Numerical studies of three-phase gas-liquid-liquid multiphase system

Direct numerical simulation (DNS) is used to examine the dynamics of a three-phase gas-liquid-liquid multiphase system. The simulation is done in a three-dimensional system with a fully periodic domain. The system is developed into a statistically steady state, which consists of a continuous liquid phase, buoyant gas bubbles and smaller heavy drops. The Reynolds numbers of the bubbles and the drops are moderate. The effect of bubble deformability is examined by changing its surface tension, while the drops stay nearly spherical. We compared the results of one bubble in a "unit cell" and eight freely interacting bubbles in a larger cell. The distribution of drops around one bubble in a "unit cell" is uneven and depends on the bubble deformability, but the distribution of drops around freely interacting bubbles is relatively uniform for selected parameters. We also examined the dependency of the slip velocities and the velocity fluctuations on the drop volume fraction and bubble deformability.