Investigation of the oil-seawater mixed flow under an electromagnetic field

The electromagnetic separation method is a new approach to treat ship-based marine oily wastewater, in which oil droplets are dispersed in seawater (oil-seawater mixed flow). In order to clarify the separation process and determine the separation characteristics, the flow field and volume fraction of the oil droplets of the oil-seawater mixed flow under an applied electromagnetic field with different operating conditions were investigated by 2D numerical simulations with the Eulerian model. The results show that: (1) the downward Lorentz force causes seawater to flow downwards and the oil droplets to move upwards due to the electromagnetic separation force in the effective section of the separation channel; (2) the volume fraction of the oil droplets at the top of the outlet section increases with the current density, magnetic field, and the diameter of the oil droplet and decreases with the inlet velocity of the oily seawater. The results provide useful guidance for the design of electromagnetic separation devices of the oil-seawater mixed flow.