Performance assessment of an inline horizontal swirl tube cyclone for gas-liquid separation at high pressure

The application of swirl tube cyclone for gas-liquid separation is attractive due to its small size and weight. However, very scarce information on the performance of the swirl tube cyclone especially at high operating pressure emulating actual field condition was published in journals. Performance assessment was usually done at a low operating pressure using either air-water, air-fine particle mixtures or dense gas such as SF6 . This paper fills the existing gaps and reports the initial findings on the performance assessment of a horizontal swirl tube cyclone for gas-liquid separation operating at a flow rate of 5 MMSCFD at 40-60 bar operating pressure.

Experimental Research on Enhanced Cyclone Separation of Acoustic Agglomerated Particles

To test the particles solidity and to verify the separating efficiency at normal atmospheric temperature, the experimental research was made on the enhanced cyclone separation of acoustic agglomerated fly ash particles. The separating efficiency has increased by 3%-4% in a sound field with 150 dB pressure level compared with that obtained without acoustic wave processing. The enhanced cyclone separation test study for acoustic agglomerated particles has provided a technical basis for pressurized fluid bed combustion(PFBC) application.

Performance analysis of gas-liquid cylindrical cyclone (GLCC) separator with an inclined and perforated wall

As primary separators in pressurized water reactors (PWRs), cyclone separators separate most of the water from vapor-water two-phase mixture, which is important to the safety and economics of nuclear power plants. To improve the performance of cyclone separators, we tested new structures in this study, e.g. porosity and inclined angle of the separator wall. Under different structures, separation efficiency and pressure drop were studied theoretically and experimentally. Results show that each of the structural parameters has an effect on separator performance, but none of the trends is monotonically in experimental ranges. Besides separator structures, the comprehensive performance is also determined by flow patterns. From segregated to homogeneous flow, the separation ability decreases. The separation efficiency is about 5% higher at 20° inclined angle when the superficial velocities are 0.012 and 16 m·s-1 for the liquid and gas, respectively. The separation efficiency is only 91% without an impeller, while it is up to 100% at the same superficial velocities of air and water, 16 and 0.015 m·s-1 , respectively. Based on the study, it is promising to understand deeply the separation mechanism and further to provide data for designing large-scaled separators for advanced pressurized water reactors.

STUDY ON THE CHARACTERISTICS OF AGGLOMERATION AND CYCLONE SEPARATION OF DIESEL PARTICULATE

A particulate separation system that can be used to study the characteristics of the diesel particulate agglomeration and cyclone separation is developed It includes a diesel particulate agglomerator and a cyclone separator mainly A preliminary investigation on the cyclone separation tech nology for controlling the exhaust particulate from a diesel engine is conducted The experimental results show that the diameter distribution of the diesel particulate is changed after they pass through the agglomerator,almost 30%～40% o f the particulate agglomerated from less than 1.0μm to larger than 1.0μm ,this change contributes to trap diesel particulate With this system installed on the exhaust pipe of a single cylinder engine,the particulate separation efficiency is around 40%～60% under typical engine running condition The back pressure of this system is less than 5 kPa on full load condition,much less than that of other methods of particulate filtration This technology has the possibility to open a new prospect for particulate reduction because of its simplicity,reliability and low resistance.

Improving advantages and reducing risks in increasing cyclone height via an apex cone to grasp vortex end

For a cyclone, it is possible to improve separation efficiency and reduce pressure drop by increasing the cyclone height. However, an exceeded height increase could result in a dramatical drop in separation efficiency. In this study, experimental and computational fluid dynamics simulation results exhibit that the introduction of an apex cone at the dust outlet could avoid the risk of separation efficiency drop but lead to a continuous reducing of the pressure drop. Generally, the optimal cyclone height should be closely related to the natural vortex length. While, when the vortex end contracts into the separation space in the cyclone with an exceeded height, severe back-mixing of particles always occurs, which will result in the decrease of separation efficiency. Herein, it is found that when an apex cone is installed at the dust outlet, the vortex end can be grasped by the cone so as to weaken the back-mixing of particles.Meanwhile, the introduction of this apex cone can enhance the secondary separation to capture the back-mixed particles again so as to protect the efficiency. In addition, it is found that the enhanced secondary separation could come from either the stagnant current of axial velocity in the center or the improved tangential velocity of inner vortex whereas the forcibly extending the length of vortex to exceed its natural length will not significantly increase efficiency.

Numerical Simulation of Particle Concentration in a Gas Cyclone Separator

The particle concentration inside a cyclone separator at different operation parameters was simulated with the FLUENT software. The Advanced Reynolds Stress Model （ARSM） was used in gas phase turbulence modeling. Stochastic Particle Tracking Model （SPTM） and the Particle-Source-In-Cell （PSIC） method were adopted for particles computing. The interaction between particles and the gas phase was also taken into account. The numerical simulation results were in agreement with the experimental data. The simulation revealed that an unsteady spiral dust strand appeared near the cyclone wall and a non-axi-symmetrical dust ring appeared in the annular space and under the cover plate of the cyclone. There were two regions in the radial particle concentration distribution, in which particle concentration was low in the inner region （r/R≤0.75） and increased greatly in the outer region （r/R〉0.75）. Large particles generally had higher concentration in the near-wall region and small particles had higher concentration in the inner swirling flow region. The axial distribution of particle concentration in the inner swirling flow （r/R≤0.3） region showed that there existed serious fine particle entrainment within the height of 0.SD above the dust discharge port and a short-cut flow at a distance of about 0.25D below the entrance of the vortex finder. The dimensionless concentration in the high-concentration region increased obviously in the upper part of the cyclone separation space when inlet particle loading was large. With increasing gas temperature, the particle separation ability of the cyclone was obviously weakened.

Visualization of the Precessing Vortex Core in a Cyclone Separator by PIV

The precessing vortex core (PVC) in a cyclone separator plays an important role in the separation performance and in further understanding of the general law of periodic unsteady flow therein. In this paper, the unsteady flow field is investigated with particle image velocimetry (PIV), and the instantaneous velocity, vorticity, tangential velocity, and radial velocity are acquired by analyzing the images of instantaneous flow. It is for the first time reported that there is a centrifugal flow region close to the dust discharge zone and its maximum value is higher than the mean radial velocity. This discovery is very important for understanding the principle of separation of particles in the area of dust discharge. Determination of the frequency and amplitude of PVC was conducted in the region where the phenomenon of PVC is remarkable. Results agree well with those obtained by hot wire anemometry. The observations of the center of vortex core and the bimodal distribution of the amplitude of the PVC indicate the vortex core precesses around the geometric axis of the cyclone in its own way.

Cyclonic separation process intensification oil removal based on microbubble flotation

The cyclonic-static microbubble flotation column has dual effects including the cyclonic separation and floatation separation with the characteristics of the small lower limit of the effective separation size, short separation time, large handling capacity, and low operation cost. It shows significant advantages in the oily wastewater treatment field, especially the polymer flooding oily wastewater treatment aspect. In this paper, the cyclonic separation function mechanism of the cyclonic-static microbubble flotation column was studied, the impact of the parameters including the feeding rate, aeration rate, circulating pressure, and underflow split ratio on the cyclonic separation efficiency was investigated, and the cyclonic separation efficiency model was established as well. In addition, by applying the Doppler Laser Velocimeter (LDV) and Fluent simulation software, the test and simulation to the single-phase flow velocity field of the cyclonic separation section of the cyclonic-static microbubble flotation column were carried out, and the velocity distribution rule of the cyclonic separation section was analyzed under the singlephase flow conditions.

Particle Residence Time in Column Flotation Based on Cyclonic Separation

The cyclonic static micro-bubble column flotation (FCSMC) is an effective separation device for fine particle treatment. The high mineralization rate and short flotation time of this equipment can be attributed to its unique cyclonic force field. It also has been observed that the presence of a cyclonic force field leads to a lower bottom separation size limit and a reduction of unselective entrainment. The collection zone of the column is considered to consist of two parts,a column separation zone and a cyclonic zone. Total recovery of the collection zone was developed. For our study,we analyzed the particle movement in the cyclonic zone. Particle residence time equations for the cyclonic zone were de-rived by force analysis. Results obtained in this study provide a theoretical foundation for the design and scale-up of the FCSMC.

Research on High-Efficiency Cyclone Separators and Their Optimum Design

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Effect of inlet area on the performance of a two-stage cyclone separator

The cyclone separator is an important separation device.This paper presents a new type of embedded two-stage cyclone,which includes a 2 nd-stage cyclone(internal traditional cyclone)with multiple inlets and a 1 st-stage cyclone(outer cylinder)that unifies the 2 nd-stage cyclone inlets into one inlet.The Taguchi experimental method was used to study the two-stage cyclone separator’s inlet area on its performance.Studies have shown that the increase of the 1 st-stage cyclone inlet area and the increase in the number of 2 nd-stage cyclone inlets(N)positively affect reducing the pressure drop and a negative effect on efficiency.It is recommended to use 2 S(the original 1 st-stage cyclone inlet area)of the 1 st-stage cyclone inlet area and 2 N of the 2 nd-stage cyclone inlets when separating fine particles.Compared with a traditional cyclone,the pressure drop is reduced by 1303 Pa,the mass separation efficiency(Eq)is increased by 0.56%,and the number separation efficiency(En)is increased by 2.05%.When separating larger particles,it is recommended to use 2 S of the 1 st-stage cyclone inlet area and 4 N of the 2 nd-stage cyclone inlets.Compared with a traditional cyclone,although Endecreases slightly,the pressure drop is reduced by 3055 Pa,and the Eqis increased by 0.56%.The research results provide new insight into the design of the cyclone.

Evaluation of gas-liquid separation performance of natural gas filters

Fibrous filters are often used to remove contaminants including both dusts and liquid droplets from natural gas. This paper aims to evaluate the gas-liquid separation performance of three types of cartridge filters used in the West-East natural gas transmission project. The comparison of the original pressure drop of clean filters and the evolution of pressure drop as liquid droplets deposited in the filter media are described. The original pressure drops of these filters were similar but the pressure drops at a steady state were different. Fractional efficiency was used to study the separation performance of cartridge filters. Droplets at the outlet of the filters had small diameters, no more than 3 μm, but were very numerous. The effect of filtration velocity on gas-liquid separation performance was analyzed. Higher filtration velocity indicated better gas-liquid separation performance. Finally the quality factor related to pressure drop and filtration efficiency was applied to evaluate the gas-liquid separation performance.

Analysis of the nutation and precession of the vortex core and the influence of operating parameters in a cyclone separator

Vortices motion in the anisotropic turbulent flow of cyclones makes a vital impact on flow stability and collection performance.Nevertheless,there remains a lack of clarity in the overall feature of vortices motion.In this work,a numerical analysis was conducted to clarify the complex motion of the vortex core in a cyclone separator.The validity of the numerical model was demonstrated by comparing the computational results with experimental data in the literature.As revealed by the results,the vortex core not only has a precession motion about the geometrical center axis but also does a nutation motion in the axial direction.The frequencies of the precession motions show two main peaks.And the magnitudes of the precession and nutation motions have non-uniform distributions in the cyclone.Moreover,the precession-nutation motions of the vortex cores exhibit a similar fluctuant pattern to the dust ring on the separator wall.The inlet gas velocity and the inlet solid loading show vital effects on the magnitudes and frequencies of precession and nutation motion.

A new technique of combining accretion by cyclone separator and scattertube for tailings dams

A new technique of combining accretion by cyclone separator and scattertube for tailings dams was developed according to laboratory experiment, model experiment and spot experiment technology. Three tailings dams were successfully constructed by the new technique. The results of engineering geological exploration, static and dynamic test and stability analysis on Baizhishan tailings dams prove that the new technique improves structure and stability of the dams and working conditions compared with the traditional technique. The thin layers of fine-grained soils are greatly reduced, fine tailings sand is solid to make the dam stable and seepage conditions are well improved; the immersing line of the dam descends. In addition, the stability and liquefaction resistance of tailings dams are strengthened remarkably. The interior stress is compressive stress, stress level of every element is less than 1.0 and safety coefficient of every element is greater than 1.0. The safety coefficient against liquefaction of every element of tailings dams is greater than 1.5 according to the analysis of seismic response by finite element method.

Numerical analysis on the influence of vortex motion in a reverse Stairmand cyclone separator by using LES model

This study aims to analyze the influence of vortex motion in a reverse Stairmand cyclone separator by using LES model.The mathematical analysis indicated that the energy dissipation and the flow characteristics of incompressible fluid are directly related to on the vortex motion.The results of the Q criterion-based iso-vortex surface could well reflect the tendency of the vortex structure,in which the iso-vortex surface exhibited a distorted distribution rather than around the center axis.At the turning point of velocity vector,vortices were formed and developed,and the point was the center of the local vortex core.In addition,the vortex formed an irregular annular region around the wall at the bottom of vortex finder.The vortex structure near the dust hopper presented a strong distortion.Moreover,there were two rotating flow in the opposite direction within the dust hopper.These phenomena would affect the separation performance,which was significance to cyclone separator.

Parameter matching and experiment of the combined cyclone separation and cylinder sieve cleaning system for rape combine harvester

Existing rape combine harvester with a cyclone separation cleaning device has the challenge that the loss rate and the cleaning rate increase and decrease simultaneously.A cleaning process route was proposed,which involves the cyclone separation cleaning device removing light and tiny impurities,and the cylinder sieve device removing coarse and long impurities such as pod shells and short stems.A novel cleaning system combining the cyclone separation cleaning device and cylinder sieve cleaning devices was designed.The ranges of the structure and operation parameters for each component were analyzed based on kinematics and dynamic analysis.A four-factor five-level quadratic orthogonal test was carried out,in which the loss rate and cleaning rate were taken as the evaluation indexes.The velocity at the suction port,the rotation speed of the cylinder sieve,the screw pitch of the spiral blade and the diameter of the sieve hole were taken as the influencing factors.The orthogonal test results showed that the cleaning system performed best at a rotation speed of the winnower is 600 r/min,an airflow velocity at the suction port is 18.25 m/s,a rotation speed of the cylinder sieve is 87 r/min,a screw pitch of the spiral blade is 440 mm and a diameter of the sieve hole is 4.48 mm.At this time,the loss rate of the cleaning system is 3.22%,and the cleaning rate is 95.67%.Compared to the conventional cyclone separation cleaning device,the loss rate is reduced by 2.17%and the cleaning rate is increased by 1.05%.This study can provide a reference for the optimal cleaning system design for rape combine harvesters.

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.

Effects of the inlet particle spatial distribution on the performance of a gas-solid cyclone separator

The present study was aimed at the inlet particle spatial distribution of a gas-solid separator with high solid loading and investigated its effects on cyclone performance and the inner flow pattern.The flow fields of a cyclone with different rectangular particle flow areas on the inlet surface were numerically simulated using a four-way coupling method.The simulated results indicate that reducing the inlet particle flow area and lowing the inlet particle position can effectively reduce the scattered particles inside the cyclone separator and enhance the separation performance.Vertically gathering the particles to the centerline can also weaken the particle back-mixing.The particles near the roof account for the swirling particle ceiling phenomenon.The inlet particle spatial distribution affects the pressure drop mainly by affecting the gas tangential velocity in the cylinder body.Moreover,compared to the hori-zontal particle distribution on the inlet surface,the vertical particle distribution has greater effects on cyclone performance.

Performance of Inner-core Supersonic Gas Separation Device with Droplet Enlargement Method

To improve the separation performance of a supersonic gas separation device for the treatment of gas mixture with a single heavy component, a novel structure with shorter settlement distance was constructed and a method of droplet enlargement was applied. A series of experiments were carried out in the improved separation device under various conditions, using air-ethanol vapor as the medium and micro water droplets as nucleation cen- ters. The effects of the inlet pressure, temperature and relative humidity, the swirling intensity, and mass flow rate of water on the separation performance were investigated. The separation was improved by increasing the inlet pressure and relative humidity. With the decrease of swirling intensity and mass flow rate of water, the separation efficiency increased first and then decreased. The inlet temperature had a slight effect on the separation. The results showed that the separation performance was effectively improved using the proposed structure and method, and the best separation in this study was obtained with the ethanol removal rate about 55% and dew point depression 27 K. The addition of water had little pollution to the air-ethanol vapor system since the water carry-over rate was within the range of -2 %-0 in most cases.

Characterization of multiphase gas–solid flow and accuracy of turbulence models for lower stage cyclones used in suspension preheaters

This study involved the analysis and characterization of the multiphase flow phenomenon inside the lower stage cyclone separator used in the clinker burning process.The analysis was performed using both CFD and experimental research methods.Very few studies are devoted to such types of cyclone separators,which in addition to their basic functions are also responsible for the technological process.Due to the atypical working conditions of these cyclone separators,they are characterized with a complex geometry,which significantly differs from that of the traditional separators.Furthermore,the evaluation of the accuracy and level of reliability of the two models of turbulence closure—k-e RNG and RSM(RANS),and the LES.The results obtained led to the conclusion that for the lower stage cyclone separators,the LES model proved to be the most accurate(both in the case of forecasting the separation efficiency and pressure drop).The performance parameter(in particular the separation efficiency)values obtained for the RSM model were also characterized by high accuracy.The k-e RNG model was characterized by significantly larger deviations.