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.