Numerical Simulation of Fluid Flow and Oil-Water Separation in Hydrocyclones

The fluid flow and oil-water separation were simulated using a Reynolds stress transport equation model of turbulence in water flow and a stochastic model of oil droplet motion. Simulation results give the axial and tangential velocity components, the pressure and turbulence intensity distribution and droplet trajectories for a hydrocyclone of F type and a hydrocyclone proposed by the present authors. The flow field predictions are in qualitative agreement with the LDV measurements. The results show that the proposed hydrocyclone has better performance than the hydrocyclone of F type due to creating stronger centrifugal force and lower axial velocity.

Vortex mechanism in hydrocyclones

On the basis of analyzing the vortex characteristics, a new mechanism of the vortex formation in hydrocyclones is developed. The main concept of the mechanism is that the vortex flow in a hydrocyclone is resulted from the overlapping of container rotation and hole leakage. The model is then used to explain the compound distribution of free vortex and forced vortex, predict the similarity of tangential velocity at different input pressures, and make count of the principle of small hydrocyclone with lower cut size than large one. Meanwhile a new possible approach to a large hydro cyclone with lower cut size by minimizing or eliminating the air core is discussed briefly.

Theoretical Predictions of Migration Probabilities of Liquid- Liquid Hydrocyclones Separating Light Dispersions

Based on Bloor & Ingham's approach for determining the fluid fieldand on the analyses of loci of fluid particles inside hydrocyclones,analytical models are developed for calculating the migrationprobability of single-cone and two-cone hydrocyclones separatinglight dispersions. The calculated results are in good agreement withThew's correlation at different flow rate, split ratio or fluidproperties if the structural parameters keep the same as those ofThew's 35 mm hydrocyclone. The difference between predictionsaccording to two-cone model and single-cone model is nearlynegligible, which is very close to thew's original idea that majorseparation happens in the small cone-angle zone.

Numerical investigation of the velocity field and separation efficiency of deoiling hydrocyclones

Three-dimensional simulation of a multiphase flow is performed using the EulerianEulerian finite volume method in order to evaluate the separation efficiency and velocity field of deoiling hydrocyclones.The solution is developed using a mass conservation-based algorithm（MCBA） with collocated grid arrangement.The mixture approach of the Reynolds stress model is also employed in order to capture features of turbulent multiphase swirling flow.The velocity field and separation efficiency of two different configurations of deoiling hydrocyclones are compared with available experimental data.The comparison shows that the separation efficiency can be predicted with high accuracy using computational fluid dynamics.The velocity fields are also in good agreement with available experimental velocity measurements.Special attention is drawn to swirl intensity in deoiling hydrocyclones and it is shown that the differences in velocity and volume fraction fields of different configurations are related to swirl distribution.

A Comparative Study of the Flow Field of High Viscosity Media in Conventional/Rotary Hydrocyclones

The flow fields inside conventional and rotary hydrocyclones were simulated respectively. In these simulations, water only and oil-water mixture, with distinctly different viscosities, were used as continuous phases. Simulation results agreed well with the experimental measurements. Simulation results showed that the conventional hydrocyclone could effectively separate sand from water, but could not separate sand from high viscosity water/oil emulsion. This showed that the viscosity of continuous phases influenced greatly both the separation efficiency and the flow field distribution in the conventional hydrocyclone. For high viscosity oil/water sand dispersion （mixture）, the rotary hydrocyclone has better separation performance than the conventional one, with a more favorable flow field distribution.

Study of Structural Parameters of the Inlet of Downhole Hydrocyclones

Three different inlets of hydrocyclone are studied in combination with the construction of a dowrahole system and hydrocyclone. By comparing the relationship between the inlet structure ＆ dimensional parameter of hydrocyclone and separation efficiency ＆ pressure loss, the highest efficiency is obtained from the inlet of an involute curve with increasing depth-width ratio from the three types, in which the separation efficiency and pressure loss all drops slowly, for the length of the channel decreases, while it drops rapidly in the other two. The flow guiding ability of the inlet affects the separation efficiency greatly, so the corresponding involute type of inlet of hydrocyclone fits for downhole oil-water separation is optimized, which serves as a basis for the structural design of downhole hydrocyclone.

Testing of separating catalyst from resid fluid catalytic cracking slurry by 10 mm hydrocyclones

The paper focuses on removing catalyst solids from oil slurry using 10 mm hydrocyclones, and aims to test the feasibility of the solution. An industrial sidetrack tester of residual oil separation by hydrocyclones was set up in 1.8 Mt/a resid fluid catalytic cracking （RFCC） unit, the effect of pressure drop, separation efficiency and inlet flowrate were studied. It was observed that an increase in feed flowrate will decrease the pressure drop ratio, and with an increase in feed flowrate, separation efficiency increases gradually. Under the condition that feed fiowrate was ranging from 250L/h to 270L/h, the separation efficiency was 45.77%-82.80%, the recovery rate of catalyst solid panicles was increased from 10 20% of electrostatic catalyst separator to 50 80%. Thus, it is feasible to separate the slurry by using the miniature hydrocyclones in RFCC unit.

CFD numerical simulation of flow velocity characteristics of hydrocyclone

A CFD based numerical simulation of flow velocity of hydrocyclone was conducted with different structural and operational parameters to investigate its distribution characteristics and influencing mechanism. The results show there exist several unsymmetrical envelopes of equal vertical velocities in both upward inner flows and downward outer flows in the hydrocyclone, and the cone angle and apex diameter have remarkable influence on the vertical location of the cone bottom of the envelope of zero vertical velocity. It is also found that the tangential velocity isolines exist in the horizontal planes located in the effective separation region of hydrocyclone. The increase of feed pressure has almost no effect on the distribution characteristics of both vertical velocity and tangential velocity in hydrocyclone, but the magnitude and gradient of tangential velocity are increased obviously to make the motion velocity of high density particles to the wall increased and to make the cyclonic separation effect improved.

Numerical and experimental studies of flow field in hydrocyclone with air core

For the flow field in a d50 mm hydrocyclone, numerical studies based on computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation and experimental studies based on particle image velocimetry (PIV) measurement were carried out respectively. The results of two methods show that air core generally forms after 0.7 s, the similar characteristics of air core can be observed. Vortexes and axial velocity distributions obtained by numerical and experimental methods are also in good agreement. Studies of different parameters based on CFD simulation show that tangential velocity distribution inside the hydrocyclone can be regarded as a combined vortex. Axial and tangential velocities increase as the feed rate increases. The enlargement of cone angle and overflow outlet diameter can speed up the overflow discharge rate. The change of underflow outlet diameter has no significant effect on axial and tangential velocities.

Size dependent flow behaviors of particles in hydrocyclone based on multiphase simulation

To investigate the flow behaviors of different size particles in hydrocyclone,a designed process was numerically simulated by the transient solver,where the quartz particles possessing a size distribution were injected into a 100 mm diameter hydrocyclone with the steady water field and air core inside.A lab experimental work has validated the chosen models in simulation by comparing the classification efficiency results.The simulated process shows that the 25 μm quartz particles,close to the cut size,need much more time than the finer and coarser particles to reach the steady flow rate on the outlets of hydrocyclone.For the particles in the inner swirl,with the quartz size increasing from 5 to 25 μm,the particles take more time to enter the vortex finder.The 25 μm quartz particles move outward in the radial direction when they go up to the vortex finder,which is contrary to the quartz particles of 5 μm and 15 μm as they are closely surrounding the air core.The studies reveal that the flow behaviors of particles inside the hydrocyclone depend on the particle size.

Beneficiation of White Kaolinitic Sandstone to Produce Kaolin Concentrate from Wadi Siq-Rakyia Area in Wadi Araba, Jordan

Kaolinitic sandstone samples of Lower Cretaceous from Wadi Siq-Rakyia area in Wadi Araba/south of Jordan were studied and assessed as a source of Kaolin. Three channel samples and a composite bulk sample were studied for their mineralogical, geochemical, and grain size distribution analysis. The aim of this research work was to achieve kaolin concentration by examining the best-suited and cost-effective processing method(s) with appropriate product recovery. Following the initial sample characterisation at “bench scale”, a pilot study was performed on the bulk sandstone sample. Kaolin was accumulated in the fine size fraction (−125 μm) after agitating and wet screening of the sample. The −125 μm size fraction sample was used to produce kaolin concentrate. Hydrocyclone classification was applied in the pilot study for this purpose. The mass flowrate of the feeds and the products in the hydrocyclones was calculated for the bulk sample as well as the amount of water required operating the process. A kaolin-enriched product was produced following the use of hydrocyclones. A kaolin concentrate at a grade of 71% and a recovery of 78% was produced which could be used in the ceramic industry for tableware and sanitaryware.

Effect of inlet configuration on hydrocyclone performance

Inlet configuration is important parameter of hydrocyclones,which has great impact on the classification performance.The effects of inlet configuration on the precise classification were studied by computational fluid dynamics under variouscombinations of inlet diameter and inlet velocity.The results showed that a high sharpness of classification was achieved withspecific inlet diameter and inlet velocity.The separation efficiency of the coarse particles by underflow significantly decreased wheninlet had an oversize diameter owing to a stronger short-circuit flow.It is resulted from the chaotic flow and the stronger pressuregradient around the vortex finder.Meanwhile,a low separation efficiency of the fine particles by overflow was achieved when inletvelocity was high,which indicated a low sharpness caused by the overlarge centrifugal force.

Cyclonic Separation Technology:Researches and Developments

Centered on thetechniques and industrial applications of the reinforced cyclonic separation process, its principles and mechanism for separation ot ions, molecules and their aggregates using polyalsperse aroplets are discussed generally; the characteristics and influential factors of fish-hook phenomenon of the grade efficiency curve in cyclonic separation for both gas and liquid are analyzed; and the influence of shear force on particle be- havior （or that of particle swarm） is also summarized. A novel idea for cyclonic separation is presented here： enhancing the cyclonic seoaration process of ions, molecules and their aggregates with monodisperse microspheres and their surface grafting, rearranging the distribution of particles by size using centrifugal field, reinforcing the cyclonic separation performance with orderly arranged particle swarm. Also the investigation of the shortcut flow, recirculation flow, the asymmetric structure and non-linear characteristics of the cyclonic flow field with a com-bined method of Volumetric 3-component Velocimetry （V3V） and Phase-Doppler Particle Anemometer （PDPA） are elaborated. It is recommended to develop new systems for the separation of heterogeneous phases with cyclonic technology, in accordance with the capture and reuse of CO2, methanol to olefins （MTO） process, coal transfer, andthe exploitation of oil shale.

Numerical analysis of hydroabrasion in a hydrocyclone

The velocity profiles and separation efficiency curves of a hydrocyclone were predicted by an Euler-Euler approach using a computational fluid dynamics tool ANSYS-CFX 14.5. The Euler-Euler approach is capable of considering the particle-particle interactions and is appropriate for highly laden liquid-solid mixtures. Pre- dicted results were compared and validated with experi- mental results and showed a considerably good agreement. An increase in the particle cut size with increasing solid concentration of the inlet mixture flow was observed and discussed. In addition to this, the erosion on hydrocyclone walls constructed from stainless steel 410, eroded by sand particles （mainly SiOz）, was predicted with the Euler-La- grange approach. In this approach, the abrasive solid particles were traced in a Lagrangian reference frame as discrete particles. The increases in the input flow velocity, solid concentration, and the particle size have increased the erosion at the upper part of the cylindrical body of the hydrocyclone, where the tangential inlet flow enters the hydrocyclone. The erosion density in the area between the cylindrical to conical body area, in comparison to other parts of the hydrocyclone, also increased considerably. Moreover, it was observed that an increase in the particle shape factor from 0.1 to 1.0 leads to a decrease of almost 70 % in the average erosion density of the hydrocyclone wall surfaces.

Evaluation of Fractionation of Softwood Pulp in a Cylindrical Hydrocyclone

Pulp fiber length characterization is addressed in this article. It is .suggested that the proposed separation index H（L） is a viable index to the fiber fractionation performance for evaluating hydrocyclones. Fractionation of softwood （coniferous wood） bleached chemithermomechanical pulp （BCTMP） fiber was carried out with a cylindrical hydrocyclone. Pulp fiber length characteristics in different streams were examined using the fiber quality analyzer （FQA）, and the cumulative fiber length fraction, the fiber length fraction density function and the separation index H（L） for different streams were obtained. It is found that H（L） is very useful for characterizing the fiber fractionation performance by indicating the separation capacity of hydrocyclone for individual subgroup of fibers in different streams under different operation conditions. Results of H（L） show that there exists a critical fiber length. A higher proportion of fibers longer than the critical fiber length is in the overflow stream, and a higher proportion of fibers shorter than the critical fiber length in the undertow stream. The data obtained from FQA suggest that the split ratio is the most significant parameter for fiber fractionation performance, which is the best when the split ratio is in the range between 0.14 and 0.2. The effect of feed rate on fiber fractionation performance is weak.

Development of separation sharpness model for hydrocyclone

Hydrocyclones are mechanical devices used in classifying and separating many different types of materials.A classification function of the hydrocyclone has been continually developed for solid–liquid separation.In the classification process of solids from liquids,it is desirable to reduce the amount of misplaced material;therefore,the separation sharpness,α(alpha),is a parameter that helps in evaluating misplaced material and has been developed as a model to help the designer predict the performance of the classification.However,the problem with the separation sharpness model is that it cannot be used outside the range of conditions under which it was developed.Therefore,this research aimed to develop the separation sharpness model to predict more accurately and cover a wide range of conditions using the multiple linear regression method.The new regression model of separation sharpness was based on a wide range of both experimental and industrial data-sets of 431 tests collaborating with the additional experiments of 117 tests that were obtained from a total of 548 tests.The new model of separation sharpness can be used in the range of 30–762 mm hydrocyclone body diameters and feed solid concentrations in the range of 0.5 wt%–80 wt%.When compared with the experimental separation sharpness,the accuracy of the separation sharpness model prediction has an error of 4.53%and^of 0.973.

Evaluation of Fractionation of Softwood Pulp in a Cylindrical Hydrocyclone

Pulp fiber length characterization is addressed in this article. It is suggested that the proposed separation index H(L) is a viable index to the fiber fractionation performance for evaluating hydrocyclones. Fractionation of softwood (coniferous wood) bleached chemithermomechanical pulp (BCTMP) fiber was carried out with a cylin- drical hydrocyclone. Pulp fiber length characteristics in different streams were examined using the fiber quality analyzer (FQA), and the cumulative fiber length fraction, the fiber length fraction density function and the separa- tion index H(L) for different streams were obtained. It is found that H(L) is very useful for characterizing the fiber fractionation performance by indicating the separation capacity of hydrocyclone for individual subgroup of fibers in different streams under different operation conditions. Results of H(L) show that there exists a critical fiber length. A higher proportion of fibers longer than the critical fiber length is in the overflow stream, and a higher proportion of fibers shorter than the critical fiber length in the underflow stream. The data obtained from FQA suggest that the split ratio is the most significant parameter for fiber fractionation performance, which is the best when the split ratio is in the range between 0.14 and 0.2. The effect of feed rate on fiber fractionation performance is weak.

Oil–water pre-separation with a novel axial hydrocyclone

A novel hydrocyclone with guide vanes, named as axial hydrocyclone(AHC), is designed to tackle the problem of oil–water separation faced by most mature oilfields. Optimal design of the AHC is carried out by using numerical methods. The effects of guide vanes, cone angle, tapered angle and overflow pipe on the oil–water separation are discussed in this paper. The results show that a double swirling flow is generated in the tapered section where oil–water separation occurs. Both the cylindrical and the tapered section have important influences on AHC performance. On the basis of single factor results, response surface methodology is employed to optimize the AHC design. The experimental results indicate that the novel AHC has an excellent performance for the oil–water separation.

CFD simulation of an industrial hydrocyclone with Eulerian-Eulerian approach: A case study

In the present study, a three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics simulation together with experimental field measurements was applied to optimize the performance of an industrial hydrocyclone at Sarcheshmeh copper complex. In the simulation, the Eulerian–Eulerian approach was used for solid and liquid phases, the latter being water. In this approach, nine continuous phases were considered for the solid particles with different sizes and one continuous phase for water. The continuity and momentum equations with inclusion of buoyancy and drag forces were solved by the finite volume method. The k–e RNG turbulence model was used for modeling of turbulency. There was a good agreement between the simulation results and the experimental data. After validation of the model accuracy, the effect of inlet solid percentage, pulp inlet velocity, rod inserting in the middle of the hydrocyclone and apex diameter on hydrocyclone performance was investigated. The results showed that by decreasing the inlet solid percentage and increasing the pulp inlet velocity, the efficiency of hydrocyclone increased. Decreasing the apex diameter caused an increase in the hydrocyclone efficiency.

Influences of top clearance and liquid throughput on the performances of an external loop airlift slurry reactor integrated mixing and separation

A new developed external loop airlift slurry reactor, which was integrated with gas–liquid–solid three-phase mixing, mass transfer, and liquid–solid separation simultaneously, was deemed to be a promising slurry reactor due to its prominent advantages such as achieving continuous separation of clear liquid from slurry and cyclic utilization of solid particles without any extra energy, energy-saving, and intrinsic safety design. The principal operating parameters, including gas separator volume, handling capacity, and superficial gas velocity, are systematically investigated here to promote the capabilities of mixing, mass transfer, and yield in the pilot external loop airlift slurry reactor. The influences of top clearance and throughput of the clear liquid on flow regime and gas holdup in the riser, liquid circulating velocity, and volumetric mass transfer coefficient with a typical high solid holdup and free of particles are examined experimentally. It was found that increasing the gas separator volume could promote the liquid circulating velocity by about 14.0% at most. Increasing the handling capacity of the clear liquid from 0.9 m3·h-1 to 3.0 m3·h-1 not only could increase the output without any adverse consequences, but also could enhance the liquid circulating velocity as much as 97.3%. Typical operating conditions investigated here can provide some necessary data and guidelines for this new external loop airlift slurry reactor to upgrade its performances.