Experimental investigation of two-phase flow regimes in rectangular micro-channel with two mixer types

Abstract

This study primarily aimed to explore the two-phase flow characteristics in a rectangular channel with a hydraulic diameter of 1.33 mm. High-speed video imaging techniques were used to capture two-phase flow behavior corresponding to different superficial gas and liquid velocities. To examine the effect of the gas–liquid mixer configuration on two-phase flow patterns, experiments were conducted using two types of mixers. The results show that the mixer configuration can affect the flow structure only in the slug flow regime. The present study provides a more detailed classification of flow regimes than previous studies. The flow regimes observed were classified into seven categories: slug, aerated-slug, transition, multiple, wavy-annular, smooth-annular, and dispersed-annular flows. Moreover, the quantitative characterization of flow regimes and transition boundaries in micro-channel flows using the standard deviation of differential pressure fluctuations was attempted. This study comprehensively reviews and assesses previous two-phase flow regime maps for both macro-channels and mini/micro-channels. It is shown that the two-phase flow pattern in mini/micro-channels is influenced by various factors, such as the channel hydraulic diameter, the channel cross-sectional shape, the gas–liquid mixer configuration, the difference in the hydraulic diameters between the mixer outlet and test channel, and the thermophysical properties of the working fluids. The comparison between the present experimental data and predictions of the previous flow regime maps demonstrates the necessity of developing a new flow regime map to accurately predict two-phase flow regimes in micro-channels.