Numerical calculation of velocity distribution near a vertical flat plate immersed in bubble flow

Liquid and gas velocity distributions for bubble flow near a vertical flat plate were calculated numerically by using the SIMPLER method, where the flow was assumed to be laminar, two-dimensional, and at steady state. The two-fluid flow model was used in the numerical analysis. To calculate the drag force on a small bubble, Stokes' law for a rigid sphere is applicable. The dimensionless velocity distributions which were arranged with characteristic boundary layer thickness and maximum liquid velocity were adjusted with a single line and their forms were similar to that for single-phase wall-jet flow. The average wall shear stress derived from the velocity gradient at the plate wall was strongly affected by bubble diameter but not by inlet liquid velocity. The present dimensionless velocity distributions obtained numerically agreed well with previous experimental results, and the proposed numerical algorithm was validated. (author)