(192h) Dynamic Interactions between Oil Droplet and Oil Film in Complex Aqueous Environment

The coalescence between oil droplet-oil film is a fundamental phenomenon that's widely observed during the process of oil-water separation. However, the dynamic interactions between oil droplet and oil film, in particular film with a finite thickness, were not thoroughly studied. Motivated by the requirement of oil-water separation with high efficiency in field processing, in this study, we aim to research on the mechanism of Approaching-Collision-Coalescence behavior between oil drop and oil film under water. We attempt to extend current theories and equations to fit more general conditions and establish full model for drop-film coalescence. We focus on analyzing key control parameters together with their correlations by model normalization and numerical calculation. experimental studies will be presented to validate the model and simulation. We believe this presentation could provide theoretical foundations and experimental validations to the studies of oil-water separation, in particular to that focusing on reducing retention time and optimizing separator design.