Droplet breakup criterion in airfoils leading edge vicinity

Abstract

A new breakup criterion is proposed in this paper for droplets subject to the flowfield generated by an incoming airfoil (that is, the criterion should be applied only to this type of aerodynamics flow). This criterion is based on the study of the characteristic times involved in the problem. These are the characteristic external flowfield variation time and the characteristic droplet deformation time. The criterion takes the shape of an empirical correlation that relates the Weber number at the onset of the breakup to the external flowfield and droplet characteristics. Experimental data on the droplet deformation and breakup tests conducted in a rotating arm facility are used to generate the data used to develop the correlation. Droplets, with diameters in the range of 0.3–3.6 mm, are allowed to fall in the path of an incoming airfoil attached to the end of a rotating arm. Airfoil velocities vary between 50 and 90 m∕s. The airfoil leading-edge radius varies from 0.030 to 0.103 m. Experiments are recorded with a high-speed camera using the shadowgraph illumination technique. The empirical breakup correlation applies to droplets that break in the bag and stamen mode. Some additional limited data on droplets that break in the bag and the shear mode are analyzed to see how they fit into the correlation.