A detailed numerical investigation of two-phase flows inside a planar flow-blurring atomizer

Abstract

Flow-blurring atomization is an innovative twin-fluid atomization approach that has demonstrated superior effectiveness in producing fine sprays compared to traditional airblast atomization methods. In flow-blurring atomizers, the high-speed gas flow is directed perpendicular to the liquid jet. Under specific geometric and physical conditions, the gas penetrates back into the liquid nozzle, resulting in a highly unsteady bubbly two-phase mixing zone. Despite the remarkable atomization performance of flow-blurring atomizers, the underlying dynamics of the two-phase flows and breakup mechanisms within the liquid nozzle remain poorly understood, primarily due to the challenges in experimental measurements of flow details. In this study, detailed interface-resolved numerical simulations are conducted to investigate the two-phase flows generated by a planar flow-blurring atomizer. By varying key dimensionless parameters, including the dynamic-pressure ratio, density ratio, and Weber number, over wide ranges, we aim to comprehensively characterize their effects on the two-phase flow regimes and breakup dynamics.