A lattice boltzmann approach to surfactant-laden emulsions

Advancing oil-water separation: Design and efficiency of amphiphilic hyperbranched demulsifiers

HYPOTHESIS

An innovative strategy for designing high-performance demulsifiers is proposed. It hypothesizes that integrating mesoscopic molecular simulations with macroscopic physicochemical experiments can enhance the understanding and effectiveness of demulsifiers. Specifically, it is suggested that amphiphilic hyperbranched polyethyleneimine (CHPEI) could act as an efficient demulsifier in oil-water systems, with its performance influenced by its adsorption behaviors at the oil-water interface and its ability to disrupt asphaltene-resin aggregates.

EXPERIMENTS

Several coarse-grained models of oil-water systems, with CHPEI, are constructed using dissipative particle dynamics (DPD) simulation. Following the insights gained from the simulations, a series of CHPEI-based demulsifiers are designed and synthesized. Demulsification experiments are conducted on both simulated and crude oil emulsions, with the process monitored using laser scanning confocal microscopy. Additionally, adsorption kinetics and small angle X-ray scattering are employed to reveal the inherent structural characteristics of CHPEI demulsifiers.

FINDINGS

CHPEI demonstrates over 96.7 % demulsification efficiency in high acid-alkali-salt systems and maintains its performance even after multiple reuse cycles. The simulations and macroscopic experiments collectively elucidate that the effectiveness of a demulsifier is largely dependent on its molecular weight and the balance of hydrophilic and hydrophobic groups. These factors are crucial in providing sufficient interfacial active functional groups while avoiding adsorption sites for other surfactants. Collaborative efforts between DPD simulation and macroscopic measurements deepen the understanding of how demulsifiers can improve oil-water separation efficiency in emulsion treatment.

Comparative investigation of a lattice Boltzmann boundary treatment of multiphase mass transport with heterogeneous chemical reactions

Multiphase reactive transport in porous media is an important component of many natural and engineering processes. In the present study, boundary schemes for the continuum species transport-lattice Boltzmann (CST-LB) mass transport model and the multicomponent pseudopotential model are proposed to simulate heterogeneous chemical reactions in a multiphase system. For the CST-LB model, a lattice-interface-tracking scheme for the heterogeneous chemical reaction boundary is provided. Meanwhile, a local-average virtual density boundary scheme for the multicomponent pseudopotential model is formulated based on the work of Li et al. [Li, Yu, and Luo, Phys. Rev. E 100, 053313 (2019)10.1103/PhysRevE.100.053313]. With these boundary treatments, a numerical implementation is put forward that couples the multiphase fluid flow, interfacial species transport, heterogeneous chemical reactions, and porous matrix structural evolution. A series of comparison benchmark cases are investigated to evaluate the numerical performance for different pseudopotential wetting boundary treatments, and an application case of multiphase dissolution in porous media is conducted to validate the present models' ability to solve complex problems. By applying the present LB models with reasonable boundary treatments, multiphase reactive transport in various natural or engineering scenarios can be simulated accurately.

Lattice Boltzmann modeling of interfacial mass transfer in a multiphase system

In the present study, a numerical model based on the lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) is proposed to simulate multiphase mass transfer, referred to as the CST-LB model. This model introduced continuum species transfer (CST) formulation by an additional collision term to model the mass transfer across the multiphase interface. The boundary condition treatment of this model is also discussed. In order to verify the applicability, the CST-LB model is combined with the pseudopotential multiphase model to simulate a series of benchmark cases, including concentration jump near the interface, gas dissolution in a closed system, species transport during drainage in a capillary tube, and multiphase species transport in the porous media. This CST-LB model can also be coupled with other multiphase LBMs since the model depends on the phase fraction field, which is not explicitly limited to specified multiphase models.

Central-Moments-Based Lattice Boltzmann for Associating Fluids: A New Integrated Approach

Dynamic and thermodynamic behaviors of associating fluids play a crucial role in various science and engineering disciplines. Cubic plus association equation of state (CPA EOS) is implemented in a central-moments-based lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) in order to mimic the thermodynamic behavior of associating fluids. The pseudopotential approach is selected to model the multiphase thermodynamic characteristics such as reduced density of associating fluids. The priority of central-moments-based approach over multiple-relaxation-time collision operator is highlighted by performing double shear layers. The integration of central-moments-based LBM and CPA EOS is useful to simulate the dynamic and thermodynamic characteristics of associating fluids at high flow rate conditions, which is extended to high-density ratio scenarios by increasing the anisotropy order of gradient operator. In order to increase the stability of the model, a higher anisotropy order of the gradient operator is implemented; about 34 present reduction in spurious velocities is noticed in some cases. The type of gradient operator considerably affects the model thermodynamic consistency. Finally, the model is validated by observing a straight line in the Laplace law test. Prediction of thermodynamic behaviors of associating fluids is of significance in various applications including biological processes as well as fluid flow in porous media.

Hybridized method of pseudopotential lattice Boltzmann and cubic-plus-association equation of state assesses thermodynamic characteristics of associating fluids

It is crucial to properly describe the associating fluids in terms of phase equilibrium behaviors, which are needed for design, operation, and optimization of various chemical and energy processes. Pseudopotential lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) appears to be a reliable and efficient approach to study thermodynamic behaviors and phase transition of complex fluid systems. However, when cubic equations of state (EOSs) are incorporated into single-component multiphase LBM, simulation results are not well matched with experimental data. This study presents the utilization of cubic-plus-association (CPA) EOS in the LBM structure to obtain more accurate modeling results for associating fluids. An approach based on the global search optimization algorithm is introduced to find the optimal association parameters of CPA EOS for water and primary alcohols in the lattice units. The thermodynamic consistency is verified by the Maxwell construction and is also improved by the forcing scheme of [Q. Li, K. H. Luo, and X. J. Li, Phys. Rev. E 86, 016709 (2012)10.1103/PhysRevE.86.016709]. The spurious velocity is reduced with increasing isotropy in the gradient operator. Furthermore, an extended version of CPA EOS is introduced, which increases the system stability at low reduced temperatures. There is a very good match between the LBM results and experimental data, confirming the reliability of the model developed in the present study. The introduced approach has potential to be employed for simulating transport phenomena and interfacial characteristics of associating fluids in porous systems.