Influence of soluble particles on the heterogeneous coalescence nucleation and separation process in a supersonic cyclone separator

Supersonic cyclone dehydration is a clean and efficient gas-liquid separation technology, and a comprehensive and systematic understanding on the gas-liquid flow patterns is the basis for improving separation performance. In this study, an improved mathematical model combining the condensation deposition mechanism and surface diffusion rate mechanism of water vapor was developed to achieve the coupling of turbulence and condensation. The flow field and heterogeneous condensation process were analyzed using the proposed model, and the separation performance of the separator was evaluated. The injection of NaCl particles promoted the heterogeneous condensation process and increased the formation rate of condensation nuclei, thereby enhancing the separation efficiency of the separator. The difference between the numerical and experimental results for separation efficiency was only 2.35%, indicating that the proposed heterogeneous condensation model can accurately predict and analyze the separation in the heterogeneous condensation process in the separator.