This paper examines drop size distributions in a 0.063 m pipe for a two-pha
se mixture of kerosene and aqueous potassium carbonate solution. Measuremen
ts have been made for both vertical upflow and horizontal geometries, for m
ixture velocities ranging from 0.8 to 3.1 m/s.
Two optical measurement techniques, a backscatter technique using a Par-Tec
300C and a diffraction technique using a Malvern 2600, have been used to o
btain the drop size distributions of the dispersions created. Both measurem
ent techniques have been found to be limited to different concentration ran
ges. Stratification of drop size was observed for low mixture velocities in
a horizontal geometry. This did not occur for the vertical geometry.
The drop distributions obtained were found to fit an upper limit log-normal
distribution (ULLN). The theory of Hinze has been found to agree well with
experimentally determined values of maximum drop diameter at low dispersed
phase concentrations. At high concentrations, neither Hinze theory, nor a
modified version proposed previously, adequately describe the data obtained
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