FIELD-FLOW

In Section 3.3.1, an example of flow fields was shown. We consider a flow v at r given as 

for instance. In the example in Section 3.3.1, the flow field was a shear flow in the x direction (Fig. 3.38a). Then, = k is the only nonzero element in k  

It is convenient to express [17] in terms of the shear stress. In the shear flow, the shear stress changes from o-y = rj K for the pure solvent to Tyy + Aa-y = r]K for the solution of concentration c (c c ). Then, from Eq. 3.97, 

When Actj, , is calculated up to the linear term of k, this equation gives K-independ-ent intrinsic viscosity. The latter is called a zero-shear viscosity. 

Another flow field often used in theories and experiments is an elongational flow (Fig. 3.38b). Its k is given by 

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In dilute solutions, tire dependence of tire diffusion coefficient on tire molecular weight is different from tliat found in melts, eitlier entangled or not. This difference is due to tire presence of hydrodynamic interactions among tire solvent molecules. Such interactions arise from tire necessity to transfer solvent molecules from tire front to tire back of a moving particle. The motion of tire solvent gives rise to a flow field which couples all molecules over a... 

Two-dimensional models can be used to provide effective approximations in the modelling of polymer processes if the flow field variations in the remaining (third) direction are small. In particular, in axisymraetric domains it may be possible to ignore the circumferential variations of the field unlaiowns and analytically integrate the flow equations in that direction to reduce the numerical model to a two-dimensional form. 

The first finite element schemes for differential viscoelastic models that yielded numerically stable results for non-zero Weissenberg numbers appeared less than two decades ago. These schemes were later improved and shown that for some benchmark viscoelastic problems, such as flow through a two-dimensional section with an abrupt contraction (usually a width reduction of four to one), they can generate simulations that were qualitatively comparable with the experimental evidence. A notable example was the coupled scheme developed by Marchal and Crochet (1987) for the solution of Maxwell and Oldroyd constitutive equations. To achieve stability they used element subdivision for the stress approximations and applied inconsistent streamline upwinding to the stress terms in the discretized equations. In another attempt, Luo and Tanner (1989) developed a typical decoupled scheme that started with the solution of the constitutive equation for a fixed-flow field (e.g. obtained by initially assuming non-elastic fluid behaviour). The extra stress found at this step was subsequently inserted into the equation of motion as a pseudo-body force and the flow field was updated. These authors also used inconsistent streamline upwinding to maintain the stability of the scheme. 

The theoretical description of a non-isothermal viscoelastic flow presents a conceptual difficulty. To give a brief explanation of this problem we note that in a non-isothennal flow field the evolution of stresses will be affected by the... 

Consider the position of a material point in a flow field described by the following position vector... 

The distance covered by a fluid particle in this flow field in a time interval of -- t can be found by integrating Equation (3.78) as... 

A domain that can be safely assumed to represent the entire flow field is selected and discretized into a fixed mesh of finite elements. The part of this domain that is filled by fluid is called the current mesh. Nodes within the current mesh... 

Step 4 - it is initially assumed that the flow field in the entire domain is incompressible and using the initial and boundary conditions the corresponding flow equations are solved to obtain the velocity and pressure distributions. Values of the material parameters at different regions of the domain are found via Equation (3.70) using the pseudo-density method described in Chapter 3, Section 5.1. 

In Chapter 4 the development of axisymmetric models in which the radial and axial components of flow field variables remain constant in the circumferential direction is discussed. In situations where deviation from such a perfect symmetry is small it may still be possible to decouple components of the equation of motion and analyse the flow regime as a combination of one- and two-dimensional systems. To provide an illustrative example for this type of approximation, in this section we consider the modelling of the flow field inside a cone-and-plate viscometer. 

Figure 5.17 The predicted secondary flow field in the bi-conical viscometer...

Let us consider the flow in a narrow gap between two large flat plates, as shown in Figure 5.19, where L is a characteristic length in the a and y directions and h is the characteristic gap height so that /z < L. It is reasonable to assume that in this flow field il c iq, Vy. Tlierefore for an incompressible Newtonian fluid with a constant viscosity of q, components of the equation of motion are reduced (Middleman, 1977), as... 

Atomization. A gas or Hquid may be dispersed into another Hquid by the action of shearing or turbulent impact forces that are present in the flow field. The steady-state drop si2e represents a balance between the fluid forces tending to dismpt the drop and the forces of interfacial tension tending to oppose distortion and breakup. When the flow field is laminar the abiHty to disperse is strongly affected by the ratio of viscosities of the two phases. Dispersion, in the sense of droplet formation, does not occur when the viscosity of the dispersed phase significantly exceeds that of the dispersing medium (13). 

One-equation models relax the assumption that production and dissipation of turbulence are equal at all points of the flow field. Some effects of the upstream turbulence are incorporated by introducing a transport equation for the turbulence kinetic energy k (20) given by... 

In practice, the loss term AF is usually not deterrnined by detailed examination of the flow field. Instead, the momentum and mass balances are employed to determine the pressure and velocity changes these are substituted into the mechanical energy equation and AFis deterrnined by difference. Eor the sudden expansion of a turbulent fluid depicted in Eigure 21b, which deflvers no work to the surroundings, appHcation of equations 49, 60, and 68 yields... 

C. Characteristically, these nematic melts show the persistence of orientational order under the influence of elongational flow fields which result in low melt viscosities under typical fiber formation conditions even at high molecular weights. 

Molecules of nematic Hquid crystals also are aligned in flow fields which results in a viscosity that is lower than that of the isotropic Hquid the rod-shaped molecules easily stream past one another when oriented. Flow may be impeded if an electric or magnetic field is appHed to counter the flow orientation the viscosity then becomes an anisotropic property. 

Macromixing is estabflshed by the mean convective flow pattern. The flow is divided into different circulation loops or zones created by the mean flow field. The material is exchanged between zones, increasing homogeneity. Micromixing, on the other hand, occurs by turbulent diffusion. Each circulation zone is further divided into a series of back-mixed or plug flow cells between which complete intermingling of molecules takes place. 

Because of the complexity of designs and performance characteristics, it is difficult to select the optimum atomizer for a given appHcation. The best approach is to consult and work with atomizer manufacturers. Their technical staffs are familiar with diverse appHcations and can provide valuable assistance. However, they will usually require the foUowing information properties of the Hquid to be atomized, eg, density, viscosity, and surface tension operating conditions, such as flow rate, pressure, and temperature range required mean droplet size and size distribution desired spray pattern spray angle requirement ambient environment flow field velocity requirements dimensional restrictions flow rate tolerance material to be used for atomizer constmction cost and safety considerations. 

Experimental techniques to visualize flows have been extensively used to define fluid flow in pipes and air flow over lift and control surface of airplanes. More recently this technology has been appHed to the coating process and it is now possible to visualize the flow patterns (16,17). The dimensions of the flow field are small, and the flow patterns both along the flow and inside the flow are important. Specialized techniques such as utilizing small hydrogen bubbles, dye injection, and optional sectioning, are required to visualize these flows. 

Turbulent flame speed, unlike laminar flame speed, is dependent on the flow field and on both the mean and turbulence characteristics of the flow, which can in turn depend on the experimental configuration. Nonstationary spherical turbulent flames, generated through a grid, have flame speeds of the order of or less than the laminar flame speed. This turbulent flame speed tends to increase proportionally to the intensity of the turbulence. 

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