Physical modelling and scale effects of air-water flows on stepped spillways

During the last three decades, the introduction of new construction materials (e.g. RCC (Roller Compacted Concrete), strengthened gabions) has increased the interest for stepped channels and spillways. However stepped chute hydraulics is not simple, because of different flow regimes and importantly because of very-strong interactions between entrained air and turbu- lence. In this study, new air-water flow measurements were conducted in two large-size stepped chute facilities with two step heights in each facility to study experimental distortion caused by scale effects and the soundness of result extrapolation to pro- totypes. Experimental data included distributions of air concentration, air-water flow velocity, bubble frequency, bubble chord length and air-water flow turbulence intensity. For a Froude similitude, the results implied that scale effects were observed in both facilities, although the geometric scaling ratio was only Lr=2 in each case. The selection of the criterion for scale effects is a critical issue. For example, major differences (i.e. scale effects) were observed in terms of bubble chord sizes and turbulence levels al- though little scale effects were seen in terms of void fraction and velocity distributions. Overall the findings emphasize that physical modelling of stepped chutes based upon a Froude similitude is more sensitive to scale effects than classical smooth-invert chute studies, and this is consistent with basic dimensional analysis developed herein.

AN EXPERIMENTAL STUDY ON TURBULENT COHERENT STRUCTURES NEAR A SHEARED AIR-WATER INTERFACE

The turbulence structures near a sheared air-water interface were experimentally investigated with the hydrogen bubble visualization technique. Surface shear was imposed by an airflow over the water flow which was kept free from surface waves. Results show that the wind shear has the main influence on coherent structures under air-water interfaces. Low- and high- speed streaks form in the region close to the interface as a result of the imposed shear stress. When a certain airflow velocity is reached, “turbulent spots” appear randomly at low-speed streaks with some characteristics of hairpin vortices. At even higher shear rates, the flow near the interface is dominated primarily by intermittent bursting events. The coherent structures observed near sheared air-water interfaces show qualitative similarities with those occurring in near-wall turbulence. However, a few distinctive phenomena were also observed, including the fluctuating thickness of the instantaneous boundary layer and vertical vortices in bursting processes, which appear to be associated with the characteristics of air-water interfaces.

SOME CHARACTERISTICS OF LOW-SPEED STREAKS UNDER SHEARED AIR-WATER INTERFACES

The characteristics of low-speed fluid streaks occurring under sheared air-water interfaces were examined by means of hydrogen bubble visualization technique. A critical shear condition under which the streaky structure first appears was determined to be u(tau) approximate to 0.19 cm/s. The mean spanwise streak spacing increases with distance from the water surface owing to merging and bursting processes, and a linear relationship describing variation of non-dimensional spacing <(<lambda>+)over bar> versus y(+) was found essentially independent of shear stress on the interface. Values of <(<lambda>+)over bar>, however, are remarkably smaller than their counterparts in the near-wall region of turbulent boundary layers. Though low-speed streaks occur randomly in time and space, the streak spacing exhibits a lognormal probability distribution behavior. A tentative explanation concerning the formation of streaky structure is suggested, and the fact that <(<lambda>+)over bar> takes rather smaller values than that in wall turbulence is briefly discussed.

Numerical Investigation of Transmission of Low Frequency Sound Through a Smooth Air-water Interface

It is the traditional belief that sound transmission from water to the air is very weak due to a large contrast between air and water impedances. Recently, the enhanced sound transmission and anomalous transparency of air-water interface have been introduced. Anomalous transparency of air-water interface states that the sound generated by a submerged shallow depth monopole point source localized at depths less than 1/10 sound wavelength, can be transmitted into the air with omni-directional pattern. The generated sound has 35 times higher power compared to the classical ray theory prediction. In this paper, sound transmission through air-water interface for a localized underwater shallow depth source is examined. To accomplish this, two-phase coupled Helmholtz wave equations in two-phase media of air-water are solved by the commercial finite element based COMSOL Multiphysics software. Ratios of pressure amplitudes of different sound sources in two different underwater and air coordinates are computed and analyzed against non-dimensional ratio of the source depth （D） to the sound wavelength （λ）. The obtained results are compared with the experimental data and good agreement is displayed.

Carbon dioxide partial pressure and carbon fluxes of air-water interface in Taihu Lake, China

To obtain carbon dioxide （CO2） flux between water-air interface of Taihu lake, monthly water samplers at 14 sites and the local meteorological data of the lake were collected and analyzed in 1998. Carbon dioxide partial pressures （pCO2） at air-water interface in the lake were calculated using alkalinity, pH, ionic strength, active coefficient, and water temperature. The carbon fluxes at different sublakes and areas were estimated by concentration gradient between water and air in consideration of Schmidt numbers of 600 and daily mean windspeed at 10 m above water surface. The results indicated that the mean values of pCO2 in Wuli Lake,Meiliang Bay, hydrophyte area, west littoral zone, riverine mouths, and the open lake areas were 1 807.8±1 071.4（mean±standard deviation）μatm （latm=1.013 25×10^5pa）, 416.3±217.0μatm, 576.5±758.8μatm, 304.2±9.43.5μatm, 1 933.6±1 144.7 μatm, and 448.5±202.6μatm, respectively. Maximum and minimum pCO2 values were found in the hypertrophic （4 053.7μatm） and the eutrophic （3.2 μatm） areas. The riverine mouth areas have the maximum fluxes （82.0±62.8 mmol/m^2a）. But there was no significant difference between eutrophic and mesotrophic areas in pCO2 and the flux of CO2. The hydrophyte area, however, has the minimum （--0.58±12.9mmol/m^2a）. In respect to CO2 equilibrium, input of the rivers will obviously influence inorganic carbon distribution in the riverine estuary. For example, the annual mean CO2 flux in Zhihugang River estuary was 19 times of that in Meiliang Bay, although the former is only a part of the latter. The sites in the body of the lake show a clear seasonal cycle with pCO2 higher than atmospheric equilibrium in winter, and much lower than atmospheric in summer due to CO2 consumption by photosynthesis. The CO2 amount of the net annual evasion that enters the atmosphere is 28.42×10^4 t/a, of which those from the west littoral zone and the open lake account for 53.8% and 36.7%, respectively.

A COUPLING THREE DIMENSIONAL BAROCLINIC MODEL OF BIWA LAKE AIR-WATER SYSTEM

A numerical model coupling atmosphere with hydrodynamics is set up in this paper, and is applied in the experimental study of Lake Biwa. Some results are obtained as : (1) whatever (SSW) in sunimer or (NNW) in winer, there exists a positive wind-stress curl over a lake; (2) in summer the positive wind-stress curi plays an important role to form circulation in a lake and produces a special temperature field corresponding to circulation, lower in the deep water, higher in the shallow water; (3) in summer, the hypothesis of initial horizontal inhomogeneous water temperature has little effiect on the results of simulation, and (4) in winter,there is no obvious circulation formed in the lake.

Characteristics of air-water flow in an emptying tank under different conditions

This paper experimentally studied the features of air-water flow during the emptying of a water-filled prismatic tank with a bottom orifice under different conditions.The experiments were conducted with both circular and elliptical orifices,with and without ventilation.The evolution of bubbles,water pressure variation,and water level change with time were recorded in the experiments and analyzed.Based on the results,the evolution of bubbles could be mainly divided into three stages of formation,deformation,and decomposition.Ventilation was found important to the emptying process,with which the drainage efficiency was much higher than that under the unventilated condition.Additionally,under the unventilated condition,the drainage efficiency with the circular orifice was slightly higher than that with the elliptical orifice.

PREPARATION OF PERFLUOROOCTANOYL-MODIFIED POLY(VINYL-ALCOHOL)S AND THEIR ADSORPTION AT AN AIR-WATER INTERFACE

Perfluorooctanoyl modified poly(vinyl alcohol)s (FPVA) were prepared by means of substituting a small amount of hydroxyl groups on the backbone of poly(vinyl alcohol), for which the initial degree of polymerization is equal to 1750. The substitution extent, defined by the number of substituting units in a chain, for the four FPVA samples was in the range of 0.5-5 perfluorooctanoyl groups per chain. The FPVA samples with the highest substitution extent still had good solubility in water. It was shown by experimental measurement at 30.0 +/- 0.1 degreesC that the surface tension of the aqueous solution of the highest substituted FPVA decreased to 16.6 mN/m at a higher concentration, e.g. about 0.1 g/mL. Obviously, macromolecules of FPVA exhibit a very strong tendency to adsorb at the air-water interface, because the hydrophobic perfluorooctanoyl groups in FPVA have a very high surface activity as they are in small molecular fluorinated surfactants. The chain conformation of such a model polymer adsorbed on the air-water interface was also discussed.

KINETIC STUDY ON PHOTOISOMERIZATION OF AN AZO-CONTAINING POLYMER AT THE AIR-WATER INTERFACE USING A IANGMUIR TROUGH

Photoisomerization of a new polymer: monoesters of polymaleic acid containing naphthalene-azo-anthraquinone groups in side chains at the air-water interface of a Langmuir trough wan detected by recording the development of surface pressure with time. This process wan found to be a first-order reaction and complete within several minutes.

Forces Acting on Submillimeter Spheres at the Air-Water Interface

The forces acting on submillimeter spheres at the air-water interface are investigated theoretically and experimentally. To calculate the capillary force acting on the sphere, an iterative method is used to determine the immersing position of the liquid interface on the sphere for a given distance. Then the total forces acting on the sphere are considered. The scaling effects of the net force acting on the sphere at the air-water interface are demonstrated. For the experiments, the force-position relationship of microspheres is measured with a precise electronic balance. The results show that the evaporation of the liquid in the container affects the measuring results greatly under ambient conditions. After considering the evaporation compensation, there is a great agree- ment between the theoretical and experimental results. Obvious hysteresis phenomena of the force-distance curve during the emersion processes are also observed and explained.

Tuning Polymer-Grafted Particle Monolayer Structure at the Air-Water Interface by Introducing Anisotropic Features

Fabrication of anisotropic material is one of the important topics and we examined to introduce “anisotropic” nature by spreading polymer-grafted particle on the medium with polymer-reactive potential. Poly (tert-butyl methacrylate) (PtBMA) was polymerized from polystyrene latex (PSL) surface by ATRP to give PtBMA-grafted PSL (PSL-PtBMA). Particle monolayer was formed at air-water and air-acidic water interfaces and the monolayer characteristics were compared by π-A isotherm measurements, SEM observations, and contact angle measurements. π-A isotherms, in particular, indicates that the interaction between polymer chains become stronger by changing the subphase condition, which suggests that anisotropicparticle monolayer formation.

Multiple evaluations of atmospheric behavior between Criegee intermediates and HCHO: Gas-phase and air-water interface reaction

Given the high abundance of water in the atmosphere,the reaction of Criegee intermediates(CIs)with(H_(2)O)_(2) is considered to be the predominant removal pathway for CIs.However,recent experimental findings reported that the reactions of CIs with organic acids and carbonyls are faster than expected.At the same time,the interface behavior between CIs and carbonyls has not been reported so far.Here,the gas-phase and air-water interface behavior between Criegee intermediates and HCHO were explored by adopting high-level quantum chemical calculations and Born-Oppenheimer molecular dynamics(BOMD)simulations.Quantum chemical calculations evidence that the gas-phase reactions of CIs+HCHO are submerged energy or low energy barriers processes.The rate ratios speculate that the HCHO could be not only a significant tropospheric scavenger of CIs,but also an inhibitor in the oxidizing ability of CIs on SO_(x) in dry and highly polluted areas with abundant HCHO concentration.The reactions of CH_(2)OO with HCHO at the droplet’s surface follow a loop structure mechanism to produce i)SOZ(■),ii)BHMP(HOCH_(2)OOCH_(2)OH),and iii)HMHP(HOCH_(2)OOH).Considering the harsh reaction conditions between CIs and HCHO at the interface(i.e.,the two molecules must be sufficiently close to each other),the hydration of CIs is still their main atmospheric loss pathway.These results could help us get a better interpretation of the underlying CIs-aldehydes chemical processes in the global polluted urban atmospheres.

Numerical simulation of air-water two-phase flow over stepped spillways

Stepped spillways for significant energy dissipation along the chute have gained interest; popularity among researchers; dam engineers. Due to the complexity of air-water two-phase flow over stepped spillways, the finite volume computational fluid dynamics module of the FLUENT software was used to simulate the main characteristics of the flow. Adopting the RNG k- turbulence model, the mixture flow model for air-water two-phase flow was used to simulate the flow field over stepped spillway with the PISO arithmetic technique. The numerical result successfully reproduced the complex flow over a stepped spillway of an experiment case, including the interaction between entrained air bubbles; cavity recirculation in the skimming flow regime, velocity distribution; the pressure profiles on the step surface as well. The result is helpful for understanding the detailed information about energy dissipation over stepped spillways.

Application of a novel backwashing process in upflow biological aerated filter

To improve the efficiency of backwashing in upflow biological aerated filter （BAF）, a novel backwashing process named air-water siphon backwashing （AWSB） was proposed and applied on laboratory scale. The effects of backwashing on turbidity and suspended solid （SS） in backwashing efluent using this new backwashing process were compared with those of traditional backwashing process, namely air-water backwashing （AWB）. In AWB, the turbidity of backwashing efluent maintained 100 NUT when consumed 60 min and 10.5 L water. However, in AWSB, it declined to 44 NUT, consumed 40 min, and 7 L water. The COD removal of BAF after backwashing was also analyzed. The average removal rate of COD in the reactor backwashed by AWB and AWSB was 89.34% and 90.91%, respectively. Compared with AWB, the backwashing interval had been prolonged 35%. The volume of backwashing water in that AWSB was only 66.7% of that in AWB. The results demonstrated that AWSB required less water and took shorter backwashing timerelative to AWB to achieve the same turbidity of backwashing efluent, and AWSB was more effective in removing fouling than that of AWB. More significant advantage of AWSB was that the backwashing interval was effectively prolonged

Direct numerical simulation of low Reynolds number turbulent air-water transport in fuel cell flow channel

With performance improvement of low-temperature fuel cell(FC), high reactant supply and water generation rates may induce air-water turbulence in the FC flow channel. In this research, an air-water turbulent direct numerical simulation(DNS) model is developed to simulate different droplet sizes,locations and interactions in the air-water transport processes comprehensively. It is found that a larger droplet breaks up more easily in turbulence, and a smaller droplet tends to keep lumped. The droplet at corner does not break up because it is away from channel center. The droplet interaction simulations show that the small droplets merge to form slugs, but still keep lumped in turbulence. It is suggested that two conditions need to be satisfied for droplet break up in FC flow channel, one is turbulent flow, and another is that the droplet needs to be large enough and occupy the center region of flow channel to suffer sufficient turbulence fluctuations. The DNS results illustrate some unique phenomena in turbulent flow, and show that the turbulence has significant effect on the air-water flow behavior in FC flow channel.

Preliminary study of an open-air water-contacting discharge for direct nitrogen fixation

Efficient nitrogen fixation through a reactive plasma process attracts intense interest due to the environmental issues induced by the conventional Haber–Bosch method. In this work, we present a direct and simple fixation routine without any catalysts for nitrogen in open air using an atmospheric-pressure pin-to-solution plasma electrolytic system. Nitrate, nitrite, and ammonia as the nitrogen-derived chemicals in solution were analyzed as indicators under various discharge conditions to estimate the energy efficiency of this process. The results show that the nitrogen fixation process was much more efficient by the pin-positive discharge compared to the negative one. N chemicals preferred to be formed when the solution was of negative polarity. It was also found that, with the help of solution circulation, the energy efficiency was enhanced compared to that of static liquid. However, an inverse trend was observed with the increase of the discharge current. Further study by optical emission spectroscopy indicates the important roles of active N2* and water vapour and their derived species near the plasma–water interface in the fixation process.

Numerical interpretation of transient permeability test in tight rock

Pulse-decay method has been widely used to estimate the fluid transport properties of low-permeability geomaterials. In this context, radial flow transient pulse test is conducted to measure the water permeability of Cobourg limestone hollow cylinder. The proposed method applies hydraulic pulses to the sealed central cavity and then the cavity pressure dissipates as the fluid migrates into the saturated rock matrix. The influence of entrapped air bubbles within the pressurized cavity is crucial to interpreting permeability from transient pulse test. The modeling results indicate that the air inclusions can significantly increase the fluid compressibility and thus delay the hydraulic pulse decay process, which may lead to the underestimation of the rock permeability.

On the Development of a Model for the Prediction of Liquid Loading in Gas Wells with an Inclined Section

The ability to predict liquid loading in horizontal gas wells is of great importance for determining the time of drainage and optimizing the related production technology.In the present work,we describe the outcomes of experiments conducted using air-water mixtures in a horizontal well.The results show that the configuration with an inclined section is the most susceptible to liquid loading.Laboratory experiments in an inclined pipe were also conducted to analyze the variation of the critical gas flow rate under different angles,pressure and liquid volume(taking the equal liquid volume at inlet and outlet as the criterion for judging on the critical state).According to these results,the related angle of the inclined section ranges from 45°to 60°.Finally,a modified approach based on the Belfroid model has been used to predict the critical gas flow rate for the inclined section.After comparison with field data,this modified model shows an accuracy of 96%,indicating that it has better performances with respect to other models used in the past to predict liquid loading.

Orienting the future of bio-macromolecular electron microscopy

With 40 years of development, bio-macromolecule cryo-electron microscopy（cryo-EM） has completed its revolution in terms of resolution and currently plays a highly important role in structural biology study. According to different specimen states, cryo-EM involves three specific techniques： single-particle analysis（SPA）, electron tomography and subtomogram averaging, and electron diffraction. None of these three techniques have realized their full potential for solving the structures of bio-macromolecules and therefore need additional development. In this review, the current existing bottlenecks of cryo-EM SPA are discussed with theoretical analysis, which include the air–water interface during specimen cryo-vitrification, bio-macromolecular conformational heterogeneity, focus gradient within thick specimens, and electron radiation damage. Furthermore, potential solutions of these bottlenecks worthy of further investigation are proposed and discussed.

The Application of the Ground Source and Air-to-Water Heat Pumps in Cold Climate Areas

This article gives an overview of using the ground source heat pump (GSHP) and air-to-water heat pump (A&WHP) in cold climate areas for heating and for domestic hot water production of buildings. Computer simulation and analysis were carried out for a typical detached house, with 200 m2 of living area, the heat demand of 9 kW and the average heat demand for DHW production of 1 kW. In heating period the average Coefficient of Performance (COP) of the A&WHP is considerably lower than COP of the GSHP.