Article révisé par les pairs
Résumé : We report on numerical and experimental study of two-phase flows in a tall annulus. The geometry corresponds to a cylindrical liquid column co-axially placed into an outer cylinder with solid walls. The internal column consists of solid supports at the bottom and top, while the central part is a liquid zone filled with viscous liquid and kept in its position by surface tension. Gas enters into the annular duct and entrains initially quiescent liquid. The liquid bridge interface is deformed by gravity and by a co-axial gas flow which is co- and counter directed with respect to gravity. A new experimental set-up including an optical system for precise measurements of the interface displacement has been designed and developed. In the experiments silicone oil 5cSt was used as a test liquid and air as gas. On numerical side the dynamical response of an isothermal liquid bridge to a coaxial gas flow is examined by simulations of the NavierStokes equations. The attention is focused on the following points: time-dependent formation of the equilibrium shape of a liquid bridge in gravity conditions and its deformation by a gas flow, simulation of a flow pattern in a liquid/gas system with deformed free surface. The comparison of the numerical and experimental results for the interface deformation exhibits a satisfactory agreement. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.