Liquid Droplet Growth from a Punctured Vessel Under Steady Flow Conditions

AbstractThe liquid droplet growth from a punctured, pressurized vessel immersed in a quiescent medium is studied under steady flow conditions. Local strain rates at the puncture site are also investigated. The droplet growth and local strain rates at the puncture are characterized as functions of various hydrodynamic and geometric conditions. Dimensional analysis shows that the fractional droplet growth rate, Q*, is a function of the Reynolds number, Weber number, hole-to-main tube diameter ratio, D*, and the puncture geometry. A 3-D finite volume computational model is constructed for laminar flow of a Newtonian fluid under steady conditions and validated with supporting experiments. The results show that the fractional growth rate Q* increases with the Weber number and is largest for the lowest Reynolds number of one. In addition, the droplet shape is spherical at low Weber numbers (2.6) and ellipsodial at high Weber numbers (7.8). Additional simulations detail how the growth ratio is lower for small di...