Realistic Flow Conditions Research Articles

Shale gas reservoir modeling and production evaluation considering complex gas transport mechanisms and dispersed distribution of kerogen

Stimulated shale reservoirs consist of kerogen, inorganic matter, secondary and hydraulic fractures. The dispersed distribution of kerogen within matrices and complex gas flow mechanisms make production evaluation challenging. Here we establish an analytical method that addresses kerogen-inorganic matter gas transfer, dispersed kerogen distribution, and complex gas flow mechanisms to facilitate evaluating gas production. The matrix element is defined as a kerogen core with an exterior inorganic sphere. Unlike most previous models, we merely use boundary conditions to describe kerogen-inorganic matter gas transfer without the instantaneous kerogen gas source term. It is closer to real inter-porosity flow conditions between kerogen and inorganic matter. Knudsen diffusion, surface diffusion, adsorption/desorption, and slip corrected flow are involved in matrix gas flow. Matrix-fracture coupling is realized by using a seven-region linear flow model. The model is verified against a published model and field data. Results reveal that inorganic matrices serve as a major gas source especially at early times. Kerogen provides limited contributions to production even under a pseudo-steady state. Kerogen properties’ influence starts from the late matrix-fracture inter-porosity flow regime, while inorganic matter properties control almost all flow regimes except the early-mid time fracture linear flow regime. The contribution of different linear flow regions is also documented.

A second-generation URANS model (STRUCT-ε) applied to simplified freight trains

An effective way to increase the volume of cargo transported by freight trains is to increase their operational speed. The complex flow generated by trains moving through air has attracted much attention from researchers aiming to further improve their performance. Unfortunately, wind tunnel tests do not fully represent the complex geometries and realistic flow conditions observed at full scale (wind gusts, atmospheric turbulence and relative motion of the train with respect to the ground). The availability of a reliable numerical model is therefore critical to analyze the influence of these conditions. Steady RANS models, although still in use in both industry and academia, have shown to be unsuitable, while LES solutions still involve an excessive computational cost. In this work a second-generation URANS closure (STRUCT−ε), proposed by Xu (2020) has been applied to the simulation of freight trains. The approach aims at advancing the robustness and applicability of hybrid turbulence models by relying on the efficiency of an extensively validated anisotropic k−ε method, while locally introducing the necessary resolution of complex unsteady flow structures. The proposed model does not leverage any grid dependent parameter, but triggers controlled resolution of turbulence only in regions of poor URANS applicability, while reverting to a URANS solution when rapidly varying structures are not identified. In the case considered in this work, the reduction of computational cost has been reached by increasing the cell size, while maintaining CFL numbers around 1.0. The work has demonstrated the LES-like capabilities of the STRUCT−ε approach on much coarser grids, which allows a reduction of the total computing time by a factor of 5, as an essential enabler for effective aerodynamic design applications, especially aerodynamics optimization, crosswind stability and slipstream studies.

A Wall-Adapted Anisotropic Heat Flux Model for Large Eddy Simulations of Complex Turbulent Thermal Flows

In this paper, a wall-adapted anisotropic heat flux model for large eddy simulations of complex engineering applications is proposed. First, the accuracy and physical consistency of the novel heat flux model are testified for turbulent heated channel flows with different fluid properties by comparing with conventional isotropic models. Then, the performance of the model is evaluated in case of more complex heat and fluid flow situations that are in particular relevant for internal combustion engines and engine exhaust systems. For this purpose large eddy simulations of a strongly heated pipe flow, a turbulent inclined jet impinging on a heated solid surface and a backward-facing step flow with heated walls were carried out. It turned out that the proposed heat flux model has the following advantages over existing model formulations: (1) it accounts for variable fluid properties and anisotropic effects in the unresolved temperature scales, (2) no ad-hoc treatments or dynamic procedure are required to obtain the correct near-wall behavior, (3) the formulation is consistent with the second law of thermodynamics, and (4) the model has a similar prediction accuracy and computational effort than conventional isotropic models. In particular, it is shown that the proposed heat flux model is the only model under consideration that is able to predict the direction of subgrid-scale heat fluxes correctly, also under realistic heat and fluid flow conditions in complex engineering applications.

Numerical investigation on the origin of virus-laden droplets in the respiratory tract

There have been over 17 million COVID-19 infections worldwide up to July 31, 2020, but the exact transmission route remains a subject for debate. Virus load in different-sized respiratory droplets is the key to address the above question. Investigation on the droplet deposition characteristics during exhalation inside the respiratory tract will facilitate the understanding of their origin and importance in transmitting the respiratory infection. Based on a realistic respiratory model, this study utilized the computational fluid dynamic (CFD) simulation to investigate the deposition of droplets originating from infection sites like pharynx, larynx and trachea under three flow conditions, namely 30 L/min (representing the normal breathing condition), 60 L/min (speaking) and 180 L/min (coughing). The SST k - ω turbulence model integrated in ANSYS Fluent software was utilized to obtain the flow field inside the respiratory tract by solving the continuity and momentum equations, and the Lagrangian approach was used to calculate droplet motion and deposition with the discrete random walk model to account for the turbulence fluctuation effect. Evaporation of droplets was not considered inside the saturated respiratory tract. Droplet diameter, flow rate of the exhaling air, and complexity of the respiratory tract geometry are the most important factors in determining the deposition pattern of respiratory droplets. It is revealed that the largest droplet that originates from the joint of pharynx and larynx and is able to escape out of the respiratory tract is about 20 µm (30 L/min) or 10 µm (60–180 L/min) in diameter; the so-called cut-off sizes for vocal cord and trachea originated droplets are 7 µm (30 L/min), 5 µm (60 L/min) or 3 µm (180 L/min). Larynx and joint of larynx and pharynx are the most important deposition sites due to their complexity in geometry and the existence of the laryngeal jet, whose velocity is up to 102 m/s during coughing and 32 m/s during speaking; the nasal cavity is also effective in trapping relatively small droplets as the airflow has a sudden change in direction before entering the oral cavity. Under the investigated speaking scenario (60 L/min), the escape rate of 1 µm droplets is around 50%, and the maximum escape rates of 5 and 10 µm droplets are respectively 13.1% and 1.3% (originating from the joint of pharynx and larynx). Although large droplets up to several hundred micrometers can be produced inside the oral cavity due to the atomization mechanism, they seldom carry pathogen. Thus, for COVID-19 patents in the early stage of infection who show upper respiratory symptoms, the cut-off size of virus-laden droplets released into the environment is about 20 µm; with the shifting of infection to the lower respiratory tract in the later stage, the cut-off size decreases to 7 µm. Respiratory droplets evaporate immediately after escaping into the indoor environments and shrink to about one third of their initial size, so airborne route is speculated to be important in the transmission of COVID-19. Further investigations considering realistic flow conditions together with droplet sampling experiments on human volunteers are necessary to confirm these cut-off sizes.

A fluid–structure interaction analysis of anisotropic Dacron fabric used for aortic replacement

We present the results of a computational study aimed at capturing the behavior over time of Dacron fabric used for surgical correction of aortic aneurysms. The study concerns the problem of compliance mismatch between the graft and the native aorta and is very important to clinicians. The aorta is represented by a sophisticated anisotropic hyperelastic model (GOH), which takes into account the orientation of the collagen fibers. The corrugations present on the Dacron fabric are modeled geometrically using experimental data retrieved from the literature. The viscoelastic behavior of the Dacron graft reported by clinicians is also taken into account. Mechanical quantities experienced by the graft sewn to an aortic segment are obtained using fluid–structure interaction (FSI) simulations assuming realistic blood flow conditions. Both ascending and descending aorta with two curvatures are considered. Results of this study indicate that (i) the strains on the Dacron-aorta structure increase with increasing curvature and over time (ii) the simulations are capable of capturing stress concentrations at the junction of the graft and the aorta and (iii) the wall shear stresses (WSS) are substantially higher on the aortic segment than on the Dacron graft.

Impinging oil separator for compressors

Abstract Oil separation is commonly needed in air conditioning and refrigeration systems to reduce the oil circulation rate and keep the oil inside the compressor. For compactness, the oil separation structure integrated into the compressor is more and more popular than traditional external oil separators. However, a quantitative guideline for the design of oil separation structure is missing for irregular geometry and realistic flow condition at the compressor discharge. This paper presents impinging separation mechanism, one of the basic mechanisms of droplet separation. The separating structures are studied by flow visualization and experimental measurement under realistic compressor discharge conditions. The video of oil mist flowing through the baffles and plates is captured by a high-speed camera and analyzed quantitatively. The effect of the oil flow condition and the effect of separator geometry design are investigated based on the experimental data. With the help of flow visualization, the flow details are analyzed, and a semi-empirical model is proposed to predict the separation efficiency and pressure drop of a certain wave-plates structure. The results and conclusions from this study give useful guidelines about how to reduce the oil circulation ratio by designing oil separators.

Performance Analysis on Combustion and Heat Transfer of the Ship Power Plant

Study results on the supercharged boiler numerical simulation are on the boiler, convection tube bundle or the super-heater. These study subjects in a single model, and simplified the boundary condition to a certain extent. This paper takes the boiler as a whole research object. On the furnace chamber for combustion simulation, using the profile boundary information file boundary condition setting, faithfully transmitting boundary parameter spatial distribution. Followed by the simulation of heat transfer between the convection tube bundle and super-heater modules, we can get a real fluid flow and heat transfer condition, thus reacting to the complex heat transfer and flow inside of boiler, knowing the distribution of temperature, speed, pressure and other parameters. We can also see the change rule of the combustion and heat transfer processes in that supercharged boiler. Then we discuss the impact of the not uniform heat load on the convection heating surfaces, and preliminary analyzes the mechanism of combustion and heat transfer in supercharged boiler.

Physics-Based Simulations of Flow and Fire Development Downstream of a Canopy

The behavior of a grassland fire propagating downstream of a forest canopy has been simulated numerically using the fully physics-based wildfire model FIRESTAR3D. This configuration reproduces quite accurately the situation encountered when a wildfire spreads from a forest to an open grassland, as can be the case in a fuel break or a clearing, or during a prescribed burning operation. One of the objectives of this study was to evaluate the impact of the presence of a canopy upstream of a grassfire, especially the modifications of the local wind conditions before and inside a clearing or a fuel break. The knowledge of this kind of information constitutes a major element in improving the safety conditions of forest managers and firefighters in charge of firefighting or prescribed burning operations in such configurations. Another objective was to study the behavior of the fire under realistic turbulent flow conditions, i.e., flow resulting from the interaction between an atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) with a surrounding canopy. Therefore, the study was divided into two phases. The first phase consisted of generating an ABL/canopy turbulent flow above a pine forest (10 m high, 200 m long) using periodic boundary conditions along the streamwise direction. Large Eddy Simulations (LES) were carried out for a sufficiently long time to achieve a quasi-fully developed turbulence. The second phase consisted of simulating the propagation of a surface fire through a grassland, bordered upstream by a forest section (having the same characteristics used for the first step), while imposing the turbulent flow obtained from the first step as a dynamic inlet condition to the domain. The simulations were carried out for a wind speed that ranged between 1 and 12 m/s; these values have allowed the simulations to cover the two regimes of propagation of surfaces fires, namely plume-dominated and wind-driven fires.

Piezoelectric energy harvesting from roadway deformation under various traffic flow conditions

Many laboratory tests and in situ measurements have been conducted to study piezoelectric energy harvesting from roadway deformation. However, the performance of piezoelectric energy harvesters under real traffic flow conditions is still unknown. In this study, an electromechanical model of piezoelectric energy harvesters with detailed parameters (including the geometric parameters, material parameters, and circuits) is established, and the influences of traffic flow conditions (i.e. traffic speed and traffic density) on the output power of piezoelectric energy harvesters are analyzed by employing a scaling law method and traffic flow theory. The results indicate that remarkable differences exist in the load patterns and the frequencies between the laboratory tests (or in situ measurements) and real traffic flow conditions. Because of these differences, the results (especially the output electric power and optimization design methods) of previous studies may be inapplicable for piezoelectric energy harvesters embedded in roadways. Considering the distinguishing features of the traffic load pattern, the optimization criteria to determine the geometric parameters and the intrinsic system parameter of piezoelectric energy harvesters are obtained, and the corresponding optimal output power densities of the piezoelectric energy harvesters are also quantitatively calibrated. These theoretical results may serve as guidelines for optimizing the design of piezoelectric energy harvesters embedded in roadways under different traffic flow conditions.

Two-dimensional numerical simulations of vortex-induced vibrations for a cylinder in conditions representative of wind turbine towers

Abstract. Vortex-induced vibrations (VIVs) of wind turbine towers can be critical during the installation phase, when the rotor–nacelle assembly is not yet mounted on the tower. The present work uses numerical simulations to study VIVs of a two-dimensional cylinder in the transverse direction under flow conditions that are representative of wind turbine towers both from a fluid dynamics and structural dynamics perspective. First, the numerical tools and fluid–structure interaction algorithm are validated by considering a cylinder vibrating freely in a laminar flow. In that case, both the motion amplitude and frequency are shown to agree well with previous results from the literature. Second, VIVs are modelled in the turbulent supercritical regime using unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes equations. In this context, the turbulence model is first validated against flow past a stationary cylinder with a high Reynolds number. Then, the results from forced vibrations are validated against experimental results for a range of reduced frequencies and velocities. It is shown that the behaviour of the aerodynamic damping changes with the frequency ratio and can therefore lead to either self-limiting or self-exciting VIVs when the cylinder is left to freely vibrate. Finally, results are shown for a freely vibrating cylinder under realistic flow and structural conditions. While a clear lock-in map is identified and shows good agreement with published numerical and experimental data, the work also highlights the unsteady nature of the aerodynamic forces and motion under certain operating conditions.

Visualization of laminar–turbulent transition on rotating turbine blades

The detection of laminar–turbulent transition in aerodynamics is very important, however, it can be extremely challenging, especially for unsteady flows or moving surfaces. To understand and control transition effects and associated friction losses on aerodynamic components, optical methods have been developed as they potentially do not disturb transition processes. Temperature Decline Thermography (TDT) was recently introduced to visualize boundary layer phenomena on surfaces exposed to flow. The technique is based on transient infrared thermography with active heating, offering high spatial resolution and precise transition detection in stationary systems. However, to improve the efficiency of modern aircraft engines, transition detection on rotating blades is of particular importance. In this study, TDT was enhanced and qualified for use on rotating blades in gas turbines. For the first time, a proof of concept is provided for flow visualization on stationary vanes and rotating blades under realistic flow conditions. Despite the limited optical access in a turbine rig, it was possible to visualize the near-wall traces of boundary layer transitions, separation and vortex systems with high spatial resolution and low measurement uncertainty. The application of TDT in turbomachinery allows for a deeper understanding of flow phenomena and enables validation and support of numerical models for the development of highly efficient gas turbines.

A clinically aligned experimental approach for quantitative characterization of patient-specific cardiovascular models

Recent improvements in computational tools opened the possibility of patient-specific modeling to aid clinicians during diagnosis, treatment, and monitoring. One example is the modeling of blood flow for surgical planning, where modeling can help predict the prognosis. Computational analysis is used to extract hemodynamic information about the case; however, these methods are sensitive to assumptions on blood properties, boundary conditions, and appropriate geometry accuracy. When available, experimental measurements can be used to validate the results and, among the modalities, ultrasound-based methods are suitable due to their relative low cost and non-invasiveness. This work proposes a procedure to create accurate patient-specific silicone replicas of blood vessels and a power Doppler compatible experimental setup able to simulate and measure realistic flow conditions. The assessment of silicone model geometry shows small discrepancies between these and the target geometries (median of surface error lies within 57 µm and 82 μm). Power Doppler measurements were compared against computational fluid dynamics results, showing discrepancies within 10% near the wall. The experimental approach offers a setup to quantify flow in in vitro systems and provide more accurate results where other techniques (e.g., particle image velocimetry and particle tracking velocimetry) have shown limitations due to the interference of the interface.

On the scalability of CFD tool for supersonic jet flow configurations

New regulations are imposing noise emissions limitations for the aviation industry which are pushing researchers and engineers to invest efforts in studying the aeroacoustics phenomena. Following this trend, an in-house computational fluid dynamics tool is build to reproduce high fidelity results of supersonic jet flows for aeroacoustic analogy applications. The solver is written using the large eddy simulation formulation that is discretized using a finite difference approach and an explicit time integration. Numerical simulations of supersonic jet flows are very expensive and demand efficient high-performance computing. Therefore, non-blocking message passage interface protocols and parallel Input/Output features are implemented into the code in order to perform simulations which demand up to one billion grid points. The present work addresses the evaluation of code improvements along with the computational performance of the solver running on a computer with maximum theoretical peak of 2.727 PFlops. Different mesh configurations, whose size varies from a few hundred thousand to approximately one billion grid points, are evaluated in the present paper. Calculations are performed using different workloads in order to assess the strong and weak scalability of the parallel computational tool. Moreover, validation results of a realistic flow condition are also presented in the current work.

Analysis of the wall shear stress in a generic aneurysm under pulsating and transitional flow conditions

In this study, the flow through a generic abdominal aneurysm under realistic pulsating flow conditions is examined with magnetic resonance velocimetry (MRV), laser Doppler velocimetry (LDV) and computational fluid dynamics (CFD). The influence of flow phenomena on the wall shear stress (WSS) is examined. It is seen that a strong vortex ring develops during systole at the proximal end of the aneurysm and subsequently travels downstream and decays. The vortex formation plays a major role in the temporal and spatial distribution of the WSS, which is analyzed in detail. A peak of the WSS is observed for a very limited time and in a very localized region where the vortex ring initially develops. The intrinsic temporal averaging during the acquisition of the MRV data is found to significantly decrease this peak. CFD and LDV results, which are averaged in the same manner, show a similar behavior. This indicates that besides the spatial resolution, the temporal resolution is a crucial factor, which needs to be considered especially in flows where vortex rings are observed. Results from LDV and CFD show excellent agreement for the velocity field obtained by MRV. While the flow is found to be laminar in the undilated diameter, results show laminar–turbulent transitional behavior for specific phases of the cycle within the aneurysm bulk. Although MRV is not capable of measuring instantaneous velocity fluctuations, we show that the periodic increase in turbulence intensity can be observed from image artifacts in the MRV data. These artifacts increase the velocity uncertainty, which correlates well with the velocity fluctuations measured with LDV. Although the flow encounters laminar and transitional conditions as well as multiple vortices and stagnation and reattachment points, the improved instability-sensitive Reynolds stress model, which is used for the numerical simulations of this work, shows very good agreement with the measurements. Significant effort has been expended by numerous research groups in recent years in improving the estimation of WSS from MRV data. However, an assessment of these various post-processing methods is only possible if the true values of the WSS are known. The present study is therefore aimed at providing such ground truth WSS values as well as the corresponding MRV data, allowing also other research groups to validate their WSS estimation methods using the experimental data set presented in this work.Graphic

Unsteady targeted particle delivery in three-dimensional tortuous cerebral artery

The present work investigates the complexities of unsteady targeted particle delivery in tortuous cerebral artery with three-dimensional twists and bends. Blood flow is modeled to mimic realistic pulsatile flow conditions along with its shear thinning behavior. One-way coupling is used to model particle flow. Dynamic particle release map (DPRM) for the targeted site, saccular aneurysm sac present in the artery, is determined on a chosen lumen cross section. Temporal variations in DPRM are analyzed and preferable catheter injection position and particle release pattern are recommended for minimum systemic toxicity.

Novel Closed-Form Equation for Critical Pressure and Optimum Pressure Ratio for Turbojet Engines

Abstract Advanced mathematical model has been developed for design and analysis of turbojet engines. It includes closed form algebraic equation for critical pressure and optimum pressure ratio at maximum thrust. The model and the algebraic equations consider efficiencies, pressure recovery rates meanwhile the gas parameters are the function of the fuel to air ratio and the temperature. РД-9Б and АЛ-21Ф3 engines are applied for demonstrating the capabilities of the calculation process. The unknown parameters as efficiencies, pressure recovery rates, power reduction rate of the auxiliary systems, bleed air ratio, air income ratio due to blade cooling and total temperature in the afterburner were identified by constrained optimization. The effect of i. T04/T02 ratio for the thrust and TSFC in the function of compressor pressure ratio, ii. the real (viscous) flow conditions and iii. the temperature and fuel to air ratio on gas parameters were also investigated for verification and plausibility check.

Wake field study of tidal turbines under realistic flow conditions

Numerical modelling of the flow interactions between tidal turbines in arrays is a prerequisite to assess the energy production potential and to optimise the layout of tidal stream energy farms. It requires (i) a refined representation of the tide propagation and (ii) a reliable estimate of the flow characteristics around the turbines. The Actuator Disk (AD) theory is recognised as a reliable parameterisation to approach the far wake of fixed horizontal-axis turbines and was therefore implemented to provide recommendations as regards to the design of arrays, especially the optimal spacing between devices. However, analysis of the arrangement of tidal stream turbines are typically restricted to schematic test cases with idealised bathymetry and inflow conditions. The present study aims to investigate the flow interactions between turbines in a stream energy site with spatially- and time-varying tidal conditions. The site of application is the Alderney Race (English Channel), an area with strong potential for the exploitation of tidal energy in European shelf seas. The three-dimensional numerical model Telemac3D is used to capture the flow at both the regional and the array scales. Predictions are first assessed against ADCP measurements acquired around the island of Alderney. A series of simulations, representing turbines with the AD theory, are then performed to investigate the influence of the wake interactions on the energy production of individual devices. In those simulations, the turbines are represented with the AD theory. The zone occupied by the turbines is 20D-long and 15D-wide (D is the turbine diameter). Different layouts (isolated, aligned and staggered turbines) and different longitudinal and lateral spacings are considered to investigate the effect of the turbines’ arrangement and density on the array energy production. The results show that, for a given turbines density within the array, the staggered layout produces more than the aligned layout (+16%). When the turbines are staggered, a minimal lateral spacing of 5D is required to avoid wake overlapping. However, when the turbines are aligned, the lateral spacing has a small influence on the turbines production. It is therefore possible to pack the turbines close to each other in the lateral direction. The simulations also outline that the turbulence develops much faster within the array when the turbines are aligned.

Strong scaling of numerical solver for supersonic jet flow configurations

Acoustics loads are rocket design constraints which push researches and engineers to invest efforts in the aeroacoustics phenomena which is present on launch vehicles. Therefore, an in-house computational fluid dynamics tool is developed in order to reproduce high-fidelity results of supersonic jet flows for aeroacoustic analogy applications. The solver is written using the large eddy simulation formulation that is discretized using a finite-difference approach and an explicit time integration. Numerical simulations of supersonic jet flows are very expensive and demand efficient high-performance computing. Therefore, non-blocking message passage interface protocols and parallel input/output features are implemented into the code in order to perform simulations which demand up to one billion degrees of freedom. The present work evaluates the parallel efficiency of the solver when running on a supercomputer with a maximum theoretical peak of 127.4 TFLOPS. Speedup curves are generated using nine different workloads. Moreover, the validation results of a realistic flow condition are also presented in the current work.

Quantitative characterization of viscoelastic fracture induced by time-dependent intratumoral pressure in a 3D model tumor.

In the tumor environment, interstitial pressure drives interstitial flow drainage from the tumor core to the lymphatic vessels. Recent studies have highlighted the key role of interstitial pressure in tumor development and cell migration. High intratumoral pressures, up to , have been reported in cancer patients. In a previous study, we showed that such pressure levels induce fracture in an experimental tumor model consisting of a microfluidic system holding a cellular aggregate. Here, we investigate and quantify the characteristics of tumor model fracture under a range of flow conditions. Our findings suggest a strong dependence of viscoelastic fracture behavior on the loading rate exerted by flow. The aggregate exhibits fragile fracture at high loading rates and ductile fracture at lower rates. The loading rate also modifies the permeability of the cellular aggregate, as well as the persistence time of the load required to induce fracture. The quantification parameters we propose here, evaluated for an in vitro model tumor without the extracellular matrix, could be applied to characterize tumor fracture under more realistic interstitial flow conditions.

Dynamics of flow transitions from bubbly to churn flow in high viscosity oils and large diameter columns

The dynamic behaviour of the gas-liquid two phase flows and in particular the flow pattern stability and transition between the flow regimes are influenced significantly by both the properties of the liquid and gas as well as the pipe diameter. The majority of the studies reported in the literature on the dynamics of gas-liquid flow transitions focus only on low viscosity liquids (e.g. water) and small diameter pipes. In the present work a series of experiments were carried out to study the dynamics of flow transitions (bubbly to slug and slug to churn) of gas rising through very viscous oils (330 Pa s and 360 Pa s) in two large diameter columns (290 and 240 mm, respectively), using Electrical Capacitance Tomography (ECT) and pressure sensors. The experiments aimed to imitate a number of realistic flow conditions that might be encountered, for examples, in; bitumen, crude oil, viscous liquids in food processing and volcanic magmatic flows. Observation and quantification of bubbly to slug and slug to churn flow transitions for gas-high viscous liquids in large pipe diameters are presented for the first time. Flow parameters and characteristics including; void fraction, pressure gradient, Probability Density Function, structure velocity, lengths of large/Taylor bubbles and liquid slugs and the effect of liquid temperature on the void fraction and Taylor bubble lengths, were measured and analysed. It was found that transition to slug and churn flow occurs gradually. Transition to slug flow occurs at a gas superficial velocity of 0.011 m/s–0.016 m/s, while transition to churn appears in the range of 0.127–0.243 m/s in both columns.