Development of Coalescence and Capture Kernels for the Electrocoalescence Process Based on Batch Experiments

An experimental and theoretical study was performed to analyze the evolution of droplet
size distribution and phase separation in water-in-oil emulsions under
the effect of the electric field in a batch vessel. The effects of
electrostatic time, initial water content, and electric potential
on the efficiency of separation were studied in the experiments. Moreover,
a mathematical model based on population, mass, and momentum balance
equations for dispersed, oil, and free phases was developed to interpret
the experimental data. A coalescence kernel was proposed to predict
the aggregation of droplets. Furthermore, a capture term was added
to the balance equations to address the creation of free water. The
parameters of the coalescence and capture models were estimated using
the experimental data. The estimation of the parameters was done using
parallel execution of the particle swarm optimization algorithm. The
results of the simulation showed a decent performance of the model
in predicting the profiles of water content inside the vessel.