Transcripción del resumen del autor: Droplet formation in oil/water flow through a centrifugal pump has been studied, experimentally and theoretically, for the first time. Droplet-size distribution at the pump outlet has been measured for water-continuous flow as a function of pump speed, mixture-flow rate, and water cut. The measured droplet-size distribution strongly depends on the pump speed: the higher the pump speed, the smaller the droplet size. Negligible effects of mixture flow rate, water cut, and inlet droplet-size distribution have been observed. Turbulent breakup has been identified as the main mechanism for droplet formation. A mechanistic model is developed for the prediction of droplet-size distribution in a centrifugal pump, showing a fair agreement with the acquired experimental data.

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