Measurement of Bubble Velocity Distribution in Horizontal Gas-Liquid Slug Flow by Single-Layer Wire-Mesh Sensor

• Published in: 2023 IEEE International Instrumentation and Measurement Technology Conference (I2MTC) pp. 1 - 6
• Main Authors: Yin, Junwen, Jin, Ningde, Zhai, Lusheng, Wang, Wenhao, Xu, Bo
• Format: Conference Proceeding
• Language: English
• Published: IEEE 22.05.2023
• Subjects: bubble diameter distribution; bubble velocity distribution; Fluid flow measurement; horizontal gas-liquid slug flow; Phase measurement; Pipelines; Probability density function; Size measurement; Time measurement; Time-frequency analysis; wire-mesh sensor
• ISSN: 2642-2077
• DOI: 10.1109/I2MTC53148.2023.10175949

Horizontal gas-liquid slug flow is widely encountered in many crucial industrial processes related to petroleum, chemical, nuclear, and others. The gas-liquid slug flow shows a quasi-periodic movement of alternating film region(Taylor bubble) and slug region. The liquid is a continuous phase and entrains heterogeneous bubbles in the slug region. The velocity distribution of dispersed bubbles in the slug region is an important flow parameter of slug flow. In our study, we designed a \mathbf{10}\times \mathbf{10} single-layer conductance wire-mesh sensor (WMS) and obtained the response signals of the WMS in gas-liquid slug flow by carrying out a horizontal gas-liquid slug flow experiment. On the basis of the response signals of the WMS, a new method for measuring the velocity and size of dispersed bubbles was proposed to derive the three-dimensional phase distribution and velocity distribution in the slug region. The influence of gas and liquid flow rates on the properties of the flow structures' evolution was discussed. The probability density function (PDF) of bubble diameters and bubble velocity profile were extracted in the slug region.