Background and Project Overview
Atomization is a chemical engineering unit operation, which disintegrates a continuous liquid into a dispersed system of drops within a spray. Common atomizers for disintegration of liquids are producing droplet spectra to be characterized by:
- droplet size distribution,
- droplet size/velocity correlation and
- local and overall concentration and mass flux distribution.
These major describing parameters of a droplet spray are mainly influenced by relevant parameters such as:
- the atomizer design and working principle,
- fluid material properties and
- mass flow rates.
Within an existing atomization process, manipulation of the spray properties and droplet spectra often only is possible by means of changing the energy input into the atomizer, which simultaneously alters several of the relevant spray parameters with a minimum degree of control. This research project aims to analyse the influence of solid particles on the droplet characteristics in the liquid atomization with suspended particles and to develop atomizer strategies and design technical equipment in order to produce controlled droplet characteristics within a wide range of applications. Various model suspensions based on water, water/glycerol and/or water/Non-Newtonian fluid mixtures with particles will be atomized by means of twin-fluid atomizer, rotary atomizer and pressure jet nozzle. The influence of particle characteristics and loading of particles on the liquid jet and liquid film disintegration are analysed.