Characterization of unsteady flow in a 3D‐printed Schwarz Diamond monolith using magnetic resonance velocimetry

Process engineering applications such as heat transfer, reactions, and separations involve passing fluid through a porous medium. Historically, random‐channel porous media have been used for these operations. Such systems do not represent optimal configurations for process performance because of poo...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inAIChE journal Vol. 69; no. 8
Main Authors Clarke, Daniel, Galvosas, Petrik, Holland, Daniel J.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Hoboken, USA John Wiley & Sons, Inc 01.08.2023
American Institute of Chemical Engineers
Subjects
3D‐printing
Channel morphology
Configuration management
Diamonds
Flow distribution
Flow stability
Fluid flow
Heat transfer
Magnetic resonance imaging
Minimal surfaces
Performance enhancement
Porous media
Pressure drop
Process engineering
Reynolds number
Shear layers
Three dimensional flow
Three dimensional printing
Transport processes
triply periodic minimal surface
Unsteady flow
Velocimetry
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Summary:Process engineering applications such as heat transfer, reactions, and separations involve passing fluid through a porous medium. Historically, random‐channel porous media have been used for these operations. Such systems do not represent optimal configurations for process performance because of poor flow distribution and high‐pressure drop. It is now possible to fabricate porous monoliths with tailored morphology and regular channel structure using 3D‐printing. In this work, we use magnetic resonance imaging to study flow through a Schwarz Diamond triply periodic minimal surface (TPMS) monolith for Reynolds numbers up to 350. A transition to unsteady flow was observed experimentally for the first time. The channel structure diverts flow such that free shear layers form in the channel centers that contribute to flow instability. These measurements serve to inform the design of novel transport processes with enhanced performance.
ISSN:0001-1541
1547-5905
DOI:10.1002/aic.18097