Electromagnetic flow rate meter

A liquid metal, whose flow rate is to be determined, is directed through a chamber made of electrically-insulating material on which there is impressed a magnetic field perpendicular to the direction of flow of the liquid metal. The magnetic field is made to increase in strength in a downstream direction of the flow of liquid metal. At least a pair of electrodes are disposed in the chamber traversely and perpendicular to the direction of flow and an ammeter is connected between the electrodes. Electrodes may be disposed in the top or the bottom of the chamber and each may be segmented. Oppositely disposed electrodes may be used with at least one dividing wall extending from each electrode to cause reversal of the direction of flow of the liquid metal. The magnetic field may be provided by electromagnets or permanent magnets such as shaded pole permanent magnets

Increasing granular flow rate with obstructions

We describe a simple experiment involving spheres rolling down an inclined plane towards a bottleneck and through a gap. Results of the experiment indicate that flow rate can be increased by placing an obstruction at optimal positions near the bottleneck. We use the experiment to develop a computer simulation using the PhysX physics engine. Simulations confirm the experimental results and we state several considerations necessary to obtain a model that agrees well with experiment. We demonstrate that the model exhibits clogging, intermittent and continuous flow, and that it can be used as a tool for further investigations in granular flow.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figure

Strain Mode of General Flow: Characterization and Implications for Flow Pattern Structures

Understanding the mixing capability of mixing devices based on their geometric shape is an important issue both for predicting mixing processes and for designing new mixers. The flow patterns in mixers are directly connected with the modes of the local strain rate, which is generally a combination of elongational flow and planar shear flow. We develop a measure to characterize the modes of the strain rate for general flow occurring in mixers. The spatial distribution of the volumetric strain rate (or non-planar strain rate) in connection with the flow pattern plays an essential role in understanding distributive mixing. With our measure, flows with different types of screw elements in a twin-screw extruder are numerically analyzed. The difference in flow pattern structure between conveying screws and kneading disks is successfully characterized by the distribution of the volumetric strain rate. The results suggest that the distribution of the strain rate mode offers an essential and convenient way for characterization of the relation between flow pattern structure and the mixer geometry

High pressure flow-rate switch

Flow-rate switch adjusts easily over a wide switching range and operates uniformly over many cycles. It adapts easily to control of various fluids and has the possibility of introducing multi-point switching. Novel design features include the tapered spool, balanced porting, capillary-bypass lubrication, and capillary-restriction damping

Two-dimensional flows of foam: drag exerted on circular obstacles and dissipation

A Stokes experiment for foams is proposed. It consists in a two-dimensional flow of a foam, confined between a water subphase and a top plate, around a fixed circular obstacle. We present systematic measurements of the drag exerted by the flowing foam on the obstacle, \emph{versus} various separately controlled parameters: flow rate, bubble volume, solution viscosity, obstacle size and boundary conditions. We separate the drag into two contributions, an elastic one (yield drag) at vanishing flow rate, and a fluid one (viscous coefficient) increasing with flow rate. We quantify the influence of each control parameter on the drag. The results exhibit in particular a power-law dependence of the drag as a function of the solution viscosity and the flow rate with two different exponents. Moreover, we show that the drag decreases with bubble size, increases with obstacle size, and that the effect of boundary conditions is small. Measurements of the streamwise pressure gradient, associated to the dissipation along the flow of foam, are also presented: they show no dependence on the presence of an obstacle, and pressure gradient depends on flow rate, bubble volume and solution viscosity with three independent power laws.Comment: 23 pages, 13 figures, proceeding of Eufoam 2004 conferenc

Self-averaging property of queuing systems

We establish the averaging property for a queuing process with one server, M(t)/GI/1. It is a new relation between the output flow rate and the input flow rate, crucial in the study of the Poisson Hypothesis. Its implications include the statement that the output flow always possesses more regularity than the input flow.Comment: 18 pages, one typo remove

Flow transitions in two-dimensional foams

For sufficiently slow rates of strain, flowing foam can exhibit inhomogeneous flows. The nature of these flows is an area of active study in both two-dimensional model foams and three dimensional foam. Recent work in three-dimensional foam has identified three distinct regimes of flow [S. Rodts, J. C. Baudez, and P. Coussot, Europhys. Lett. {\bf 69}, 636 (2005)]. Two of these regimes are identified with continuum behavior (full flow and shear-banding), and the third regime is identified as a discrete regime exhibiting extreme localization. In this paper, the discrete regime is studied in more detail using a model two dimensional foam: a bubble raft. We characterize the behavior of the bubble raft subjected to a constant rate of strain as a function of time, system size, and applied rate of strain. We observe localized flow that is consistent with the coexistence of a power-law fluid with rigid body rotation. As a function of applied rate of strain, there is a transition from a continuum description of the flow to discrete flow when the thickness of the flow region is approximately 10 bubbles. This occurs at an applied rotation rate of approximately $0.07 {\rm s^{-1}}$

Optimal mixing enhancement

We introduce a general-purpose method for optimising the mixing rate of advective fluid flows. An existing velocity field is perturbed in a $C^1$ neighborhood to maximize the mixing rate for flows generated by velocity fields in this neighborhood. Our numerical approach is based on the infinitesimal generator of the flow and is solved by standard linear programming methods. The perturbed flow may be easily constrained to preserve the same steady state distribution as the original flow, and various natural geometric constraints can also be simply applied. The same technique can also be used to optimize the mixing rate of advection-diffusion flow models by manipulating the drift term in a small neighborhood

Clustering of matter in waves and currents

The growth rate of small-scale density inhomogeneities (the entropy production rate) is given by the sum of the Lyapunov exponents in a random flow. We derive an analytic formula for the rate in a flow of weakly interacting waves and show that in most cases it is zero up to the fourth order in the wave amplitude. We then derive an analytic formula for the rate in a flow of potential waves and solenoidal currents. Estimates of the rate and the fractal dimension of the density distribution show that the interplay between waves and currents is a realistic mechanism for providing patchiness of pollutant distribution on the ocean surface.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figur