Pressure determination in a T-shape micro-channel

• Main Author: Teo, Andrew Mou Chuan.
• Other Authors: School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2012
• Subjects: DRNTU::Engineering
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/49535
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

The main objective of this project is to investigate the pressure distribution in a micro-channel. To carry out the investigation, an experimental setup is designed to facilitate the pressure measurement and the visualization of the flow. The geometry used for the investigation is a T-shaped micro channel, with water flowing in the main channel and air in the perpendicular arm of the channel which is enclosed. In the experiment the pressure of interest is the pressure required to form a bubble at the T-junction. The bubble is formed by increasing the flow rate of the water. The bubble formation process is recorded for observation and measurement. The pressure in the gas channel was found to be decreasing with the increasing flow rate. The size of the bubble formed was also approximated with a model with measurement of the air pressure and the flow rate of the water. The flow visualization experiment was also done to observe the bubble forming process and to take measurement of the size of the bubble form. The size of the bubbles formed was found to be decreasing with increasing flow rate. The bubble size measured did not follow the prediction of the model. For future work, higher flow rate can be used for observation of the formation of the bubbles. The channel geometry can also be changed to a rectangular one. The use of surfactant with water may also be of interest in the bubble forming process.