Diffusion of moisture in deformable porous media. Anisotropic fibrous materials

This paper presents a study on the deformation of anisotropic fibrous porous media subjected to moistening by water in the liquid phase. The deformation of the medium is studied by applying the concept of effective stress. Given the structure of the medium, the displacement of the solid matrix is not taken into account with respect to the displacement of the liquid phase. The transport equations are derived from the model proposed by Narasimhan. The transport coefficients and the relation between the variation in apparent density and effective stress are obtained by test measurements. A numerical model has been established and applied for studying drip moistening of mineral wool samples capable or incapable of deformation.Nomenclature D mass diffusion coefficient [L²t^–1] - e void fraction - g gravity acceleration [Lt^–2] - J mass transfer density [ML^–2t^–1] - K hydraulic conductivity [Lt^–1] - K _s hydraulic conductivity of the solid phase [Lt^–1] - K ^* hydraulic conductivity of the deformable porous medium [Lt^–1] - P pressure of moistening liquid [ML^–1 t^–2] - S degree of saturation - t time [t] - V speed [Lt^–1] - X horizontal coordinate [L] - Z vertical coordinate measured from the bottom of porous medium [L] - z z-coordinate [L] Greek Letters porosity - ₁ total hydric potential [L] - _g gas density [ML^–3] - ₁ liquid density [ML^–3] - ₀ apparent density [ML^–3] - _s density of the solid phase [ML^–3] - density of the moist porous medium [ML^–3] - external load [ML^–1t^–2] - effective stress [ML^–1t^–2] - bishop's parameter - matrix potential or capillary suction [L] Indices g gas - 1 moistening liquid - p direction perpendicular to fiber planes - s solid matrix - t direction parallel to fiber planes - v pore Exponent * movement of solid particles taken into account     

Transport of Three-Phase Hyper-Saline Brines in Porous Media: Examples

This paper presents a number of applications of a new code which can simulate the transport of high temperature three-phase (gas, liquid, solid) hyper-saline fluids in a porous medium. The examples presented demonstrate that multiple phase changes occur as the fluid state evolves across the H₂O–NaCl phase diagram. Multi-phase flows occur in a variety of situations, including a horizontal domain with fluid withdrawal, a vertical counter-flowing salt-pipe, and a horizontal domain with saturation shocks and expansion waves. The code is also used to simulate heat, water and salt flows in a large scale model (10s of km) of the Taupo Volcanic Zone, New Zealand.     

Natural convection heat transfer in enclosures with microemulsion phase change material slurry

This paper has dealt with the natural convection heat transfer characteristics of microemulsion slurry composed of water, fine particles of phase change material (PCM) in rectangular enclosures. The microemulsion slurry exhibited non-Newtonian pseudoplastic fluid behavior, and the phase changing process can show dramatically variations in both thermophysical and rheological properties with temperature. The experiments have been carried out separately in three subdivided regions in which the state of PCM in microemulsion is in only solid phase, two phases (coexistence of solid and liquid phases) or only liquid phase. The complicated heat transfer characteristics of natural convection have appeared in the phase changing region. The phase change phenomenon of the PCM enhanced the heat transfer in natural convection, and the Nusselt number was generalized by introducing a modified Stefan number. However, the Nusselt number did not show a linear output with the height of the enclosure, since a top conduction lid or stagnant layer was induced over a certain height of the enclosure. The Nusselt number increased with a decrease in aspect ratio (width/height of the rectangular enclosure) even including the side-wall effect. However, the microemulsion was more viscous while the PCM was in the solid phase, the side-wall effect on heat transfer was greater for the PCM in the solid region than that for the PCM in the liquid region. The correlation generalized for the PCM in a single phase is $ Nu = 1/3(1 - C_1 )Ra^{{1 \over {3.5n + 1}}} , $ where C ₁ = e ^–0.09AR for the PCM in solid phase and C ₁ = e ^–0.33AR for the PCM in liquid phase. For the PCM in the phase changing region, the correlation can be expressed as $ Nu = CRa^{{1 \over {7n + 2}}} Ste^{ - (1.9 - 1.65n)} , $ where C = 1.22 – 0.035AR for AR > 10 and C = 0.55 – 16.4e ^–1.1AR for AR < 10. The enclosure height used in the present experiments was varied from H = 5.5 [mm] to 30.4 [mm] at the fixed width W = 120 [mm] and depth D = 120 [mm]. The experiments were done in the range of modified Rayleigh number 7.0 × 10² ≤ Ra ≤ 3.0 × 10⁶, while the enclosure aspect ratio AR varied from 3.9 to 21.8.     

Gas content of a foam bed at reduced pressures

The gas content of a foam bed has been experimentally investigated using a 50 × 80 mm² column at the following parameters: pressure P=0.1–1.0 bar, W=0.5-2.0 m/sec, H = 140–180 mm. In all cases the gas phase was air and the liquid phase was water and aqueous solutions of ethanol and glycerol. It has been established that reducing the pressure causes a considerable decrease in gas content, leading to an increase in the depth of the starting layer of liquid h₀. A formula that conforms with the experimental data to within ± 10% is obtained for the gas content.Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Mekhaniki i Tekhnicheskoi Fiziki, Vol. 11, No. 2, pp. 166–169, March–April, 1970.     

Thermal convection around obstacles: the case of Sierpinski carpets

Measurements of free convection velocity profiles by laser Doppler velocimetry in a cavity containing Plexiglas reconstructed Sierpinski carpets are compared with computed profiles using the SIMPLER numerical code applied to the Navier–Stokes equations. This first step validates the numerical code into which two thermal conductivities are used (that of the liquid and that of the solid), together with two viscosities (that of the liquid and a fictitious high viscosity of the order of 10³⁰ for the solid). Next, the code is used for a network of Sierpinski carpets, allowing the evaluation of a seepage velocity from the Navier–Stokes equations.     

Numerical study of the dynamics of a vapor envelope round a heated solid particle in a liquid

A study is made of the radial motion of a vapor envelope surrounding an isolated spherical particle in an unbounded mass of liquid. It is assumed that the liquid is viscous and incompressible and that the temperature is distributed uniformly in the solid particle. A model of a calorifically perfect gas is used for the vapor phase. The same assumptions are made as in Rayleigh's formulation for the problem of the dynamics of a single bubble: that the process is spherically symmetric and that the pressure P₂ (t) in the vapor phase is homogeneous. The justification for making these assumptions in problems of the dynamics of gas, vapor, and vaporgas bubbles is discussed in [1–5]. In this paper, the collapse of the vapor layer and the boiling of the liquid on the surface of the heated particle are not considered.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 4, pp. 154–157, July–August, 1985.     

Liquid sheet and film atomization: a comparative experimental study

Liquid atomization processes are too complex to allow a purely theoretical study. Therefore experiments are necessary to quantify droplets production. In our problem, the replacement of an original complicated flow by a simpler one, i.e. liquid metal and high gas velocity by water and low air velocity, has led to a relation for the droplet diameter, thanks to dynamical similarity and order of magnitude estimates. Observation of a liquid film disruption development by high speed photography gives some informations about the mechanism of break-up in action. Granulometric measurements by video image analysis have specified the previous dimensionless relation for the mass median diameter. Measurements concern both the film and the sheet atomization, it is shown that the control of the liquid layer thickness is of major importance to control the quality of sprays.List of symbols d droplet diameter (m) - d _mm mass median droplet diameter (m) - g acceleration due to the gravity (ms^–2) - H _g , H _l gas slit width, liquid film thickness (m) - dimensionless parameters - Q ₁ = H ₁ V ₁ liquid flow rate (m²s^–1) - Reynolds number - T time(s) - V _g , V _l gas and liquid velocity (m s^–1) - W _c channel width (m) - Weber number - _g , _l gas and liquid viscosity (kg m^–1 s^–1) - _g , _i gas and liquid density (kg m^–3) - surface tension (kg s^–2) An abridged version of this paper was presented at the 6th ICLASS (Int. Conf. on Liquid Atomization and Spray Systems), Rouen, France, 18–22 July 1994     

Simultaneous PIV and pulsed shadow technique in slug flow: a solution for optical problems

A recent technique of simultaneous particle image velocimetry (PIV) and pulsed shadow technique (PST) measurements, using only one black and white CCD camera, is successfully applied to the study of slug flow. The experimental facility and the operating principle are described. The technique is applied to study the liquid flow pattern around individual Taylor bubbles rising in an aqueous solution of glycerol with a dynamic viscosity of 113×10^–3 Pa s. With this technique the optical perturbations found in PIV measurements at the bubble interface are completely solved in the nose and in annular liquid film regions as well as in the rear of the bubble for cases in which the bottom is flat. However, for Taylor bubbles with concave oblate bottoms, some optical distortions appear and are discussed. The measurements achieved a spatial resolution of 0.0022 tube diameters. The results reported show high precision and are in agreement with theoretical and experimental published data.Symbols D internal column diameter (m) - g acceleration due to gravity (m s^–2) - l _w wake length (m) - Q _v liquid volumetric flow rate (m³ s^–1) - r radial position (m) - r * radial position of the wake boundary (m) - R internal column radius (m) - U _s Taylor bubble velocity (m s^–1) - u _z axial component of the velocity (m s^–1) - u _r radial component of the velocity (m s^–1) - z distance from the Taylor bubble nose (m) - Z * distance from the Taylor bubble nose for which the annular liquid film stabilizes (m) Dimensionless groups Re Reynolds number ( ) - N _f inverse viscosity number ( ) Greek letters liquid film thickness (m) - liquid kinematic viscosity (m² s^–1) - liquid dynamic viscosity (Pa s) - liquid density (kg m^–3)     

Inverted population of Co2 molecules in expanding gas streams

The system of equations of hydrodynamics, which describes the process of escape of the mixtures CO₂ + N₂ + He, H₂O from a nozzle, is solved numerically in conjunction with the equations of the kinetics of the excitation of the vibrational degrees of freedom of the molecules. It is found that an inverted population of the CO₂ molecules with respect to the transition [00 °1] – [10 °0], is produced under certain conditions at the exit from the nozzle. The magnitude of the inversion depends both on the nozzle configuration and on the initial values of the gas temperature and pressure. It is shown that for a specified nozzle configuration there exist optimal values of these parameters, at which the inverted population of the CO₂ molecules reaches approximately 10¹⁵ cm^–3.Translated from Zhumal Prikladnoi Mekhaniki i Tekhnicheskoi Fiziki, No. 5, pp. 24–34, September–October, 1971.     

Steady rise of a small spherical gas bubble along the axis of a cylindrical pipe at high Reynolds number

Steady irrotational flow of inviscid liquid of density ρ_l around a spherical gas bubble which lies on the axis of a cylindrical pipe is investigated using the analysis of Smythe (Phys. Fluids 4 (1961) 756). The bubble radius b=qa is assumed small compared to the pipe radius a, and the interfacial tension between gas and liquid is γ. Far from the bubble, in the frame in which the bubble is at rest, the liquid velocity along the pipe is v₀, whereas the liquid velocity at points on the wall closest to the bubble is U_zw=v₀(1+1.776q³+⋯). The decrease in wall pressure as the bubble passes is therefore Δp=1.776ρ_lv₀²q³. When the Weber number W=2bv₀²ρ_l/γ is small, the bubble deforms into an oblate spheroid with aspect ratio χ=1+9W(1+1.59q³)/64. If the fluid viscosity μ is non-zero, and the Reynolds number Re=2v₀ρ_lb/μ is large, a viscous boundary layer develops on the walls of the pipe. This decays algebraically with distance downstream of the bubble, and an exponentially decaying similarity solution is found upstream. The drag D on the bubble is D=12πμv₀b(1−2.21Re^−1/2)(1+1.59q³)+7.66μv₀bRe^1/2q^9/2, larger than that given by Moore (J. Fluid Mech. 16 (1963) 161) for motion in unbounded fluid. At high Reynolds numbers the dissipation within the viscous boundary layers might dominate dissipation in the potential flow away from the pipe walls, but such high Reynolds numbers would not be achieved by a spherical air bubble rising in clean water under terrestrial gravity.     

Curing effects on the acoustical properties of epoxy polymers

This paper presents an experimental method for measuring the attenuation and the velocity of longitudinal ultrasonic waves propagating through flat epoxy polymer samples. The study takes place in the first phase of epoxy polymer's polymerization, where these materials pass slowly from liquid state to the solid state. For this purpose an experimental setup was introduced, suitable for the accurate evaluation of the acoustic properties Δα andc _ℓ ^e , when the epoxy polymers are in their first phase of polymerization, while they are cured for 24 hours at room temperature (20°C). The ultrasonic method used is the pulse echo-through transmission technique. From the variation ofc _ℓ ^e and Δα during the first phase of epoxy polymers curing, the three characteristic states: liquid, semi-solid and solid, are clearly determined. It is also observed that plasticizer reduces the testability and the semi-solid state shows greater attenuation than either the liquid or the solid state.     

Mixing of Stably Stratified Gases in Subsurface Reservoirs: A Comparison of Diffusion Models

Numerical simulations of the mixing of carbon dioxide (CO₂) and methane (CH₄) in a gravitationally stable configuration have been carried out using the multicomponent flow and transport simulator TOUGH2/EOS7C. The purpose of the simulations is to compare and test the appropriateness of the advective–diffusive model (ADM) relative to the more accurate dusty-gas model (DGM). The configuration is relevant to carbon sequestration in depleted natural gas reservoirs, where injected CO₂ will migrate to low levels of the reservoir by buoyancy flow. Once a gravitationally stable configuration is attained, mixing will continue on a longer time scale by molecular diffusion. However, diffusive mixing of real gas components CO₂ and CH₄ can give rise to pressure gradients that can induce pressurization and flow that may affect the mixing process. Understanding this coupled response of diffusion and flow to concentration gradients is important for predicting mixing times in stratified gas reservoirs used for carbon sequestration. Motivated by prior studies that have shown that the ADM and DGM deviate from one another in low permeability systems, we have compared the ADM and DGM for the case of permeability equal to 10^–15 m² and 10^–18 m². At representative reservoir conditions of 40 bar and 40°C, gas transport by advection and diffusion using the ADM is slightly overpredicted for permeability equal to 10^–15 m², and substantially overpredicted for permeability equal to 10^–18 m² compared to DGM predictions. This result suggests that gas reservoirs with permeabilities larger than approximately 10^–15 m² can be adequately simulated using the ADM. For simulations of gas transport in the cap rock, or other very low permeability layers, the DGM is recommended.     

Dynamical deformation of a flat liquid–liquid interface

The passage of solid spheres through a liquid–liquid interface was experimentally investigated using a high-speed video and PIV (particle image velocimetry) system. Experiments were conducted in a square Plexiglas column of 0.1 m. The Newtonian Emkarox (HV45 50 and 65% wt) aqueous solutions were employed for the dense phase, while different silicone oils of different viscosity ranging from 10 to 100 mPa s were used as light phase. Experimental results quantitatively reveal the effect of the sphere’s size, interfacial tension and viscosity of both phases on the retaining time and the height of the liquid entrained behind the sphere. These data were combined with our previous results concerning the passage of a rising bubble through a liquid–liquid interface in order to propose a general relationship for the interface breakthrough for the wide range of Mo ₁/Mo ₂ ∈ [2 × 10⁻⁵–5 × 10⁴] and Re ₁/Re ₂ ∈ [2 × 10⁻³–5 × 10²].     

Diffusion to a chain of drops (bubbles) at large péclet numbers

The problem of diffusion of a substance, dissolved in a flow, to absorbing drops (bubbles) moving one after another in a viscous incompressible fluid is investigated. An approximate analytic expression is obtained for the differential and integral flows of the substance to the surface of each drop with consideration of the changes of the concentration and velocity fields due to the presence of other drops. A chain of spherical drops of equal radius arranged on the axis of a uniform forward flow is examined. It is shown that if the distance between drops, referred to the radius of the drops, satisfies the inequality 1lP^1/2 (P is the Péclet number), then the integral inflow of the substance to the surface of the second drop of the chain is 2.41 times less than the integral inflow to the first (the drops are enumerated along the flow); the total diffusion flow to the surface of an arbitrary drop with number k is determined by the expression I_k=I₁[k^1/2 – (k–1)^1/2], where I_k is the total flow to the first drop of the chain. The case of diffusion interaction of a solid particle and drop is examined. It is shown that for particles moving one after another with the same velocity in a fluid at rest the presence of a drop before the solid particle leads to a marked decrease of the total diffusion flow of the solid particle [by O(P^1/6) times], whereas the presence of a solid particle before a drop does not affect (in the main approximation with respect to the characteristic diffusion parameter) the total flow of the latter.I _k=I _i[k ^1/2–(k–1)^1/2]Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 1, pp. 59–69, January–February, 1978.     

Diffusion processes in the mixing zone of a supersonic jet of low density

Results of an investigation into the diffusion processes in a jet of low density behind a strongly underexpanded sonic nozzle, in the zone of mixing with the surrounding gas, are presented. By means of electron-beam methods, the structure of the jet was studied in the case of expanding N₂, into an atmosphere of CO₂ + N₂ in transient regimes of flow varying from solid to rarefied. The results of an analysis of the fields of concentration of the separate components are given in a generalized form.Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Mekhaniki i Tekhnicheskoi Fiziki, No. 1, pp. 121–127, January–February, 1973.     

Model for Gas–Condensate Phase Equilibria for Estimating C7+ Critical Properties Using Genetic Algorithm

A reliable prediction of the phase behavior is necessary in determining the compositions of the gas and liquid phases at various pressures. These calculations require stepwise computational procedure using a cubic equation of state (EOS). Since the heavy components in the petroleum mixtures have the strongest effect on the characteristics of the fluids, critical properties must be estimated for the petroleum fractions making up heptanes-plus. A phase equilibria calculation of a gas–condensate system with Peng–Robinson equation of state was done by satisfying the condition of chemical equilibrium. A genetic algorithm was used to determine the optimum critical properties of heptanes-plus (C₇₊) fraction. The predictions of the model are compared with the experimental results of the constant volume depletion (CVD) test.     

Reservoir storage and containment of greenhouse gases, II: Vapour-entry pressures

This paper investigates the role of a nonzero vapour entry pressure on reservoir storage and containment of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide. Two effects are observed: vapour storage under confining layers, and enhanced lateral spreading of gas under confining layers. Lateral flow of gas under both impermeable and permeable confining layers is solved analytically using Buckley-Leverett assumptions. A full numerical analysis of gas and water transport is also presented, using results from the simulator TOUGH. We consider the injection of CO₂ from a thermal power plant at a rate of 100 kg/s for 10 years, at a depth of 3000 metres. Inclusion of a nonzero vapour entry pressure shows that containment of this gas for at least 5000 years can be expected. The CO₂ is stored predominantly in a high density vapour phase (about 600 kg/m³) under lower permeability confining layers, and also is dissolved in liquid at about 40 kg/m³.     

Experimental study on the influence of SO2 gas injection to pure liquids on pool boiling heat transfer coefficients

SO₂ gas is injected into the different pure liquids using new innovative method via meshed tubes. Many experiments have been performed to investigate the influence of gas injection process on the pool boiling heat transfer coefficient of pure liquids around the horizontal cylinder at different heat fluxes up to 114 kW m^?2. Results demonstrate that presence of SO₂ gas into the vapor inside the bubbles creates a mass transfer driving force between the vapor phase inside the formed bubbles and liquid phase and also between the gas/liquid interfaces. Local turbulences and agitations due to the gas injection process around the nucleation sites leads the pool boiling heat transfer coefficient to be dramatically enhanced. Besides, some of earlier well-known correlations were unable to obtain the reasonable values for the pool boiling heat transfer coefficients in this particular case. Therefore, the most accurate correlation among the examined correlations was modified to estimate the pool boiling heat transfer coefficient of pure liquids. Experimental data were in a good agreement with those of obtained by the new modified correlation with absolute average deviation of 10 %.     

Numerical simulation of a supersonic gas–solid flow over a blunt body: The role of inter-particle collisions and two-way coupling effects

A supersonic dusty gas flow over a blunt body is considered. The mathematical model of the two-phase gas–particle flow takes into account the inter-particle collisions and the two-way coupling effects. The carrier gas is treated as a continuum, the averaged flow field of which is described by the complete Navier–Stokes equations with additional source terms modeling the reverse action of the dispersed phase. The dispersed phase is treated as a discrete set of solid particles, and its behavior is described by a kinetic Boltzmann-type equation. Particles impinging on the body surface are assumed to bounce from it. Numerical analysis is carried out for the cross-wise flow over a cylinder. The method of computational simulation represents a combination of a CFD-method for the carrier gas and a Monte Carlo method for the “gas” of particles. The dependence of the fine flow structure of the continuous and dispersed phases upon the free stream particle volume fraction α_p∞ and the particle radius r_p is investigated, particularly in the shock layer and in the boundary layer at the body surface. The particle volume fraction α_p∞ is varied from a negligibly low value to the value α_p∞ = 3 × 10⁵ at which inter-particle collisions and two-way coupling effects are simultaneously essential. Particular attention has been given to the particles of radii close to the critical value r_p1, because in this range of particle size the behavior of the particles and their effect on the carrier gas flow are not yet completely understood. An estimate of the turbulent kinetic energy produced by the particles in the shock layer is obtained.     

Phase interface conditions in a massless electron-positron gas

The steady motion of a massless electron-positron gas in a self-consistent electromagnetic field is considered. In such a gas, two phases are formed for each of the components: a dynamic phase, in which the particles move with the speed of light, and a static phase, in which the particles move with a subluminal speed. The static phase can exist only within the capture region, in which the conditions (E,H)=0 andE ²<H ² are satisfied. Strong and weak discontinuities of the electromagnetic field on the boundary of the capture region (at the phase interface) are studied.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 1, pp. 165–172, January–February, 1990.