Bubble dynamics: Long-time behavior and interaction in viscous liquids

A mathematical two-phase model is used to numerically investigate physical and rheological effects on small, individual bubbles in high-viscosity liquids under pressure impact. It is found out that bubbles remain stable over time at high viscosity and surface tension. The steady case is considered and connected to the stability behavior of the bubble. An upper bound for the bubble radius is derived and the new equilibrium state of the bubble can be predicted by means of stability theorems of differential equations. Finally, the interaction of a limited number of well separated bubbles in an Hele-Shaw flow is mathematically analyzed to visualize and physically interpret their trajectories. (© 2014 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

基于马氏域变的房地产泡沫存在概率研究

借鉴股票市场泡沫的研究方法,采用非齐次马氏域变思想对我国2001年1月到2010年12月的房地产市场泡沫进行了分析.通过Johansen协整检验方法从房价数据中分离出泡沫成份,使用极大似然估计方法估计出房价泡沫在两状态下的方差和转移概率的相关参数,进而求出各时期房价泡沫存在的概率.实证结果表明:第一,样本期间大部分时期内我国房地产价格存在泡沫的概率较小,但2009年4月至12月房价存在泡沫的概率较大;第二,提高贷款利率能够减小从无泡沫到有泡沫的概率,同时增加从有泡沫到无泡沫的概率.     

Numerical study of formation of a series of bubbles at a submerged orifice

Bubble formation from a submerged orifice is widely applied in bio-process and chemical reaction systems. In this study, the effects of different orifice diameters and contact angles in Period-I and Period-II regimes are studied systematically on a 2D axisymmetric domain. Simulation results are presented from the formation of the first bubble and explained by means of the surrounding fluid field, bubble interaction, and bubble aspect ratio.The orifice diameter is varied from 0.6 mm to 3 mm. The numerical results show that the detachment time of all bubbles remains constant (in time) for smaller orifice diameters (d_a ≤ 1.5 mm), while the detachment time of the first bubble is different from the rest of the bubbles for larger orifice diameters (d_a ≥ 2 mm), which is due to the different surrounding flow field. Contact angles from 60° to 165° are considered for the gas flow rates in the regime of bubble pairing, and it is observed that the bubble detachment time decreases when the contact angle increases, and it converges to a constant value when the contact angle is larger than 135°. In addition, the transition from period doubling to deterministic chaos (in which there is a variable number of bubbles within each period) is observed.A new scenario of inserting a submerged tube upward into the liquid is considered and compared to the previous cases. It is observed that when the tube is vertically inserted into the liquid, the bubble detachment time is even smaller because of higher influence from the surrounding liquid field, leading to a different phenomenon from the non-inserted tube cases.     

Numerical modelling of bubbly flows with and without heat and mass transfer

In this paper, modelling gas–liquid bubbly flows is achieved by the introduction of a population balance equation combined with the three-dimensional two-fluid model. For gas–liquid bubbly flows without heat and mass transfer, an average bubble number density transport equation has been incorporated in the commercial code CFX5.7 to better describe the temporal and spatial evolution of the geometrical structure of the gas bubbles. The coalescence and breakage effects of the gas bubbles are modelled according to the coalescence by the random collisions driven by turbulence and wake entrainment while for bubble breakage by the impact of turbulent eddies. Local radial distributions of the void fraction, interfacial area concentration, bubble Sauter mean diameter, and gas and liquid velocities, are compared against experimental data in a vertical pipe flow. Satisfactory agreements for the local distributions are achieved between the predictions and measurements. For gas–liquid bubbly flows with heat and mass transfer, boiling flows at subcooled conditions are considered. Based on the formulation of the MUSIG (multiple-size-group) boiling model and a model considering the forces acting on departing bubbles at the heated surface implemented in the computer code CFX4.4, comparison of model predictions against local measurements is made for the void fraction, bubble Sauter mean diameter, interfacial area concentration, and gas and liquid velocities covering a range of different mass and heat fluxes and inlet subcooling temperatures. Good agreement is achieved with the local radial void fraction, bubble Sauter mean diameter, interfacial area concentration and liquid velocity profiles against measurements. However, significant weakness of the model is evidenced in the prediction of the vapour velocity. Work is in progress through the consideration of additional momentum equations or developing an algebraic slip model to account for the effects of bubble separation.     

Numerical simulation of the interaction between vortex ring and bubble plume

In present paper a three-dimensional Vortex-In-Cell method with two-way coupling effect was developed to study the bubble plume entrainment by a vortex ring. In this method the continuous flow was calculated by the three-dimensional Vortex-In-Cell method and the bubbles are tracked through bubble motion equation. Two-way coupling effect between continuous flow and dispersed bubbles is considered by introducing a vorticity source term, which is induced by the change of void fraction gradient in each computational cell. After validated by the comparison between experimental measurements and simulation results for the motion of vortex rings and the rising velocity of bubble plume, present method is implemented to simulate the interaction between an evolving vortex ring and a rising bubble plume. It was found that there is little effect of the bubble entrainment to the total circulation of vortex ring while the effect of bubble entrainment to the vortex ring structure is quite obvious. The bubble entrainment by the vortex ring not only changed the vorticity distribution in the vortex structure, but also displaced the positions of the vortex cores. The vorticity in the lower vortex core of the vortex ring decreases more than that in the upper vortex core of the vortex ring while the vortex core in the upper part of the vortex ring is displaced to the center of vortex ring by the entrained bubbles. Smaller bubbles are easier to be entrained by the large scale vortex structure and the transportation distance is in inverse proportion to bubble diameter.     

Numerical simulation of single gas bubbles under shear flow conditions

Disperse gas bubbles play an important role in many industrial applications. Knowing the rising velocity, the interfacial area, or the critical size for break-up or coalescence in different systems can be crucial for the process design. Usually the flow experienced by bubbles is not uniform but sheared. Under shear-flow conditions bubbles develop a lift force perpendicular to the flow direction. In the present work direct numerical simulations are applied to examine the dependency of the lift force on the shear rate for bubbles in pure liquids. A level-set based volume-tracking method is implemented into the CFD-code OpenFOAM, to follow the free interface of the gas bubble. Results show good agreement with available experimental results from single bubbles in a rotating chamber. (© 2009 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Numerical Simulation of Bubbles in Shear Flow

To gain a basic understanding of foam flow, as it can be found e.g. in transport of aerated food, simulation tools can help to provide better insight. Shearing of the bubbles appears in different flow geometries and is for a bubble assembly not captured analytically. Also experimentally, those flow fields are hard to observe so that simulations are the method of choice. Our method to simulate foams uses a volume of fluid approach that is based on the free surface algorithm by Körner et al. [1]. Different from classical multiphase methods, only the liquid phase is simulated and special boundary conditions at the liquid-gas interface account for the gas phase. With this approach high density ratios, e.g. in water-air systems, are easier to realize than in other methods. High density ratios are even necessary to physically justify the model, where the dynamics of the lighter phase are partially neglected. This method is integrated in the Lattice Boltzmann software framework waLBerla [3] (widely applicable Lattice Boltzmann solver from Erlangen†) that can be used on massively parallel computers and thus allows to simulate even large bubble assemblies. As first validation, single bubbles are sheared with different capillary numbers and the simulation results are compared to literature [2] and show good agreement. The next step is shearing a bubble assembly which is arranged like a dense sphere packing. In order to investigate the geometrical configuration of the assembly and its impact on the behavior during a shear deformation, the bubble assembly is rotated with different angles with respect to the shear direction. (© 2014 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Numerical study of dynamics of single bubbles and bubble swarms

A systematic computational study of the dynamics of gas bubbles rising in a viscous liquid is presented. Two-dimensional simulations are carried out. Both the dynamics of single bubbles and small groups of bubbles (bubble swarms) are considered. This is a continuation of our previous studies on the two-bubble coalescence and vortex shedding [A. Smolianski, H. Haario, P. Luukka, Vortex shedding behind a rising bubble and two-bubble coalescence: a numerical approach, Appl. Math. Model. 29 (2005) 615–632]. The proposed numerical method allows us to simulate a wide range of flow regimes, accurately capturing the shape of the deforming interface of the bubble and the surface tension effect, while maintaining the mass conservation. The computed time-evolution of bubble’s position and rise velocity shows a good agreement with the available experimental data. At the same time, the results on the dynamics of bubble interface area, which are, up to our knowledge, presented for the first time, show how much the overall mass transfer would be affected by the interface deformation in the case of the bubble dissolution. Another set of experiments that are of interest for chemical engineers modelling bubbly flows concerns the bubble swarms and their behavior in different bubble-shape regimes. The ellipsoidal and spherical shape regimes are considered to represent, respectively, the coalescing and non-coalescing bubble swarms. The average rise velocities of the bubble swarms are computed and analyzed for both regimes.     

Capturing coalescence and break-up processes in vertical gas–liquid flows: Assessment of population balance methods

Gas–liquid flows are commonly encountered in industrial flow systems. Numerical studies have been performed to assess the performances of different population balance approaches – direct quadrature method of moments (DQMOMs), average bubble number density (ABND) model and homogeneous MUlti-SIze-Group (MUSIG) model – in tracking the changes of gas void fraction and bubble size distribution under complex flow conditions and to validate the model predictions against experimental measurements from medium- and large-sized vertical pipes. Subject to different gas injection method and flow conditions, bubble size evolution exhibited a coalescence dominant trend in the medium-sized pipe; while bubble break-up was found to be dominant in large-sized pipe. The two experiments were therefore strategically selected for carrying out a thorough examination of existing population balance models in capturing the complicated behaviour of bubble coalescence and break-up. In general, predictions of all the different population balance approaches were in reasonable agreement with experimental data. More importantly, encouraging results have been obtained in adequately capturing the dynamical changes of bubbles size due to bubble interactions and transition from wall peak to core peak gas void fraction profiles. As a compromise between numerical accuracy and computational time, DQMOM has performed rather well in capturing the essential two-phase flow structures within the medium- and large-sized vertical pipes when compared to those of ABND and homogeneous MUSIG models. From a practical perspective, the ABND model may still be considered as a more viable approach for industrial applications of gas–liquid flow systems.     

Simulation of bubbly flow in a vertical turbulent channel

The paper presents results of Direct Numerical Simulation of bubbly flow to analyse the interaction between the turbulent fluid and the bubbles. The simulations aim to investigate the effect of the bubble Reynolds number, related to the bubble size, and the void fraction. (© 2012 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Numerical investigations of bubbles rising in water

The hydrodynamics of rising air bubbles in water filled bubble columns are examined using a transient numerical model following the Euler-Euler method. In this particular case the bubble-size distribution is assumed to be mono-disperse and the influence of this assumption on the specific mass-transfer area is discussed. Additionally, the influence of the bubble size is discussed with regard to the mass-transfer area, the air volume-fraction, and the axial air velocity profile. To validate the numerical model, experimental results from tomographic measurements at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) are used. (© 2017 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Gas bubbles in micro capillaries – hydrodynamics and mass transfer

Process design of multi-phase unit operations on the micro-scale relies on the detailed knowledge of the hydrodynamics and mass transfer behavior of discrete disperse fluid particles. The present work examines the hydrodynamics and mass transfer of gas bubbles in vertical capillaries. The hydrodynamic behavior of a single bubble in a capillary including is examined numerically using a modified level-set method [1]. Additionally, the influence of surface-active contaminations (‘surfactants’) and the resulting Marangoni effects are taken into account [2]. This enables the differentiation between bubbles with a mobile, i.e. clean, interface and those with a immobile, i.e. contaminated, interface. Based on the hydrodynamics, the mass transfer is examined. In the present work, mass transfer is from the bubble into the bulk fluid. By using a very high mesh resolution, the local concentration field in and around the gas bubble can be resolved, which gives access to the local mass transfer. Results are in good agreement available correlations from literature. (© 2015 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Modelling and Simulation of Food Foams

The rheological behaviour of protein solutions containing bubbles at rest, but particularly during fluid mechanical transport is not sufficiently investigated yet. Protein foams have a great importance in food production because of their special sensory properties. A suspension that contains bubbles in a Newtonian liquid exhibits inherently a complex rheological behaviour, such as elastic effects, a shear- and time-dependent viscosity and normal stress differences. The deformation state of the bubbles in a suspension subjected to a steady shear is a function of the gas volume fraction ϕ and the capillary number N_Ca. In the present article, material equations for protein solutions with gas volume fractions ϕ ≤ 0.75 and small bubble deformations, i. e. N_Ca ≪ 1, are analysed and further developed. (© 2016 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

The effect of magnetic field on dynamics of gas bubbles in visco-elastic fluids

The effect of magnetic field on nonlinear oscillations of a spherical, acoustically forced gas bubble in nonlinear visco-elastic media is studied. The constitutive equation UCM used for modeling the rheological behaviors of the fluid. By starting from the momentum equations for bubbles considering the magnetic force and considering some simplifying assumptions, the modified bubble dynamics equation (the modified Rayleigh–Plesset equation) has been achieved. Assumptions concerning the trace of the stress tensor are addressed in light of the incorporation of visco-elastic constitutive equations into modified bubble dynamics equations. The governing equations are non-dimesionalized and numerically solved by using 4th order Runge–Kutta method. The accuracy of the calculations and the formulation is compared with the previous works done for models without the presence of magnetic field. Furthermore, the bubble size variations due to acoustic motivations and stress tensor components variations in presence of different magnitudes of magnetic fields are studied. Also, the bubble size dependence on fluid conductivity variations is declared. The relevance and importance of this approach to biomedical ultrasound applications are highlighted. Preliminary results indicate that magnetic field may be an important consideration for the risk assessment of potential cavitations and also it could be possible to damp the bubble oscillations by using magnetic fields or in opposite case amplify the oscillations which could result in higher level light emissions in sonoluminescence approach.     

A stabilized finite element method for convection–diffusion problems

A stabilized finite element method (FEM) is presented for solving the convection–diffusion equation. We enrich the linear finite element space with local functions chosen according to the guidelines of the residual‐free bubble (RFB) FEM. In our approach, the bubble part of the solution (the microscales) is approximated via an adequate choice of discontinuous bubbles allowing static condensation. This leads to a streamline‐diffusion FEM with an explicit formula for the stability parameter τ_K that incorporates the flow direction, has the capability to deal with problems where there is substantial variation of the Péclet number, and gives the same limit as the RFB method. The method produces the same a priori error estimates that are typically obtained with streamline‐upwind Petrov/Galerkin and RFB. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Numer Methods Partial Differential Eq 2011     

Numerical Modeling of Laser-Induced Cavitation Bubbles with a Finite Volume Method

We report on the numerical modeling of laser-induced cavitation bubbles with the finite volume method using the open source software package OpenFOAM. The numerical model is validated by comparison to experimental data for the two cases of a bubble collapsing under normal ambient conditions in an unbounded liquid as well as close to a solid wall. (© 2015 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Mesoscopic Numerical Study on Flow Boiling Heat Transfer Performance in Channels With Multiple Rectangular Heaters北大核心CSCD

The flow boiling phenomenon in a channel with multiple rectangular heaters under a constant wall temperature was numerically studied with the lattice Boltzmann method. The effects of spacings between heaters, heater lengths and heater surface wettabilities on the bubble morphology, the bubble area and the heat flux on the heater surface, were studied. The results show that, the bubble growth rate increases with the spacing between heaters. The larger the bubble area is, the earlier the nucleated bubbles will leave the heater surface. The corresponding boiling heat transfer performance increases by 12% with the spacing between heaters growing from 250 lattices to 1 000 lattices. On the other hand, the longer the heater length is, the earlier the bubble will nucleate and leave the heater surface, and the better the boiling heat transfer performance will be. The boiling heat transfer performance increases by 13% with the heater length rising from 16 lattices to 22 lattices. In addition, the bubble nucleates later on the hydrophilic surface than on the hydrophobic surface. Compared with the hydrophilic surface, the hydrophobic surface retains residual bubbles after the leaving of bubbles from the heater. The average heat flux and the bubble area of the hydrophilic surface are less than those of the hydrophobic surface. With the contact angle changing from 77° to 120°, the heat transfer performance increases by 26%. Finally, the orthogonal test results indicate that, the wettability of the heat exchanger surface has the greatest influence on the flow boiling heat transfer performance, while the heater length has the least influence. © 2022 Editorial Office of Applied Mathematics and Mechanics. All rights reserved.     

Modelling bubble rise and interaction with a glass surface

A theoretical model has been developed to analyse bubble rise in water and subsequent impact and bounce against a horizontal glass plate. The multiscale nature of the problem, where the bubble size is on the millimetre range and the film drainage process happens on the micrometre to nanometre scale requires the combined use of different modelling techniques. On the macro scale we solve the full Navier–Stokes equations in cylindrical coordinates to model bubble rise whereas modelling film drainage on the micro scale is based on lubrication theory because the film Reynolds number becomes much smaller than unity. Quantitative predictions of this model are compared with experimental data obtained using synchronised high-speed cameras. Video recording of bubble rise and bounce trajectories are combined with interferometry data to deduce the position and time-dependent thickness of the thin water film trapped between the deformed bubble and the glass plate. Bubble rise velocity indicated that the boundary condition at the bubble surface was tangentially immobile. Quantitative comparisons are presented for bubbles of different size to quantify similarities and differences.     

The dynamics of the growth of vapour bubbles in a superheated liquid

The boiling of a superheated liquid is investigated assuming that, in the initial state, the liquid and a vapour bubble (or a system of vapour bubbles) are in mechanical and thermal equilibrium. It is shown that the state of a mixture of a liquid and bubbles is unstable due to the action of capillary forces. Linear and non-linear solutions are constructed describing the emergence of the system from the unstable state and also the unbounded growth of a single bubble and the transition into a stable vapour-liquid state when there are bubbles distributed throughout the volume in the initial state.