Opposed bubbly jets at different impact angles: jet structure and bubble properties

Abstract

The structure of two colliding water jets containing small gas bubbles is studied experimentally. The effects of the separation distance between jets, as well as the orientation angle, on the spatial distribution of bubbles have been considered. Results on the global structure of the final jet and bubble properties have been obtained using a high-speed video camera, and measurements of the positions of coalescence events are presented. Jets are introduced through inclined pipes (with a diameter of 0.7 mm) into a large water tank to avoid wall effects. Inclination angle has been changed from 0 to 45 with respect to the horizontal, resulting in a 0 up to 90 impact angle between jets. Generation of bubbles is controlled by a T-junction device where a regular slug-flow is created prior to injection. Bubble sizes have been measured, and a mean diameter of around 1 mm has been obtained using high values of the liquid flow rate. In the studied range of separation distances between the bubbly jets, a more homogeneous dispersion of bubbles is created as the distance between jets is decreased and the momentum flux of each jet is increased. Higher numbers of coalescences are observed when using smaller distance between jets, and the obtained measurements revealed that the number of bubble coalescence events is reduced significantly using high values of liquid flow rates.