Mixing characteristics and pressure drop analysis in a spiral micromixer

Abstract

In this work, numerical computations are performed to analyze the mixing characteristics and pressure drop in a spiral micromixer. The effects of variation in width and depth of the micromixer are investigated for Reynolds number ( Re) in the range of 0.1 ≤ Re≤100. Results are enumerated in terms of mass contours, streamlines, mixing index and pressure drop. It is observed that the designed spiral micromixer provides a better mixing for both low and high Re values, and moreover, the mixing index remains almost the same with the variation of the depth and width of the mixer for Re > 50. The mixing index first decreases with Re, reaches a minimum value, and thereafter again increases with a further increase in Re in the range of 0.1 ≤ Re≤50. For intermediate Reynolds number, a high mixing index is observed in micromixer having higher depth and lower width. Although the driving pressure force increases with the increase in Reynolds number, it decreases with the increase in width and depth of the micromixer.