Characterization of Flashing Jet Aerosols With a Phase-doppler Anemometer

Abstract

A phase-Doppler anemometer (PDA) was used successfully to measure aerosol size distribution and velocity in high-pressure, high-temperature flashing jets discharging from a nozzle simulating a hypothetical break in the reactor heat-transport system. The basic operating principles of the PDA and the thermodynamics of flashing jets are discussed. The measurements indicate that the velocity decreased, and the smaller aerosols prevailed, as the jet diverged away from the break. The larger aerosols had the tendency to settle below the lower half of the jet axis due to gravitational agglomeration and settling. Higher operating pressures upstream of the break produced higher jet velocity as well as larger aerosols.