Abstract
As the economical and environmental damages due to the accidental oil-spills in marine environment increase gradually, more active countermeasure needs to be developed. In this respect, in the present study, we propose a new design of oil-water separation system and investigate the effects of several geometrical features on the oil-recovery rate, based on a two-dimensional numerical simulation. The working mechanism of current separator is to utilize the density difference between the oil and water, which is strengthened by adding momentum to the oil-water mixture flow through a “U-shaped” passage. Along the flow passage, we locate additional parts such as baffle plate, weir plate, and water outlet. While optimizing the conditions of these to maximize the oil recovery, it is found that the formation and stable retention of water layer between the water outlet and weir plate is critical to separate and store the above-layered oil. Finally, these findings are further confirmed with a basic experimental test with a three-dimensional oil-water separator model.
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Linfeng Piao received his B.S. from Chonnam National University in 2013, and his M.S. from Seoul National University in 2015. He is currently working toward his Ph.D. at the Multiphase Flow & Flow Visualization laboratory, Department of the Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering, Seoul National University. His current research areas are oil-water separation and multiphase flow.
Nayoung Kim received her B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Yonsei University, Korea, in 2013. She is currently working on toward her Ph.D. at the Multiphase Flow & Flow Visualization laboratory, Department of the Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering, Seoul National University. Her current research areas are oil-water separation and multiphase flow.
Hyungmin Park obtained his B.S. and Ph.D. degrees at the Department of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering, Seoul National University, Korea, in 2000 and 2010, respectively. Dr. Park is currently an Associate Professor at the Department of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering, Seoul National University. His research interests include multiphase flow, flow control with superhydrophobic surfaces, and fluid-structure interaction.
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Piao, L., Kim, N. & Park, H. Effects of geometrical parameters of an oil-water separator on the oil-recovery rate. J Mech Sci Technol 31, 2829–2837 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12206-017-0526-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12206-017-0526-1