The Impact of Vapor Blockage on the Outflow Rate of Screen Channel Liquid Acquisition Devices

The outflow rate of screen channel liquid acquisition devices (LADs) is a key indicator of the liquid acquisition capacity, but would be decreased when a portion of its screen is blocked by the vapor. So far, the quantitative research about the consequent loss of outflow rate seems not enough, though it is important and inevitable. In this paper, a modified model by introducing an available rate to describe the blocked degree is established to analyze and compare the cases with and without vapor blockage. We found that the loss of outflow rate is mainly decided by the total area of the blocked screen, while the distribution of blockage position barely has any effects. Besides, a characteristic curve is proposed to describe the robustness of LAD against blockage (i.e., loss rate of outflow velocity versus total area of the blocked screen). Higher driving pressure, coarser mesh of screen, and higher ratio of length to height of the channel would bring about greater robustness.

Automated summary

This study establishes a modified model to investigate the loss of outflow rate in screen channel liquid acquisition devices (LADs) when the screen is blocked by vapor. The research finds that the total area of the blocked screen primarily determines the loss of outflow rate, while the distribution of blockage position has negligible effects. Additionally, a characteristic curve is proposed to describe the LAD's robustness against blockage, showing the impact of different parameters.