Measurement of the recoalescence flux into the rear of a Taylor bubble

Abstract

Most of the theoretical models on vertical slug flow assume the mass balance of a Taylor bubble to depend only on the incoming gas flux at the top of the Taylor bubble and on the outgoing entrainment flux at the bottom. This means that the recoalescence flux, which is defined as the fraction of the entrainment flux that coalesces back into the bubble, is neglected. Only in Fernandes et al. [AIChE J. 29, 981 (1983)] is a model proposed for this recoalescence flux but their model has never been verified by measurements. Therefore, we set out in the present research to measure and quantify the recoalescence flux. Our experiments have been carried out in a recirculating flow facility with a vertical cylindrical test section with inner diameter Di=100 mm. In this test section a Taylor bubble is kept at a fixed vertical position by a constant downward liquid flow ΨL. A continuous stream of small helium bubbles is injected into the wake of the Taylor bubble. The recoalescence flux is then determined by measuring the concentration of helium in the Taylor bubble. Our experiments show that there is a recoalescence flux and that in general it cannot be neglected in the mass balance of the Taylor bubble. The total gas loss from the Taylor bubble, Ψin, and the recoalescence flux Ψrec increase both strongly with the Taylor bubble length, LTB. The fraction of entrained bubbles that recoalesces back into the Taylor bubble increases from 10% of the entrainment flux at LTB=60 cm (λG=Ψin/ΨL=4%) to 45% at LTB=91 cm (λG=11%).