Full-Volume, Three-Dimensional, Transient Measurements of Bubbly Flows Using Particle Tracking Velocimetry and Shadow Image Velocimetry Coupled with Pattern Recognition Techniques

Develop a state-of-the-art non-intrusive diagnostic tool to perform simultaneous measurements of both the temporal and three-dimensional spatial velocity of the two phases of a bubbly flow. These measurements are required to provide a foundation for studying the constitutive closure relations needed in computational fluid dynamics and best-estimate thermal hydraulic codes employed in nuclear reactor safety analysis and severe accident simulation. Such kinds of full-field measurements are not achievable through the commonly used point-measurement techniques, such as hot wire, conductance probe, laser Doppler anemometry, etc. The results can also be used in several other applications, such as the dynamic transport of pollutants in water or studies of the dispersion of hazardous waste