Spray Characteristics of a Spill-Return Airblast Atomizer

The spray characteristics of a spill-return airblast atomizer are examined using water as the working fluid. Measurements of mean drop size, drop size distribution, spray cone angle, and circumferential liquid distribution are carried out over wide ranges of liquid injection pressures and atomizing air velocities. Generally it is found that an increase in nozzle bypass ratio worsens the atomization quality and widens the spray cone angle. Increase in airblast air velocity may improve or impair atomization quality depending on whether it increases or decreases the relative velocity between the liquid and the surrounding air. Airblast air can also be used to modify the change in spray cone angle that normally accompanies a change in bypass ratio.