Neutron imaging calibration to measure void fraction.

Void fraction is an intuitive parameter that describes the fraction of vapor in a two-phase flow. It appears as a key variable in most heat transfer and pressure drop correlations used to design evaporating and condensing heat exchangers, as well as determining charge inventory in refrigeration systems. Void fraction measurement is not straightforward, however, and assumptions on the invasiveness of the measuring technique must be made. Neutron radiography or neutron imaging has the potential to be a truly non-invasive void fraction measuring technique but has until recently only offered qualitative descriptions of two-phase flow, in terms of flow maldistributions, for example. This paper describes the calibration approach necessary to employ neutron imaging to measure steady-state void fraction. Experiments were conducted at the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) Cold Guide 1D neutron imaging facility at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN, USA.