Abstract
Evaluating the two-phase flow parameters across tube bundles is crucial to the analysis of vibration excitation mechanisms. These parameters include the temporal and local variation of void fraction and phase redistribution. Understanding these two-phase parameters is essential to evaluating the stability threshold of tube bundle configurations. In this work, capacitance sensor probes were designed using finite element analysis to ensure high sensor sensitivity and optimum response. A simulation-based approach was used to calibrate and increase the accuracy of the void fraction measurement. The simulation results were used to scale the normalized capacitance and minimize the sensor uncertainty to ±5%. The sensor and required conditioning circuits were fabricated and tested for measuring the instantaneous void fraction in a horizontal triangular tube bundle array under both static and dynamic two-phase flow conditions. The static calibration of the sensor was able to reduce the uncertainty to ±3% while the sensor conditioning circuit was able to capture instantaneous void fraction signals with frequencies up to 2.5 kHz.
Highlights
Two-phase flow through a complex geometry is found in many shell-and-tube heat exchangers including nuclear steam generators, reboilers, evaporators and condensers
The present study discusses the methodology to design capacitance sensor that can be used in measuring the void fraction of two-phase flow in tube bundles
The sensor fabrication and both static measuring the void fraction of two-phase flow in tube bundles
Summary
Two-phase flow through a complex geometry is found in many shell-and-tube heat exchangers including nuclear steam generators, reboilers, evaporators and condensers. High-velocity flow across the tubes of such components is known to produce excessive vibrations due to a variety of flow-induced vibration mechanisms, the most serious of which is fluidelastic instability (FEI) [1]. Evaluating the two-phase flow parameters across tube bundles is crucial to the analysis of vibration excitation mechanisms. These parameters include the temporal and local variation of void fraction and phase redistribution and considered to be essential to determine damping ratio, hydrodynamic mass and fluidelastic instability constants in order to evaluate the stability threshold of tube bundle configurations. A reliable prediction of the two-phase flow parameters is essential for the development of more efficient, safe and compact steam generating equipment [3]
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