Interactions between Two Deformable Droplets in Tandem Fixed in a Gas Flow Field of a Gas Well

Abstract

Knowing the droplet-deformation conditions, the droplet-breakup conditions, and the drag force in the interaction between two droplets with a high Reynolds number is of importance for tracking droplet movement in the annular flow field of a gas well. The interactions between two droplets with a high Reynolds number in a tandem arrangement fixed in flowing gas was investigated. The volume of fluid (VOF) method was used to model the droplets’ surface structure. Two different body forces were exerted on both droplets to hold them suspended at a fixed location, which eliminated the effect of droplet acceleration or deceleration on the drag and decreased the amount of computation required. The exerted body forces were calculated using the Newton iteration procedure. The interactions between the two droplets were analyzed by comparison with the simulation results of a single isolated droplet. The effect of the separation distance on the drag force was investigated by changing the separation spacing. The simulation results showed that for droplets with a small separating space between them, the dynamics of the downstream droplet were influenced significantly by the upstream droplet. The drag coefficient of the downstream droplet decreased considerably to a small, even negative, value, especially for droplets with higher Weber numbers and smaller initial separating spaces between them, while the drag force of the upstream droplet was influenced only slightly. In addition, a formula for predicting the final drag coefficient of the downstream droplet was devised.

Keywords

• gas well
• annular flow
• droplet interactions
• droplet deformation
• drag coefficient
• critical Weber number