On the motion of gas bubbles in homogeneous isotropic turbulence

Abstract

This paper is concerned with the motion of small gas bubbles, equivalent diameter about 1.0 mm, in isotropic turbulent flows. Data on the mean velocity of rise and the dispersion of the bubbles have been obtained numerically by simulating the turbulence as a sum of Fourier modes with random phases and amplitudes determined by the Kraichnan and the von Kármán–Pao energy-spectrum functions, and by calculating the bubble trajectories from a reasonably well-established equation of motion. The data cover the range β[les ]1, where β is the ratio between the turbulence intensity and the velocity of rise of the bubbles in still fluid. An approximate analysis based on the assumption that β is small yields results that compare favourably with the numerical data, and clarifies the important role played by the lift forces exerted by the fluid.