Mixing performance of a planar micromixer with circular obstructions in a curved microchannel

A numerical investigation of the mixing and fluid flow in a new design of passive micromixer employing several cylindrical obstructions within a curved microchannel is presented in this work. Mixing in the channels is analyzed using Navier–Stokes equations and the diffusion equation between two working fluids (water and ethanol) for Reynolds numbers from 0.1 to 60. The proposed micromixer shows far better mixing performance than a T-micromixer with circular obstructions and a simple curved micromixer. The effects of cross-sectional shape, height, and placement of the obstructions on mixing performance and the pressure drop of the proposed micromixer are evaluated.     

Influence of Tortuous Geometry on the Hydrodynamic Characteristics of Laminar Flow in Microchannels

Flow visualizations are performed to study the hydrodynamic characteristics of laminar flow in tortuous microchannels for a wide range of Reynolds numbers. The detailed flow patterns in wavy channels are identified and found to be greatly affected by geometrical parameters. In wavy channels, steady flow exists at low Reynolds numbers, but above a critical number unsteady flow develops. The critical Reynolds number is found to depend on the characteristics of the channel path. Recirculation zones form immediately after the inner corners of the sharp bends, with their size and magnitude of the recirculation velocity increasing with higher Reynolds numbers. Large fluctuations in recirculation zone locations highlight the importance of these flow features in the development of transient flow. The flow behaviors play very important roles in determining the pressure drop in wavy channels relative to straight channels.     

Pressure drop characteristics of flow in a symmetric channel with periodically expanded grooves

Pressure drop characteristics of flow in a periodically grooved channel are investigated experimentally. It is well known that a self-sustained oscillatory flow occurs from a steady-state flow at a certain critical Reynolds number in such grooved channels. The oscillatory flow enhances fluid mixing and leads to an increase in pressure drop. We measure the pressure drop with a pressure transducer. It is found that the pressure drop increases near the critical Reynolds numbers where the two- and three-dimensional oscillatory flows occur. In addition, the three-dimensional flow is confirmed by flow visualization.     

A numerical study of mixing in a microchannel with circular mixing chambers

The mixing of fluids in a microchannel is numerically investigated using three-dimensional Navier–Stokes equations. The microchannel has circular mixing chambers that are designed to create a self-circulating flow that operates at low Reynolds numbers. The investigations have been performed on a design that comprises of four circular mixing chambers that are joined together with constriction channels. The study has been carried out in two parts. Firstly, the mixing and the flow field are analyzed for a wide range (1–250) of the Reynolds number. Secondly, the effects of two design parameters, namely, the ratio, w/d, of the width of the constriction channel to the diameter of the circular chamber, and the angle, θ, between the outer walls of the chamber and the connection channel, on the mixing and the flow field have been evaluated. The mixing has been evaluated using a parameter, called mixing index, which is based on the variance of the mass fraction. The mixing index at the end of the device increases rapidly with the Reynolds number. The presence of a flow recirculation zone in the circular chamber is found to be effective in enhancing mixing, especially for larger Reynolds numbers. The mixing performance improves with an increase in θ, and with a decrease in w/d. The characteristics of the pressure drop have also been investigated as a function of the Reynolds number and geometric parameters. © 2009 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2009     

Performance of Kenics static mixer over a wide range of Reynolds number

The present study deals with the numerical simulation of flow patterns and mixing behaviour in Kenics static mixer over a wide range of Reynolds number. Three different sets of Kenics mixer (aspect ratio = 1.5) comprised of 3, 9 and 25 elements each have been characterized. The Reynolds number was varied in the range of 1 to 25,000 (i.e., from laminar to turbulent flow regime). The numerical approach takes into account the aspects of the fluid flow at higher Reynolds number values including circumferential velocity profiles at different cross-sections within the Kenics mixer, which were neglected in previous studies. It was observed that cross-sectional mixing in the turbulent flow regime takes place up to 30% of each element length at element-to-element transition; beyond that velocity profiles were uniform. The experiments were also carried out to measure the circumferential and axial velocity profiles and pressure drop in three different Kenics Mixers using air as fluid. The pressure drop per unit element (ΔP/η) was found to be independent of the number of Kenics mixing elements used in the system. The total pressure drop across Kenics mixer obtained by CFD simulations were compared with the experimental pressure drop values and correlations available in the literature. The numerical results were found in good agreement with the experimental as well as the results reported in the literature. A new pressure drop correlation in the Kenics static mixer has been developed.     

Computer aided fuel cell design and scale-up,comparison between model and experimental results

The present work illustrates the employment of an Automatic Scale-up Algorithm (ASA) to design a 200 cm² multiple serpentine (MS) flow field for a Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell (PEFC). With a fixed fuel cell active area and total pressure drop, the algorithm provides the flow-field design solution characterized by a specific set of parameters including channel width, rib width, channel height, covering factor, number of switchbacks, Reynolds number and pressure drop. It is known that a correlation exists between the mass flow passing through the electrode and the pressure drop, influencing the fuel cell performance. A pressure drop range from 5 to 45 kPa with steps of 5 kPa has been investigated. Numerical simulations performed on each geometry set have permitted a comparison of the flow-field total pressure drop with the analytical compressible calculation, and to evaluate the mass flow rate passing through the electrode and in the flow field channels separately. A comparison between ASA and CFD results has highlighted that the methodology is able to find a flow-field geometry that matches target geometrical and fluid dynamic requirements. A better agreement between the Automatic Scale-up Algorithm and direct CFD pressure drop calculation has been obtained taking into account the gas compressibility effects. The increase of the mass flow rate vs flow-field total pressure drop is also reported. A better understanding of the gas shorting phenomenon has been achieved by CFD post-processing, in terms of gas velocity profiles and pressure drop between adjacent channels. Since the gas shorting is a pressure driven effect, the total mass flow rate percentage passing through the porous backing has been related to the shorting velocity and geometrical parameters of the porous backing; moreover proportionality between “shorting” pressure drop and ratio of flow field total pressure drop and switchback number has been highlighted.     

不同三维微通道中被动混合特性的研究

Based on the transport phenomena theory, the passive mixing of water and ethanol in different three-dimensional microchannels is simulated numerically. The average variance of water volume fraction is used to index the mixing efficiency in the cases with different Reynolds number and different fabricated mixers. The results show that the efficiency of liquid mixing is progressively dependent on the convective transport as the Reynolds number increases. The efficiency of serpentine microchannel decreases with the increasing Reynolds number in the laminar regime. Altering the aspect ratio of channel inlet section has no significant effect on the mixing efficiency. Increasing the area of channel inlet section will cause the decrease of the mixing efficiency. The mixing in serpentine channels is the most efficient among three different mixers because of the existence of second flow introduced by its special structure.     

Effects of roughness elements on laminar flow and heat transfer in microchannels

A model of laminar flow and heat transfer in rough microchannels is developed and analyzed numerically to compare the effect of roughness elements on the thermal and hydrodynamic characteristics. In this model, the rough surfaces are configured with triangular, rectangular and semicircular roughness elements, respectively. Here, the effects of the Reynolds number, roughness height, and roughness element spacing on pressure drop and heat transfer in rough microchannels are all investigated and discussed. The results indicate that the global heat transfer performance is improved by the roughness elements at the expense of pressure head when compared to the smooth channel. Differing from the smooth microchannels, both the Poiseuille number and average Nusselt number of rough microchannels are no longer constant with Reynolds numbers and are larger than the classical value. Especially, the difference from the effects of three types of roughness elements is identified. With the increasing roughness height, the flow over surfaces with semicircular and triangular roughness elements induces stronger recirculation and flow separation. This contributes to heat transfer enhancement but also increases the pressure drop. However, the influence of the rectangular roughness element height is weaker than that of semicircular and triangular elements. In addition, the effects of the spacing of roughness elements on the Poiseuille number and average Nusselt number are in decreasing order for semicircular, triangular and rectangular roughness elements, respectively.     

Pressure drop and mixing in single phase microreactors: Simplified designs of micromixers

Continuous flow microreactors can greatly improve the safety and product yields of processes in the pharmaceutical and fine chemical industry by overcoming many of the drawbacks of traditional batch and semi-batch stirred reactors. This study compares on a common scale the pressure drop and mixing performance of different size commercial microreactor plates composed of a tangential, SZ-shaped or caterpillar mixer followed by a rectangular serpentine main channel. The pressure drop was fitted to a friction factor model, which suggests that the mixing zone had significant chaotic secondary flow patterns, whereas the main channel did not. Moreover, the mixing zone was the main contributor to the overall pressure drop. Mixing performance was then characterized using competitive parallel reactions. Upon the formation of chaotic secondary flows, typically due to the interactions of artificially induced vortices, the mixer performance was found to be independent of geometry for a given energy dissipation rate. However, the mixer geometry will affect the critical Reynolds number that induces chaotic advection and changes the mixing time scale.     

Effects of baffle inclination angle on flow and heat transfer of a heat exchanger with helical baffles

Numerical simulations were carried out to study the impacts of various baffle inclination angles on fluid flow and heat transfer of heat exchangers with helical baffles. The simulations were conducted for one period of seven baffle inclination angles by using periodic boundaries. Predicted flow patterns from simulation results indicate that continual helical baffles can reduce or even eliminate dead regions in the shell side of shell-and-tube heat exchangers. The average Nusselt number increases with the increase of the baffle inclination angle α when α < 30°. Whereas, the average Nusselt number decreases with the increase of the baffle inclination angle when α > 30°. The pressure drop varies drastically with baffle inclination angle and shell-side Reynolds number. The variation of the pressure drop is relatively large for small inclination angle. However, for α > 40°, the effect of α on pressure drop is very small. Compared to the segmental heat exchangers, the heat exchangers with continual helical baffles have higher heat transfer coefficients to the same pressure drop. Within the Reynolds number studied for the shell side, the optimal baffle inclination angle is about 45°, with which the integrated heat transfer and pressure drop performance is the best. The detailed knowledge on the heat transfer and flow distribution in this investigation provides the basis for further optimization of shell-and-tube heat exchangers.     

Investigation of mixing performance in a semi-active T-micromixer actuated by magnetic nanoparticles: Characterization via Villermaux–Dushman reaction

A semi-active T-type micromixer is designed to intensify micromixing by actuating magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs). Five permanent magnets in a zig-zag arrangement are located next to the mixing channel of the micromixer to apply the magnetic field to the fluid flow. Micromixing performance is considered in terms of the segregation index (X_S) by the Villermaux/Dushman reaction test. The effects of magnetic flux intensity (B = 380–500 mT), the concentration of MNPs (φ = 0.002–0.01 [w/v]), and flow rate ratios on X_S and pressure drop are investigated. By increasing MNPs concentration from φ = 0.002–0.008 (w/v), X_S decreased and the rise in φ up to 0.008 (w/v) has not been significant on X_S. Maximum mixing efficiency (i.e., minimum X_S = 0.0088) is achieved for B = 500 mT and φ = 0.01 (w/v). By applying the magnetic field, the mixing performance increased due to the motion of MNPs, but its negative effect is an increase in the pressure drop along the micromixer reactor. Generally, with the formation of MNPs barriers inside the mixing channel, the main fluid flows through these layers and creates the sinusoidal flow paths compared to no magnetic field conditions, and thus, a superior mixing efficiency could be attained.     

Numerical simulation of mixing process in T-shaped and DT-shaped micromixers

Recently, numerous studies have been done on the micro- and nano-scale equipment because of their importance and wide range of application. Micromixers are among the equipment in which two or more fluids are mixed and have applications in the processes, such as chemical synthesis. In this research, a numerical investigation using finite volume approach is done on mixing two incompressible fluids in 3D mixers with T- and double-T-(DT) shaped geometries in the range of Reynolds numbers 75–400. One of the important parameters for the quantitative analysis of the mixing performance of micromixers is the mixing index. So, the effects of different geometries, Reynolds number and channel length on this parameter are studied. The results show that, at different Reynolds numbers, the mixing index of fluids in the DT-shaped channel with 90° is less than the corresponding one in T-shaped mixers because changing the flow regime occurs at higher Reynolds numbers in the DT-shaped channels. The amount of mixing index increases by decreasing the angle of branches in the DT-shaped channel. It is observed that the mixing index of fluids increases along the channel, which tends to a constant value far away from the inlet.     

Mixing in curved tubes

The mixing efficiency in a curved tube is a complex function of the Reynolds number, Schmidt number, curvature ratio and tube pitch, therefore, the relative effectiveness of a helical tube is quite complicated and challenging over a straight tube. A state of art review on mixing of two miscible liquids in curved tubes revealed that the mixing in coils of circular cross section has not been reported in the literature. In the present work a computational fluid dynamics study is performed in curved tubes of circular cross-section of finite pitch under laminar flow conditions to examine the scalar mixing of two miscible fluids using scalar transport technique. In the present study the phenomenon of mixing by convection and diffusion of two flow streams with inlet scalar concentrations of zero and unity in the two halves of a tube perpendicular to the plane of curvature has been reported. The mixing efficiency has been quantified with concentration distributions and unmixedness coefficient at different cross-sections and process conditions (Reynolds number, Schmidt number and curvature ratio) in the straight and curved tube of circular cross-section. The result shows that, in curved tube, for higher Schmidt number fluids, mixing is considerably improved at moderately low Reynolds numbers (Re∼10), but is not affected for Reynolds number of the order of 0.1. It is also reported that mixing in the curved tube is higher at low values of curvature ratio as compared to the higher curvature ratio.     

SD型静态混合器压力降的特性分析

借助计算流体力学软件FLUENT5/6,对含有3个流道的螺旋式静态混合器在不同的长宽比和雷诺数下的流动特性进行了数值模拟。模拟结果表明,当螺旋片长宽比为4∶1时该混合器压力降与雷诺数的1.715次方成正比;当雷诺数一定时,压力降与混合元件单元数在双对数坐标下成线性分布规律;压力降随着螺旋叶片长宽比的减小而增大;该混合器的压力降与对应结构的SK型静态混合器基本相同,大约是相同直径和管长的光滑空管压力降的10倍。     

有序涡旋对三角槽道脉动流强化传热的影响

以水为工质对三角槽道内单相液体充分发展层流脉动传热特性进行了研究。应用粒子图像测速技术（PIV）测得流场内涡的变化规律,从“涡及涡运动”的角度揭示了“有序”的涡生长及迁移过程对脉动流强化传热的影响。此外,应用“场协同”理论,通过数值模拟深入分析了流场特性与传热之间的关系。研究发现,“有序”的涡生长及迁移过程,破坏了流体边界层,促进了近壁区热流场与速度场的协同,同时,强化了三角槽道内流体与主流区流体的掺混,热量输运能力提升;存在最佳的Strouhal数（St）,使得涡旋既能充分发展又能在较短时间脱落进入主流,实现最大效率的壁面换热;有序涡旋对速度场、温度梯度场以及压力梯度场三者协同性的改善是换热性能提升的关键。     

矩形窄通道内带纵向涡发生器的传热强化

对带有纵向涡发生器的水平矩形窄通道内水的强化传热与阻力特性进行了实验研究,得出了Re在3000～20000(过渡区和湍流区)范围内纵向涡发生器不同安装形式对水的流动与换热特性的影响规律.结果表明：带纵向涡发生器(LVGs)的通道比光通道的传热因子j提高了25％～55％,同时阻力有所增加.在3种不同比较准则(相同泵功、相同压降及相同质量流量)条件下,两侧安装有交叉方向LVGs的通道换热效果较好,顺流方向换热效果略好于逆流方向.     

Crosswise ridge micromixers with split and recombination helical flows

This study presents a novel crosswise ridge micromixer (CRM) with a series of microstructures placed on the top and bottom floors of channels. Passive micromixers fabricated by Micro Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) technologies with slanted ridges are investigated. Numerical simulations and experimental investigations are undertaken to determine the effects of various microstructure patterns on mixing efficiency with Reynolds numbers (Re) of 0.05–50. The confocal images at the cross-sections along the channel with ridges on both the channel top and bottom are first investigated in our study. A significant amount of split and recombination (SAR) helical flows is produced by the slanted ridges embedded on the two floors of the channels. The effects of non-dimensional parameters, such as the Re, as well as geometrical parameters on mixing performance are presented in terms of the mixing index. When the Re exceeds 1, the mixing index of the micromixer with slanted ridges increases as the Re increases further. Simulation results are presented and compared with experimental data. The trends of the experimental results and numerical data are very similar. Finally, various numbers of slanted ridges in the same orientation in one channel cycle are investigated to determine mixing performance in microchannels. The mixing performance achieves an optimum value in case where the number of ridges per cycle is equal to 8.     

Design and Analysis of New Micromixers Based on Distillation Column Trays

Four passive micromixer designs (G1, G2, G3, and G4) based on distillation columns trays are proposed. The performance of the devices is assessed by numerical simulations. The mixing performance is investigated for different Reynolds numbers and channel heights for oil/ethanol flow. G1 and G4 designs provided a high mixing index. The G1 device achieved superior mixing performance with a moderate pressure drop due to the induced flow recirculation pattern for a relatively high flow rate, highlighting the potential use of such microdevice for scale-up and numbering-up of microdevices in modular chemical plant processing.     

Nonisothermal flow of polymer melts and solutions in spinneret channels

Conclusions The effect of dissipation of mechanical energy on the temperature fields of polymer melts and solutions in the channels of spinnerets for fibre spinning has been investigated.It has been shown that the flow of polymer melts in spinneret channels takes place with only slight heat evolution, that is, practically under isothermal conditions. The flow of polymer solutions takes place significantly under nonisothermal conditions, with a large drop in temperature over the channel radius.Translated from Khimicheskie Volokna, No. 4, pp. 42–44, July–August, 1986.     

The NETmix reactor: Pressure drop measurements and 3D CFD modeling

NETmix is a new static mixing technology based on a network of mixing chambers interconnected by channels. Three NETmix reactors with different geometries were used to obtain experimental data for pressure drop and a generalized model for pressure drop in NETmix reactors has been developed. This model features a single adjustable parameter and it is only dependent on the geometric configuration of the NETmix design. The Z factor and the power number were also determined to compare the performance of different NETmix configurations with other existing mixers. The dynamic measurement of pressure drop was used to evaluate the mixing dynamics in the NETmix chambers and, above the critical Reynolds number, the natural oscillation frequency was quantified. Furthermore, a three-dimensional computational fluid dynamic transport model was also developed and validated. The energy performance of the three NETmix prototypes was quantified and shown to be very competitive with the compared existing static mixers. The developed 3D CFD transport model, validated by the reported experimental data, enables the computation of transport properties for any geometrical design and fluid properties, and avoids the need for experimental data each time a new NETmix configuration is designed.