liquid jet injection and impingement (LiqJet)

abstract

The aim of this experiment is to conduct a systematic investigation of the generation and dispersion of droplets in liquid jets and the impingement of jets in microgravity conditions. An experimental setup previously tested at the Laboratory of Microgravity of the Technical University of Catalonia-BarcelonaTech and at the INTA drop tower will be used. Liquid jets will be injected through two nozzles into the test cell. Different regimes of injection will be obtained by varying the liquid flow rate in the nozzles. Information on the jet shape, droplet positions and velocities will be obtained from the videos recorded with a high-speed camera.

The liquid jet breakup and the dynamics of droplets are expected to be very different in microgravity with respect to on-ground tests. We expect to observe different phenomena, from droplets attached to the nozzle at low liquid flow rates to a cylindrical jet atomizing into droplets at larger flow rates. From a certain value of the flow rate, the jet impingement will generate a liquid sheet.

A set of drops is requested to analyze the different expected regimes. The results obtained will allow us to gain further understanding in liquid injection, jet breakup, droplet coalescence and jet impingement in microgravity. This knowledge will be applicable to propulsion systems since jet impinging injectors are commonly used in micro-thrusters.

experiment year: 2013
number of drops: 22