TY - JOUR
T1 - Characteristics of stratified flows of Newtonian/non-Newtonian shear-thinning fluids
AU - Picchi, Davide
AU - Poesio, Pietro
AU - Ullmann, Amos
AU - Brauner, Neima
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2017 Elsevier Ltd
PY - 2017/12
Y1 - 2017/12
N2 - Exact solutions for laminar stratified flows of Newtonian/non-Newtonian shear-thinning fluids in horizontal and inclined channels are presented. An iterative algorithm is proposed to compute the laminar solution for the general case of a Carreau non-Newtonian fluid. The exact solution is used to study the effect of the rheology of the shear-thinning liquid on two-phase flow characteristics considering both gas/liquid and liquid/liquid systems. Concurrent and counter-current inclined systems are investigated, including the mapping of multiple solution boundaries. Aspects relevant to practical applications are discussed, such as the insitu hold-up, or lubrication effects achieved by adding a less viscous phase. A characteristic of this family of systems is that, even if the liquid has a complex rheology (Carreau fluid), the two-phase stratified flow can behave like the liquid is Newtonian for a wide range of operational conditions. The capability of the two-fluid model to yield satisfactory predictions in the presence of shear-thinning liquids is tested, and an algorithm is proposed to a priori predict if the Newtonian (zero shear rate viscosity) behaviour arises for a given operational conditions in order to avoid large errors in the predictions of flow characteristics when the power-law is considered for modelling the shear-thinning behaviour. Two-fluid model closures implied by the exact solution and the effect of a turbulent gas layer are also addressed.
AB - Exact solutions for laminar stratified flows of Newtonian/non-Newtonian shear-thinning fluids in horizontal and inclined channels are presented. An iterative algorithm is proposed to compute the laminar solution for the general case of a Carreau non-Newtonian fluid. The exact solution is used to study the effect of the rheology of the shear-thinning liquid on two-phase flow characteristics considering both gas/liquid and liquid/liquid systems. Concurrent and counter-current inclined systems are investigated, including the mapping of multiple solution boundaries. Aspects relevant to practical applications are discussed, such as the insitu hold-up, or lubrication effects achieved by adding a less viscous phase. A characteristic of this family of systems is that, even if the liquid has a complex rheology (Carreau fluid), the two-phase stratified flow can behave like the liquid is Newtonian for a wide range of operational conditions. The capability of the two-fluid model to yield satisfactory predictions in the presence of shear-thinning liquids is tested, and an algorithm is proposed to a priori predict if the Newtonian (zero shear rate viscosity) behaviour arises for a given operational conditions in order to avoid large errors in the predictions of flow characteristics when the power-law is considered for modelling the shear-thinning behaviour. Two-fluid model closures implied by the exact solution and the effect of a turbulent gas layer are also addressed.
KW - Hold-up
KW - Multiple hold-up solutions
KW - Shape factors
KW - Shear-thinning fluid
KW - Stratified flow
KW - Two-fluid model
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85027726781&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.ijmultiphaseflow.2017.06.005
DO - 10.1016/j.ijmultiphaseflow.2017.06.005
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AN - SCOPUS:85027726781
SN - 0301-9322
VL - 97
SP - 109
EP - 133
JO - International Journal of Multiphase Flow
JF - International Journal of Multiphase Flow
ER -