FLOW REGIMES OF AIR-WATER COUNTERFLOW THROUGH CROSS CORRUGATED PARALLEL PLATES

• Published in: Separation science and technology 2001-06, Vol.36 (5-6), p.1351-1373
• Main Authors: de Almeida†, Valmor F., Riahi-Nezhad†, Cyrus K.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0149-6395; 1520-5754
• DOI: 10.1081/SS-100103654

Heretofore unknown flow regimes of air-water counterflow through a pair of transparent, vertical, parallel cross corrugated plates were observed via high-speed video. Air flows upward driven by pressure gradient and water, downward driven by gravity. The crimp geometry of the corrugations was drawn after typical corrugated sheets used as filling material in modern structured packed towers. Four regimes were featured, namely, rivulet, bicontinuous, flooding-fronts, and flooding-waves. It is conceivable that the regimes observed might constitute the basis for understanding how gas and liquid phases contend for available space in the interstices of structured packings in packed towers. Flow regime transitions were expressed in terms of liquid load (liquid superficial velocity) and gas flow parameter of common use in pressure drop and capacity curves. We have carefully examined the range of parameters equivalent to the ill-understood high-liquid-flow operation in packed towers. More importantly, our findings should prove valuable in validating improved first-principles modeling of gas-liquid flows in these industrially important devices. † Separations and Materials Processing Research group of the Chemical Technology Division at ORNL http://www-smpr.ct.ornl.gov/~_dalmeida,[e-mail] ). # Managed by UT-Battelle, LLC for the U.S. Department of Energy under contract No. DEAC05-00OR22725.