Stereo MicroPIV measurements in an irrigation nozzle

Abstract

Irrigation nozzles often feature small serpentine-shaped channels to avoid clogging. Reduced clogging improves the lifetime of the irrigation nozzle, which reduces plastic waste and thereby reduces the impact on the environment. Clogging in micro channels is often suppressed in the presence of three- dimensional (3D) flow structures called vortices. In micro scales the initiation of such 3D microstructures is normally suppressed because of the low Reynolds number inherent to micro scale flows. Passive, zig-zag shaped irrigation nozzles have the potential to induce three- dimensional rotating flow structures around sharp corners, which enhance 3D flows in the channel and thereby reduce clogging. The aim of this study is to identify and characterize such vortices using a Stereoscopic MicroPIV system.