Stereoscopic measurements of liquid film flims on textured inclined plates

• Applicant: Professor Dr.-Ing. Jens-Uwe Repke
• Subject Area: Chemical and Thermal Process Engineering
• Term: from 2012 to 2018
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 215245028

In this renewal proposal the influence of micro and macro structures on the fluid dynamics of liquid film flow will be investigated. Such liquid film flow is applied in a wide range of energy- and chemical engineering processes. e.g. distillation processes, where the liquid flows downwards on micro and macro structured surfaces with a countercurrent gas phase.Compared to a smooth liquid film the liquid side mass transport of a wavy interface is enhanced. The application of micro structured surfaces causes further mass transfer intensification due to the induction of velocity components perpendicular to the main flow component. This promotes the mixing of the wall near region of the liquid. These interactions occur on industrial used structured packings by the liquid flow over the macro structures in different local inclination angels of the packing, resulting in a complex fluid dynamics that are crucial for the success of the separation internals used in a column.This relationship should be investigated systematically in detail within the framework of this renewal proposal. Therefore experimental investigations will be carried out using the measurement technique developed in the first funding period. In a first step, the open packing channel with planar macro structures should be fluid dynamically characterized, and in a further step the influence of micro structures on the macro structures to the liquid flow should be examined in more detail. In additional working packages, these investigations should also be carried out for the closed packing channel to get fundamental knowledge about the fluid dynamic influence of micro and macro structures to liquid film flow.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants