Abstract
This paper presents experimental findings on upward swirling liquid film for both single-phase and two-phase gas-liquid flow in a vertical gas-liquid cyclonic separator. The upward swirling liquid film is one dynamic phenomenon that occurs in pipe cyclonic separator. The upward swirling of the liquid film in the upper part of the cyclonic separator is the primary source of liquid entrainment into the gas core. Liquid entrainment from the separator wall into the gas core is the main cause of liquid carryover. Liquid carryover is the major disadvantage of the gas-liquid pipe cyclonic separator. Various researchers in the past have identified the effect of this phenomenon on the performance of gas-liquid pipe cyclonic separator, but not many efforts have been made to study the phenomenon in detail. In this work, the upward swirling liquid film height was measured using a meter rule, while the thickness of the swirling liquid film was estimated using the void fraction that was measured with electrical resistance tomography (ERT). The experimental results show that the height attained by the upward swirling liquid film is a function of the film thickness and inlet gas velocity. The results also showed that the horizontal inlet pipe produces the highest liquid film height when compared with the inclined inlet pipe. By keeping the liquid flow rate constant and increasing gas flow rate, a maximum liquid film height was observed, afterwards, the liquid film height decreases within increasing gas flow rate.
Highlights
Compact separators have application in oil and gas production and processing where space and weight are design constraint such as subsea, downhole, floating production vessels, and oil production platforms
Effect of Froude Number on upward swirling liquid film (USLF) Height The modified Froude number formula derived by Kanshio is used to evaluate its effect on USLF height (Hsf) for single-phase liquid flow [8]
The result of an experimental investigation of USLF height has been presented for both single-phase liquid flow and gas-liquid two-phase flow
Summary
Compact separators have application in oil and gas production and processing where space and weight are design constraint such as subsea, downhole, floating production vessels, and oil production platforms. The USLF is the liquid film that climbs towards the gas outlet of the separator while swirling on the cylindrical wall. Depending on the inlet flow condition, the swirling film could ascend the pipe wall up to a certain height; reverse and descend to join the downward falling film. This height is what is referred to as USLF height. Researchers have made efforts to design film removal devices to extract the liquid film from the separator wall to increase the operating envelope of the separator to minimise the effect of the USLF on liquid carryover.
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