from 4,000 to 11,000. The heat transfer coefficient of liquid-solid suspension to water flow is found to increase with decreasing particle diameter. The heat transfer coefficient increases with particle volume concentration exhibiting the highest heat transfer enhancement at the 3% solid volume concentration and then gradually decreases. A correlation for heat transfer to liquid-solid flows in a horizontal pipe is presented.     

A study on the improvement of heat transfer performance in low temperature closed Thermosyphon

The study focuses on the heat transfer performance of two-phase closed thermosyphons with plain copper tube and tubes having 50, 60, 70, 80, 90 internal grooves. Three different working fluids (distilled water, methanol, ethanol) are used with various volumetric liquid fill charge ratio from 10 to 40%. Additional experimental parameters such as operating temperature and inclination angle of zero to 90 degrees are used for the comparison of heat transfer performance of the thermosyphon. Condensation and boiling heat transfer coefficients, heat flux are obtained using experimental data for each case of specific parameter. The experimental results are assessed and compared with existing correlations. The results show that working fluids, liquid fill charge ratio, number of grooves and inclination angle are very important factors for the operation of thermosyphons. The relatively high rate of heat transfer is achieved when the thermosyphon with internal grooves is used compared to that with plain tube. The optimum liquid fill charge ratio for the best heat transfer performance lies between 25% and 30%. The range of the optimum inclination angle for this study is 20°-30° from the horizontal position.     

Void fraction measurement in steam–water two-phase flow using the gamma ray attenuation under high pressure and high temperature evaporating conditions

The void fraction is one of the most important parameters used to characterize gas–liquid two-phase flow, and a myriad of researchers have investigated it under the adiabatic flow conditions. The gamma ray attenuation is a frequently used non-intrusive method for measuring component volume fraction in gas–liquid two-phase flow system. In this paper, firstly, the influence of the various parameters and test conditions on the gamma ray attenuation have been completely examined, such as the calibration of Count Rate for pure gas and liquid phases, the influences of fluid temperature, phase changing point and fluid mass velocity, distance between gamma ray attenuation measuring instrument and experimental section etc. Secondly, the measurement of void fraction was taken in the vertically upward pipes under high pressure and high temperature evaporating conditions. The experimental results of void fraction were compared with the data in reference literature for measurement, the results from the gamma ray attenuation show good agreement with the literature for air–water two-phase flows, but for the evaporating conditions, a small number of compared data beyond the statistical approach for 90% of confidence interval due to some reasons, such as heat flux, the diameter of Taylor-bubbles, longitude of slugs etc. Finally, six predicted correlations from four groups were selected for comparing with the experimental data. The most of compared data were within the statistical approach for 85% of confidence interval. In general, the void fraction was rarely investigated and the available data was limited under high temperature and high pressure evaporating conditions. The investigations of present study are helpful to resolve the difficulties of measuring for gas–liquid two-phase flows concerning to the heated evaporating condition.     

Numerical approach for cocurrent stratified steam water flow in a horizontal configuration

The present study deals with the one-dimensional numerical approach in predicting the local flow properties for cocurrent stratified steam-water flow in a horizontal configuration. The turbulence-centered model, developed principally for gas absorption, has been modified and introduced for the condensation heat transfer coefficient using interfacial parameters, such as turbulent velocity and length scales. The calculated condensation rates, pressures and mean water layer thicknesses are in good agreement with Lim’s experimental data obtained from cocurrent stratified steam flow on a fairly thick layer of water. In addition, the approach was applied to the case of relatively thin liquid films, and the results were compared with Linehan’s experimental data. The comparison indicates that the one-dimensional numerical approach with the present condensation heat transfer correlation developed from the thick liquid data can be applicable to the prediction of the flow properties for thin liquid films.     

Effects of flow patterns and salinity on water holdup measurement of oil-water two-phase flow using a conductance method

This research investigates the effects of flow pattern and salinity of oil-water two-phase flow on water holdup measurement using a conductance method. Firstly, vertical upward oil-water two-phase flow experiment is conducted in a 20 mm inner diameter (ID) pipe, in which the salinities of aqueous solutions are set as 151 ppm, 1003 ppm, 2494 ppm and 4991 ppm respectively. Experimental water-cut and mixture velocity are set as 80–100% and 0.0184–0.2576 m/s. In the experiment, three different flow patterns, i.e., dispersed oil-in-water slug flow (D OS/W), dispersed oil-in-water flow (D O/W) and very fine dispersed oil-in-water flow (VFD O/W) are observed and recorded by a high speed camera. Meanwhile, we collect the response of Vertical Multiple Electrode Array (VMEA) conductance sensor excited by a sine voltage signal. The result shows that, for VFD O/W, the water holdup from VMEA sensor shows a satisfied agreement with that of quick closing valve (QCV) method under certain salinities, i.e., 1003 ppm as well as 2494 ppm. For D OS/W flow and D O/W flow characterized by dispersed oil droplets with various sizes, considerable deviations of water holdup between VMEA sensor and QCV method under four kinds of salinity aforementioned are presented. Afterward, according to experimental analysis along with theoretical deviation, it is concluded that the deviation of the measurement system reaches its minimum when reference resistance in the measurement circuit and salinity of the aqueous solution satisfy constraint conditions, and the accuracy of water holdup using the conductance method can be improved through adjusting reference resistance to match the salinity of water phase. Finally, the recurrence plot algorithm is utilized to identify typical flow patterns mentioned above and it shows satisfied results on comprehending the discrepancies among different flow patterns, demonstrating that the recurrence plot algorithm can be effectively applied in flow pattern identification regarding oil-water flows.