Comparison of population balance models for polydisperse bubbly flow

Abstract

In this work, five population balance models are applied to the simulation of isothermal bubbly flows, and the results are compared with experimental measurements of pipe flows. The models cover a wide range of different modeling approaches and include several of the most frequently used models for bubbly flow. We find that in the investigated cases, the sectional approach, despite being significantly more computationally expensive, is generally not more accurate than the most accurate moment method included in this work, which is based on a log-normal size distribution. Other moment methods have even lower computational costs, but give unrealistic representations of the bubble size distribution. Additionally, they offer less flexibility and accuracy for modeling break-up and coalescence. This work can be used to make better-informed choices when selecting a population balance model for future multiphase flow research, based on specific requirements in terms of accuracy, computational costs and model complexity.