Statistical Characteristics of Void Fraction Fluctuations and Flow Regime Identification in Vertical Gas-Liquid Two-Phase Flow

Abstract

In this investigation, an objective and quantitative method is developed for the identification and classification of flow regimes in vertical gas-liquid two-phase flow. It is clarified that the features of probability density function (PDF) and the parameters of the PDF expected according to the maximum entropy principle (MEP) can be used as objective flow regime indicators and quantitative flow regime discriminators, respectively. In this experiment, the void fraction fluctuations are measured by the constant current technique. The PDFs are classified into three major types and correspond to three dominant flow patterns: bubbly, intermittent and annular. That is, a uni-modal PDF with a low void fraction corresponds to a bubbly flow pattern; a bimodal PDF corresponds to an intermittent flow pattern; and a uni-modal PDF with a high void fraction corresponds to an annular flow pattern. Furthermore, the relationship between the statistical parameters of the void fraction fluctuations (the mean value, the standard deviation, and the coefficients of skewness and kurtosis) and the flow patterns is discussed. It is shown that classification of uni-modal and bimodal PDFs can be made according to the coefficients of skewness and kurtosis.