Enhanced Numerical Simulation Study of Accelerated Demulsification in Dilute Emulsions under Pulsed Electric Field Control

Wu, Y.; Wang, H.; Zhang, X.

doi:10.47176/jafm.18.5.3054

Enhanced Numerical Simulation Study of Accelerated Demulsification in Dilute Emulsions under Pulsed Electric Field Control

Document Type : Regular Article

Authors

Key Laboratory of Engineering Mathematics and Advanced Computing of Nanchang Institute of Technology, School of Sciences, Nanchang Institute of Technology, Nanchang 330099, People’s Republic of China

10.47176/jafm.18.5.3054

Abstract

This study simulates the dynamic evolution of demulsification in emulsions under various electric field parameters, using a multicomponent lattice Boltzmann color model that integrates pulsed electric and flow fields. The degree of aggregation of dispersed-phase droplets is quantitatively analyzed using the area-to-circumference ratio. Results of numerical simulation demonstrate the demulsification behavior of dilute emulsions under three types of pulsed electric fields: direct current (DC) pulsed electric field, unidirectional triangular pulsed electric field, and bidirectional triangular pulsed electric field. Findings indicate the occurrence of electrophoretic and oscillatory coalescence in dilute emulsions under pulsed electric fields. The improved bidirectional triangular pulsed electric field shows enhanced efficiency relative to that of either the DC pulsed or the unidirectional triangular pulsed electric field. Moreover, the enhanced bidirectional triangular pulsed electric field effectively demulsifies oil-in-water dilute emulsions and prevents oil droplets disintegration under high-voltage across different component ratios.

Keywords

Main Subjects

Computational Fluid Dynamics

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