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Prediction of film inversion in two-phase flow in coiled tubes

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 April 2006

G. F. Hewitt  and
S. Jayanti
G. F. Hewitt
Affiliation:
Department of Chemical Engineering and Chemical Technology, Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, London SW7 2BY, UK
S. Jayanti
Affiliation:
Department of Chemical Engineering and Chemical Technology, Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, London SW7 2BY, UK
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Abstract

Depending on the flow conditions, the liquid film in annular two-phase flow in coiled tubes may be pushed towards the outer or the inner side by the centrifugal force. It is important to understand the mechanism of this ‘film inversion’ in order to develop a predictive model for the film thickness distribution. In this paper, this phenomenon is studied analytically, and a new criterion, based on the secondary flow in the thin liquid film, is proposed to predict its occurrence. The criterion shows good agreement with available experimental data. It is suggested that the analytical model can readily be extended to predict the distribution of the film thickness and film flow rate in coiled tubes.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Fluid Mechanics , Volume 236 , March 1992 , pp. 497 - 511
Copyright
© 1992 Cambridge University Press

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