Experimental Study of Primary Atomization Characteristics of Sonic Air-Assist Atomizers

The present study compares two twin-fluid atomizer concepts based on the airflow (shock waves) pattern obtained through shadowgraph imaging for atomization of water with a low air/water pressure supply. The research work was conducted using the backlight imaging technique for converging (sonic) and...

Descripción completa

Guardado en:
Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Raghav Sikka, Knut Vågsæther, Dag Bjerketvedt, Joachim Lundberg
Formato: article
Lenguaje:EN
Publicado: MDPI AG 2021
Materias:
T
Acceso en línea:https://doaj.org/article/9ae414c4a50a46c2a760a6d661871c70
Etiquetas: Agregar Etiqueta
Sin Etiquetas, Sea el primero en etiquetar este registro!
Descripción
Sumario:The present study compares two twin-fluid atomizer concepts based on the airflow (shock waves) pattern obtained through shadowgraph imaging for atomization of water with a low air/water pressure supply. The research work was conducted using the backlight imaging technique for converging (sonic) and converging–diverging (supersonic) air-assist atomizers with a 3.0 mm (throat) diameter. An annular sheet of thicknesses 70 µm and 280 µm with a high-speed air-core was employed to study the breakup dynamics for different water mass flow rates (100–350 kg/h) and air mass flow rates (5–35 kg/h). Different sheet breakup patterns were identified as the function of the ALR ratio (air-to-liquid mass flow), liquid Weber number (<sub>WeL</sub>), and Reynolds number (Reg). Different breakup modes extend from canonical Rayleigh bubble breakup, ligament-type breakup, to the pure pulsating breakup via annular sheet disintegration. The sheet breakup dynamics were studied in terms of spray angle and breakup length. With higher ALR values, breakup length showed a decreasing trend, while spray angle showed an increasing trend in the converging and converging–diverging (CD) air-assist atomizers, respectively, owing to the drastic difference in the jet flow dynamics.