Investigation on Liquid Holdup in Vertical Zero Net-Liquid Flow

Zero net-liquid flow (ZNLF) is a special case of upward gas-liquid two-phase flow. It is a phenomenon observed as a gas-liquid mixture flows in a conduit but the net liquid flow rate is zero. Investigation on the liquid holdup of ZNLF is conducted in a vertical ten-meter tube with diameter of 76 mm, both for Newtonian and non-Newtonian fluids. The gas phase is air. The Newtonian fluid is water and the non-Newtonian fluids are water-based guar gel solutions. The correlations developed for predicting liquid holdup on the basis of Lockhart-Martinelli parameter are not suitable to ZNLF. A constitutive correlation for the liquid holdup of vertical ZNLF was put forward by using the mass balance. It is found that the liquid holdup in ZNLF is dependent on both the gas flow rate and the flow distribution coefficient.