Development of Bubble Size Correlation for Adiabatic Forced Convective Bubbly Flow in Low Pressure Condition Using CFD Code

• Published in: Applied sciences 2020-08, Vol.10 (16), p.5443
• Main Authors: Bak, Jinyeong, Kim, Huiyung, Jeong, Jae Jun, Euh, Dongjin, Yun, Byongjo
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adiabatic; Aerodynamics; bubble size model; Bubbles; bubbly flow; CFD simulation; Computational fluid dynamics; Computer applications; Correlation analysis; Dimensional analysis; Energy dissipation; Experiments; Fluid dynamics; Hydrodynamics; interfacial transfer term; Low pressure; Multiphase flow; number density transport equation; Researchers; Transport equations; Turbulence models; Two phase flow
• ISSN: 2076-3417; 2076-3417
• DOI: 10.3390/app10165443

In a multidimensional two-phase flow analysis, bubble size significantly affects interfacial transfer terms such as mass, momentum, and energy. With regard to bubbly flow, the application of a simple correlation-type bubble size model presents certain advantages, including short calculation times and ease of usage. In this study, we propose a semi-theoretical correlation developed from a steady state bubble number density transport equation for predicting the distribution of local bubble size using a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code. The coefficients of the new correlation were determined using the local bubble parameters obtained on the basis of three existing vertical air-water experiments. Finally, these were implemented in commercial CFD code and evaluated against experimental data, which showed that the proposed correlation exhibits good prediction capability for forced convective air-water bubbly flows under low pressure conditions.