Dynamic analysis of continuous-flow microwave reactor with a screw propeller

To solve nonuniform heating when microwave energy is applied in a continuous-flow applicator, a microwave heating system with a screw propeller is designed. By introducing the implicit function and level set methods, the electromagnetic heat source input into the temperature field is updated with the rotation of the screw propeller. Combined with Arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian Formulation (ALE) machinery, the temperature distribution in the heating process is obtained. Water is taken as the sample in the experiment to verify the computational model. By using the proposed model, we also calculate the temperature distribution of two other commonly used liquids (ethylene glycol and glycerol). To analyze the effect of a screw propeller on heating uniformity, the temperature distribution of the cases with a screw propeller is quantitatively compared to that of the cases without a screw propeller. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.