Abstract
The measurement of two-phase cryogenic fluid mixtures flow, also known as slush cryogen flow, with its most attractive form (liquid and solid) is of great interest for various applications, due to its thermodynamic advantages. This paper presents a newly developed device, under the form of a circular capacitor prototype, together with an experimental stand for slush formation. Slush nitrogen was used as testing fluid during the experimental work. Then, the experimental data for slush cryogen flow measurement using the proposed circular shape capacitor were compared with theoretical results obtained by simulation. A three-dimensional flow field model was built and solved for the innovative design slush flowmeter using a computational fluid dynamic (CFD) model. Nitrogen slush density of 874 kg/m3, representing approximately 30% solid fraction, was reported for both the modeling and experimental testing, although the numerical investigation is not limited to these values. By comparing experimental vs. simulation results, a deeper view on the designed configuration can be achieved, thus improving the progress in producing high-performance next generation devices for two-phase flow measurement in terms of physical dimensions, length and space between armatures. Even so, the mathematical model has limitations when mixtures with higher percentages of solid phase and particle sizes are encountered.
Highlights
IntroductionTwo-phase combinations (liquid–gas or liquid–solid) of the same matter [1] travelling together, in the same place, at the same time, represent a two-phase flow
Two-phase combinations of the same matter [1] travelling together, in the same place, at the same time, represent a two-phase flow
Liquid–solid flow can be seen from slight freezing of the liquid, but the primary two-phase flow seen in cryogenics domain is liquid–gas [1]
Summary
Two-phase combinations (liquid–gas or liquid–solid) of the same matter [1] travelling together, in the same place, at the same time, represent a two-phase flow. During gas liquefaction processes, when the production of the liquid–solid mixture is not within the objective of that cryogenic installation, it can be formed for a short time and in an uncontrollable, unstable manner. Since the solid–liquid mixtures occur after a gas liquefaction process, practically after reaching the normal boiling point of that substance, when considering the cryogenic domain, the most common biphasic mixture is the liquid–gas one. The most attractive forms are slush nitrogen and slush hydrogen, which have attained large popularity lately, other forms do exist, such as slush oxygen. This interest is tributary to several technological applications
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