Numerical Prediction of Flow Patterns in Bubble Pumps

Abstract

In the present study, the ammonia-water mixing flow in a bubble pump is numerically simulated. The flow patterns of a two-phase flow in a bubble pump were studied under different conditions of heat flux and tube diameter. A one-dimensional two-fluid model was developed under constant heat flux. This model was used to predict the variations in void fraction and liquid and vapor velocities throughout the tube. Then, the void fraction profile and the curve of liquid velocity versus vapor velocity were used to predict the flow patterns along the tube length. It was found that at heat fluxes below 15 kW m−2, bubbly, slug, and churn flows are the dominating regimes, and the length of these flow regimes depends on the tube diameter. For heat fluxes higher than 15 kW m−2, the bubble pump operates under the churn and annular regimes, and the bubble pump performance is improved when the tube diameter increases.