Primary Breakup of Turbulent Round Liquid Jets in Uniform Crossflows

An experimental investigation of the deformation and breakup properties of turbulent round liquid jets in uniform gaseous crossflows is described. Pulsed shadowgraph and holograph observations were obtained for turbulent round liquid jets injected normal to air crossflow in a shock tube. Crossflow velocities of the air behind the shock wave relative to the liquid jet were subsonic (36-90 m/s) and the air in this region was at normal temperature and pressure. Liquid injection was done by a pressure feed system through round tubes having inside diameters of 1 and 2 mm and length-to-diameter ratios greater than 100 to provide fully developed turbulent pipe flow at the jet exit. Test conditions were as follows: water and ethyl alcohol as test liquids, crossflow Weber numbers based on gas properties of 0-282, streamwise Weber numbers based on liquid properties of 1400-32,200, liquid/gas density ratios of 683 and 845, and jet exit Reynolds numbers based on liquid properties of 7100-48,200, all at conditions in which direct effects of liquid viscosity were small (Ohnesorge numbers were less than 0.12). Measurements were carried out to determine conditions required for the onset of breakup, ligament and drop sizes along the liquid surface, drop velocities after breakup, liquid column breakup as whole, rates of turbulent primary breakup, and liquid column trajectories. Phenomenological theories proved to be quite successful in interpreting and correlating the measurements. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]