Empirical Correlation of the Primary Stability Variable of Liquid Jet and Liquid Sheet Under Acoustic Field

Abstract

The investigation focuses on optimizing the length of windpipe that transmits acoustic energy from the compression driver to the cavity of twinfluid atomizers. To accomplish this objective, the primary variable of stability, that is, the breakup length of liquid jet and sheet under acoustic perturbations has been experimentally characterized for a range of windpipe length and liquid velocity. The analysis considers liquid phase Weber number in the range of 0.7–8, and the results are compared with primary breakup data without acoustic perturbations. The range of Weber number tested belongs to Rayleigh breakup zone, so that inertia force is negligible compared to surface tension force. It shows the existence of unique stability functions based on dimensionless products up to an optimum windpipe length, which extends greater for liquid sheet configuration. The present results may find relevance in atomizer design that utilizes acoustic source to enhance liquid column breakup processes.