Plotting the Droplet Diameter

To monitor the progress of the simulation, you create plots of droplet diameter.

You create the following plots:

  • Group Diameters plot

    Plots the droplet diameter of each size-group along the X-axis (the center of the pipe). As each size-group contains an equal volume fraction of hexane, this plot gives information about the development of the droplet size distribution as the flow progresses along the pipe.

  • Mean Diameters plot

    Plots the mean diameter of the hexane droplets along the X-axis. Three different measures of mean diameter are plotted: Sauter Mean Diameter, Volume Based Diameter, and Volume Mean Diameter. Differences in values between these diameters are indicators of non-uniformity in the size distribution.

For more information, see the Adaptive Multiple Size-Group (AMUSIG) theory.

Create the Group_Diameters plot:
  1. Click (Create/Open Plots) in the Plot toolbar and select XY Plot.
  2. In the simulation tree, rename the Plots > XY Plot 1 node to Group_Diameters.
  3. Select the Group_Diameters node and set Parts to Region_2D > Boundaries > Body 1.axis.
  4. Right-click the Group_Diameters > Y Types node and click New.
    A new sub-node is added, Y Type 2.
  5. Repeat the previous step three more times to create the sub-nodes Y Type 3, Y Type 4, and Y Type 5.
  6. Select the Group_Diameters > Y Types > Y Type 1 node and set the following properties:
    Node Property Setting
    Scalar Function Field Function Group Diameter > GroupDiameter of Hexane SizeGroup 0
    Region_2D: Body 1.axis Sort Plot Data Activated
    Line Style Style Solid
  7. Repeat the previous step for the other four Y Type sub-nodes.
    The settings for these nodes are the same, except for the Field Function property. Set this property on these nodes as follows:
    Y Type Node Property Setting
    Y Type 2 Field Function GroupDiameter of Hexane SizeGroup 1
    Y Type 3 Field Function GroupDiameter of Hexane SizeGroup 2
    Y Type 4 Field Function GroupDiameter of Hexane SizeGroup 3
    Y Type 5 Field Function GroupDiameter of Hexane SizeGroup 4
  8. Select the Group_Diameters > Axes node and set the following properties:
    Node Property Setting
    Bottom Axis > Title Title Location on X-axis (m)
    Left Axis > Title Title Group Diameter (m)
Create the Mean_Diameters plot:
  1. Create another XY plot and rename the Plots > XY Plot 1 node to Mean_Diameters.
  2. Select the Mean_Diameters node and set Parts to Region_2D > Boundaries > Body 1.axis
  3. Right-click the Mean_Diameters > Y Types node and click New.
    A new sub-node is added, Y Type 2.
  4. Repeat the previous step to create the sub-node Y Type 3.
  5. Select the Mean_Diameters > Y Types > Y Type 1 node and set the following properties:
    Node Property Setting
    Scalar Function Field Function Sauter Mean Diameter > Sauter Mean Diameter of Hexane
    Region_2D: Body 1.axis Sort Plot Data Activated
    Line Style Style Solid
  6. Repeat the previous step for the other two Y Type sub-nodes.
    The settings for these additional nodes are the same, except for the Field Function property. Set this property on these nodes as follows:
    Y Type Node Property Setting
    Y Type 2 Field Function Volume Based Diameter > Volume Based Diameter of Hexane
    Y Type 3 Field Function Volume Mean Diameter > Volume Mean Diameter of Hexane
  7. Select the Mean_Diameters > Axes node and set the following properties:
    Node Property Setting
    Bottom Axis > Title Title Location on X-axis (m)
    Left Axis > Title Title Mean Diameter (m)
  8. Save the simulation.