Control of the flow of microbubbles in seawater using electromagnetic fields

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26630456
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Naval and maritime engineering
• Research Institution: Kobe University
• Principal Investigator: Umeda Tamiki 神戸大学, 海事科学研究科, 准教授 (90243336)
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: 海水浄化 / マイクロバブル / 電気分解 / ローレンツ力 / 数値シミュレーション

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Microbubbles are bubbles smaller than about 50 micrometers in diameter. They have attracted attention in recent years due to promising applications in seawater treatment devices. To investigate the possibility of using electromagnetic fields for controlling the flow of microbubbles in seawater, we performed experiments of seawater electrolysis under a magnetic field to analyze the behaviors of seawater and the bubbles generated at the electrodes, and carried out numerical simulations using a multi-ion transport model and a gas-liquid two-phase flow model. The results show that the Lorentz body force distorts the convection flow of seawater and floating bubbles, and that seawater and bubbles receive different magnitude of the Lorentz body force, which affects the flow of bubbles in the seawater. However, the latter effect may not be so large for small-sized bubbles.

Free Research Field

物理学