Embora seja uma técnica tradicional, empregada largamente em processos industriais, a operação unitária de aeração pode ser otimizada ao se utilizar modelos matemáticos que descrevam seu comportamento hidrodinâmico. Diversas equações se prestam a esse fim, no entanto, avanços tecnológicos, tanto no campo instrumental como computacional, permitiram a obtenção de equações mais realísticas e abrangentes. Neste trabalho foram ajustadas e avaliadas equações para descrever três importantes parâmetros envolvidos na transferência de oxigênio em meio hídrico: coeficiente volumétrico de transferência de massa, fração de vazios e velocidade ascensional de bolhas. Para tanto, ademais da utilização de conceitos teóricos amplamente difundidos no meio acadêmico, empregou-se um conjunto de dados já existente. Essa combinação permitiu a avaliação e aproximação das equações teóricas à realidade experimental através de coeficientes de ajuste empíricos. Foram obtidos os seguintes resultados: a) revisão bibliográfica e sugestão da correlação que melhor descreve o coeficiente volumétrico de transferência de massa; b) correlação que descreve a fração de vazios, a partir da analise da concentração de bolhas segundo distribuições gaussianas; c) correlação que descreve a velocidade ascensional de bolhas em plumas. A complexidade de cada parâmetro obtido deixou clara a importância da análise isolada, precedendo a convolução dos mesmos em um único modelo, pois embora as resposta e recomendações apresentadas não forneçam conclusões definitivas sobre todos os aspectos envolvidos na transferência de oxigênio em meio hídrico, suas considerações pontuais contribuem sobremaneira ao domínio do fenômeno global, beneficiando modelagens matemáticas futuras. / Although it is a traditional technique, widely employed in industrial processes, the unit operation of aeration can be optimized when resorting to mathematical models which describe their hydrodynamic behavior. A range of equations lends itself to this purpose, however, technological advances both in the instrumental as computational field, allowed the achievement of equations more realistic and comprehensives. In this study were adjusted and evaluated equations to describe three important parameters involved in the oxygen transfer in the hydric medium: volumetric mass transfer coefficient, void fraction and upflow bubble velocity. To this end, besides the use of theoretical concepts widely disseminated in the academic literature, it was employed a set of already existing data. This combination allowed the evaluation and approximation of theoretical equations to experimental reality by means of empirical adjustment coefficients. Were obtained the following results: a) literature review and suggestion of the best correlation which describes the volumetric mass transfer coefficient, b) correlation which describes the fraction of voids, from the analysis of the concentration of bubbles by Gaussian distributions, c) correlation which describes the upflow velocity of swarms of bubbles. The complexity of each parameter obtained made clear the importance of the isolated analysis, preceding the convolution of them in a single model because although the answers and recommendations given fail to supply definitive conclusions on all aspects involved in the transfer of oxygen in hydric medium, their specific considerations contribute to the knowledge of the global phenomenon, benefiting deeply future mathematical models.

As Vibrações Induzidas por Escoamentos (VIEs) são dos problemas dinâmicos mais importantes no projeto de trocadores de calor de tipo carcaça e tubos. Esta interação fluido - estrutura pode gerar vibrações de grande amplitude dos tubos ou partes internas do equipamento, o que pode provocar o impacto entre componentes e até falha por fadiga. Várias bancadas experimentais têm sido construídas para o estudo desta interação fluido - estrutura, no entanto, alguns mecanismos de vibração, principalmente aqueles relacionados com escoamentos bifásicos, não são completamente compreendidos. Portanto, neste trabalho, o projeto de uma estrutura dinâmica para o estudo das vibrações induzidas por escoamento bifásico é apresentado. Esta estrutura é composta por um sistema de fios de aço tensionados que permitem que a primeira frequência de ressonância do tubo seja sintonizada. O tubo instrumentado foi instalado numa seção de testes de tubos rígidos em configuração triangular normal com uma razão de passo transversal e diâmetro de 1,26. Os resultados experimentais foram contrastados com uma modelagem teórica desenvolvida para esta estrutura dinâmica. Pôde-se verificar que a primeira frequência de ressonância e seu fator de amortecimento coincidem com os valores estimados pelo modelo, enquanto que a segunda frequência de ressonância apresenta valor teórico 6,6% maior do que o experimental. A seguir, um estudo experimental no ar foi desenvolvido para o reconhecimento dos modos de vibração e as frequências de ressonância da estrutura dinâmica. O fator de amortecimento no ar também foi estimado, o método de Kennedy - Pancu combinado com o algoritmo ERA foi usado para este fim. Assim que a primeira frequência de ressonância foi reconhecida e sintonizada, testes em escoamentos de água foram realizados. A influência da velocidade do escoamento monofásico de água na amplitude de vibração e nas características da Densidade Espectral (PSD) de aceleração foi analisada. Finalmente, testes em escoamento bifásico foram feitos, a sensibilidade do tubo ao escoamento bifásico fica evidente quando analisadas as amplitudes nas PSDs. Além disso, a influência da fração de vazio na amplitude de vibração e no fator de amortecimento foi revisada, no entanto, resultados de estudos anteriores não foram conferidos pelo alto amortecimento concentrado introduzido por alguns elementos construtivos utilizados. / Flow - Induced Vibration (FIV) is the most critical dynamic issue in the design of heat exchangers. This fluid - structure phenomenon may generate high amplitude vibration of tubes or structural parts, which may lead to impacts between internal components or even failure due to fatigue. Many test benches have been constructed to study this fluid - structure interactions, however, some vibration mechanisms, mostly those related to multiphase flow, are not yet fully understood. Therefore, in this work, the design of a dynamic structure for the study of multiphase flow induced vibration is presented. This structure is composed by a system of tensioned piano wires that allow the first natural frequency of the instrumented tube to be calibrated. The tube was installed in a rigid bundle configured in a normal triangular pattern with pitch-todiameter ratio of 1.26. Then, an experimental study in air environment was performed aiming at addressing the mode shapes and resonance frequencies of the dynamic structure. The damping ratio in air environment was also estimated, the Kennedy - Pancu method in combination with the Eigensystem Realization Algorithm have been used to that purpose. Experimental results in air were compared with a theoretical model. The first resonance frequency and its damping factor presented a good agreement with the model, while the second resonance frequency deviated some 6,6% from the predicted value. Tests in water and multiphase flow were also performed. The influence of water flow velocity on vibration amplitudes and on the Power Spectrum Densities (PSDs) has been analyzed. Finally, tests for two - phase water/air flow were carried out; the tube sensitivity to multiphase flow is evident when the vibration level in acceleration PSDs is by analyzed. Also, the influence of void fraction on vibration amplitude and damping ratio have been addressed, however, previous studies could not be validated due to the high damping introduced by some constructive elements of the structure.

The rapid depletion of hydrocarbon fields around the world has led the industry to search for these resources in ever increasing water depths. In this context, the large diameter (D > 100mm) vertical riser has become a subject of great interest. In this research work, a major investigation was undertaken to determine the two phase flow hydrodynamics in a 254mm vertical riser. Two types of experiments were performed for range of air-water superficial velocities. The first experimental campaign addresses the issue of the two gas injector’s performances (conventional vs. novel design gas injector) in the large diameter vertical riser. The experimental results show that the novel design gas injector should be the preferential choice. The second set of the experimental work investigates the two phase flow hydrodynamics in the vertical riser in detail. The two phase flow patterns and their transitions were identified by combination of visual observations and statistical features. Based on the results, the experimental flow regime map was developed and compared with the existing vertical upflow regime maps/models. None of the flow regime transition models adequately predicted the flow regimes transitions in large diameter vertical risers as a whole. In this regard, the Taitel et al. (1980) bubble to slug flow transition model has been modified for large diameter vertical upflow conditions, based on the physical mechanism observed. The general trends of modified criteria agreed well with the current and other large diameter experimental results. The effect of upstream conditions on the vertical riser flow behaviour was also investigated in detail by two different inlet configurations (i) near riser base injection and (ii) upstream flowline injection. It was found that no significant differences exist in flow behaviour at low air-water superficial velocities for both the inlet configuration, at high air-water superficial velocities, the intermittent flow behavior in flowline influences the riser flow pattern characteristics and thereby controls the riser dynamics. It is found that liquid slugs from the flowline naturally dissipate to some extent in the riser as a consequence of compression of succeeding bubble that rapidly expands and break through the liquid slug preceding it when it enters the riser. The experimental work corroborates the general consensus that slug flow does not exist in large diameter vertical upflow condition. Experimental data has been further compared to increase the confidence on the existing two phase flow knowledge on large diameter vertical riser: (a) by comparing with other experimental studies on large diameter vertical upflow in which generally, a good agreement was found, (b) by assessing the predictive capability of void fraction correlations/pressure gradient methods. The important implication of this assessment is that the mechanistic approach based on specific flow regime in determining the void fraction and pressure gradient is more successful than conventional empirical based approaches. The assessment also proposes a proposed set a of flow regime specific correlations that recommends void fraction correlations based on their performances in the individual flow regimes. Finally, a numerical model to study the hydrodynamic behaviour in the large diameter horizontal flowline-vertical riser system is developed using multiphase flow simulator OLGA. The simulated results show satisfactory agreement for the stable flows while discrepancies were noted for highly intermittent flows. The real time boundary application was partially successful in qualitatively reproducing the trends. The discrepancies between the predicted results and experimental data are likely to be related to the incorrect closure relations used based on incorrect flow regimes predictions. The existence of the multiple roots in the OLGA code is also reported for the first time.

An experimental investigation of condensation of hydrocarbons and hydrocarbon/refrigerant mixtures in horizontal tubes was conducted. Heat transfer coefficients and frictional pressure drops during condensation of a zeotropic binary mixture of R245fa and n-pentane in a 7.75 mm internal diameter round tube were measured across the entire vapor-liquid dome, for mass fluxes ranging from 150 to 600 kg m-2 s-1, and reduced pressures ranging from 0.06 to 0.23. Condensation experiments were conducted for the mixture, as well as its pure constituents over a similar range of conditions. In addition, condensing flow of the hydrocarbon propane was documented visually using high-speed video recordings. Results from these experiments were used to establish the two-phase flow regimes, void fractions, and liquid film thicknesses during condensation of propane flowing through horizontal tubes with internal diameters of 7 and 15 mm. These measurements were made over mass fluxes ranging from 75 to 450 kg m-2 s-1, operating pressures ranging from 952 to 1218 kPa, and vapor qualities ranging from 0.05 to 0.95. Liquid film thickness and void fraction data were subsequently be used to assist the development of heat transfer and pressure drop models. In particular, the heat transfer coefficients and pressure drops observed in the mixture were compared with the corresponding values for the pure constituents. Models for heat transfer and pressure drop in the pure components as well as the mixtures were developed based on the data from the present study. This work extends the available literature on two-phase flow regimes for air-water mixtures, steam, and refrigerants to include hydrocarbons. Additionally, the limited information on condensation in multi-constituent hydrocarbon-hydrocarbon and refrigerant-refrigerant mixtures was extended to include hydrocarbon-refrigerant mixtures. The findings of this study are expected to benefit applications such as refrigeration, low-grade heat-driven power generation, and the development of heat exchangers for the chemical and process industries.

The rapid depletion of hydrocarbon fields around the world has led the industry to search for these resources in ever increasing water depths. In this context, the large diameter (D > 100mm) vertical riser has become a subject of great interest. In this research work, a major investigation was undertaken to determine the two phase flow hydrodynamics in a 254mm vertical riser. Two types of experiments were performed for range of air-water superficial velocities. The first experimental campaign addresses the issue of the two gas injector’s performances (conventional vs. novel design gas injector) in the large diameter vertical riser. The experimental results show that the novel design gas injector should be the preferential choice. The second set of the experimental work investigates the two phase flow hydrodynamics in the vertical riser in detail. The two phase flow patterns and their transitions were identified by combination of visual observations and statistical features. Based on the results, the experimental flow regime map was developed and compared with the existing vertical upflow regime maps/models. None of the flow regime transition models adequately predicted the flow regimes transitions in large diameter vertical risers as a whole. In this regard, the Taitel et al. (1980) bubble to slug flow transition model has been modified for large diameter vertical upflow conditions, based on the physical mechanism observed. The general trends of modified criteria agreed well with the current and other large diameter experimental results. The effect of upstream conditions on the vertical riser flow behaviour was also investigated in detail by two different inlet configurations (i) near riser base injection and (ii) upstream flowline injection. It was found that no significant differences exist in flow behaviour at low air-water superficial velocities for both the inlet configuration, at high air-water superficial velocities, the intermittent flow behavior in flowline influences the riser flow pattern characteristics and thereby controls the riser dynamics. It is found that liquid slugs from the flowline naturally dissipate to some extent in the riser as a consequence of compression of succeeding bubble that rapidly expands and break through the liquid slug preceding it when it enters the riser. The experimental work corroborates the general consensus that slug flow does not exist in large diameter vertical upflow condition. Experimental data has been further compared to increase the confidence on the existing two phase flow knowledge on large diameter vertical riser: (a) by comparing with other experimental studies on large diameter vertical upflow in which generally, a good agreement was found, (b) by assessing the predictive capability of void fraction correlations/pressure gradient methods. The important implication of this assessment is that the mechanistic approach based on specific flow regime in determining the void fraction and pressure gradient is more successful than conventional empirical based approaches. The assessment also proposes a proposed set a of flow regime specific correlations that recommends void fraction correlations based on their performances in the individual flow regimes. Finally, a numerical model to study the hydrodynamic behaviour in the large diameter horizontal flowline-vertical riser system is developed using multiphase flow simulator OLGA. The simulated results show satisfactory agreement for the stable flows while discrepancies were noted for highly intermittent flows. The real time boundary application was partially successful in qualitatively reproducing the trends. The discrepancies between the predicted results and experimental data are likely to be related to the incorrect closure relations used based on incorrect flow regimes predictions. The existence of the multiple roots in the OLGA code is also reported for the first time.

As Vibrações Induzidas por Escoamentos (VIEs) são dos problemas dinâmicos mais importantes no projeto de trocadores de calor de tipo carcaça e tubos. Esta interação fluido - estrutura pode gerar vibrações de grande amplitude dos tubos ou partes internas do equipamento, o que pode provocar o impacto entre componentes e até falha por fadiga. Várias bancadas experimentais têm sido construídas para o estudo desta interação fluido - estrutura, no entanto, alguns mecanismos de vibração, principalmente aqueles relacionados com escoamentos bifásicos, não são completamente compreendidos. Portanto, neste trabalho, o projeto de uma estrutura dinâmica para o estudo das vibrações induzidas por escoamento bifásico é apresentado. Esta estrutura é composta por um sistema de fios de aço tensionados que permitem que a primeira frequência de ressonância do tubo seja sintonizada. O tubo instrumentado foi instalado numa seção de testes de tubos rígidos em configuração triangular normal com uma razão de passo transversal e diâmetro de 1,26. Os resultados experimentais foram contrastados com uma modelagem teórica desenvolvida para esta estrutura dinâmica. Pôde-se verificar que a primeira frequência de ressonância e seu fator de amortecimento coincidem com os valores estimados pelo modelo, enquanto que a segunda frequência de ressonância apresenta valor teórico 6,6% maior do que o experimental. A seguir, um estudo experimental no ar foi desenvolvido para o reconhecimento dos modos de vibração e as frequências de ressonância da estrutura dinâmica. O fator de amortecimento no ar também foi estimado, o método de Kennedy - Pancu combinado com o algoritmo ERA foi usado para este fim. Assim que a primeira frequência de ressonância foi reconhecida e sintonizada, testes em escoamentos de água foram realizados. A influência da velocidade do escoamento monofásico de água na amplitude de vibração e nas características da Densidade Espectral (PSD) de aceleração foi analisada. Finalmente, testes em escoamento bifásico foram feitos, a sensibilidade do tubo ao escoamento bifásico fica evidente quando analisadas as amplitudes nas PSDs. Além disso, a influência da fração de vazio na amplitude de vibração e no fator de amortecimento foi revisada, no entanto, resultados de estudos anteriores não foram conferidos pelo alto amortecimento concentrado introduzido por alguns elementos construtivos utilizados. / Flow - Induced Vibration (FIV) is the most critical dynamic issue in the design of heat exchangers. This fluid - structure phenomenon may generate high amplitude vibration of tubes or structural parts, which may lead to impacts between internal components or even failure due to fatigue. Many test benches have been constructed to study this fluid - structure interactions, however, some vibration mechanisms, mostly those related to multiphase flow, are not yet fully understood. Therefore, in this work, the design of a dynamic structure for the study of multiphase flow induced vibration is presented. This structure is composed by a system of tensioned piano wires that allow the first natural frequency of the instrumented tube to be calibrated. The tube was installed in a rigid bundle configured in a normal triangular pattern with pitch-todiameter ratio of 1.26. Then, an experimental study in air environment was performed aiming at addressing the mode shapes and resonance frequencies of the dynamic structure. The damping ratio in air environment was also estimated, the Kennedy - Pancu method in combination with the Eigensystem Realization Algorithm have been used to that purpose. Experimental results in air were compared with a theoretical model. The first resonance frequency and its damping factor presented a good agreement with the model, while the second resonance frequency deviated some 6,6% from the predicted value. Tests in water and multiphase flow were also performed. The influence of water flow velocity on vibration amplitudes and on the Power Spectrum Densities (PSDs) has been analyzed. Finally, tests for two - phase water/air flow were carried out; the tube sensitivity to multiphase flow is evident when the vibration level in acceleration PSDs is by analyzed. Also, the influence of void fraction on vibration amplitude and damping ratio have been addressed, however, previous studies could not be validated due to the high damping introduced by some constructive elements of the structure.

Embora seja uma técnica tradicional, empregada largamente em processos industriais, a operação unitária de aeração pode ser otimizada ao se utilizar modelos matemáticos que descrevam seu comportamento hidrodinâmico. Diversas equações se prestam a esse fim, no entanto, avanços tecnológicos, tanto no campo instrumental como computacional, permitiram a obtenção de equações mais realísticas e abrangentes. Neste trabalho foram ajustadas e avaliadas equações para descrever três importantes parâmetros envolvidos na transferência de oxigênio em meio hídrico: coeficiente volumétrico de transferência de massa, fração de vazios e velocidade ascensional de bolhas. Para tanto, ademais da utilização de conceitos teóricos amplamente difundidos no meio acadêmico, empregou-se um conjunto de dados já existente. Essa combinação permitiu a avaliação e aproximação das equações teóricas à realidade experimental através de coeficientes de ajuste empíricos. Foram obtidos os seguintes resultados: a) revisão bibliográfica e sugestão da correlação que melhor descreve o coeficiente volumétrico de transferência de massa; b) correlação que descreve a fração de vazios, a partir da analise da concentração de bolhas segundo distribuições gaussianas; c) correlação que descreve a velocidade ascensional de bolhas em plumas. A complexidade de cada parâmetro obtido deixou clara a importância da análise isolada, precedendo a convolução dos mesmos em um único modelo, pois embora as resposta e recomendações apresentadas não forneçam conclusões definitivas sobre todos os aspectos envolvidos na transferência de oxigênio em meio hídrico, suas considerações pontuais contribuem sobremaneira ao domínio do fenômeno global, beneficiando modelagens matemáticas futuras. / Although it is a traditional technique, widely employed in industrial processes, the unit operation of aeration can be optimized when resorting to mathematical models which describe their hydrodynamic behavior. A range of equations lends itself to this purpose, however, technological advances both in the instrumental as computational field, allowed the achievement of equations more realistic and comprehensives. In this study were adjusted and evaluated equations to describe three important parameters involved in the oxygen transfer in the hydric medium: volumetric mass transfer coefficient, void fraction and upflow bubble velocity. To this end, besides the use of theoretical concepts widely disseminated in the academic literature, it was employed a set of already existing data. This combination allowed the evaluation and approximation of theoretical equations to experimental reality by means of empirical adjustment coefficients. Were obtained the following results: a) literature review and suggestion of the best correlation which describes the volumetric mass transfer coefficient, b) correlation which describes the fraction of voids, from the analysis of the concentration of bubbles by Gaussian distributions, c) correlation which describes the upflow velocity of swarms of bubbles. The complexity of each parameter obtained made clear the importance of the isolated analysis, preceding the convolution of them in a single model because although the answers and recommendations given fail to supply definitive conclusions on all aspects involved in the transfer of oxygen in hydric medium, their specific considerations contribute to the knowledge of the global phenomenon, benefiting deeply future mathematical models.

Orientador: Antonio Carlos Bannwart / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia Mecânica e Instituto de Geociências / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-23T09:29:35Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Daun_LeandroGalvao_M.pdf: 5084421 bytes, checksum: 56e4661dc939fdef8c0383b09f63721f (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013 / Resumo: Os desafios tecnológicos na produção de petróleo e gás têm aumentado consideravelmente nos últimos anos devido à busca por segurança, redução de custos e otimização da produção, como indicado pelo grande número de estudos sobre a garantia de escoamento. Uma grande preocupação está relacionada ao escoamento multifásico em equipamentos submarinos, onde podem ocorrer diferentes padrões de escoamento e fenômenos termo-fluido-dinâmicos. O presente trabalho tem por objetivo avaliar experimentalmente possíveis fenômenos de garantia de escoamento na entrada de um Sistema de Bombeio Centrifugo Submerso em Skid (S-BCSS), como o instalado no campo de Espadarte na costa brasileira. A atenção foi dada a possíveis sinais de surging da BCS, devido à presença de gás na fase líquida e mudança na orientação do escoamento a partir da horizontal para a vertical descendente, a montante da entrada da bomba. As condições de transição entre os padrões de escoamento "bolhas dispersas" e "intermitente" foram investigados em uma linha experimental com configuração do tipo U horizontal com braços superior, inferior e curvas de 90 graus. A tubulação da linha possui diâmetro interno de 60 milímetros e comprimento total de 32 metros, sendo testada com ar e água em uma ampla gama de composições de mistura permitindo a comparação com mapas de fluxo horizontal e vertical descendente encontrados na literatura. O comportamento dos limites de padrões de escoamento foi experimentalmente avaliado, indicando possibilidades de acumulo de gás na curva superior devido à mudança de padrão "bolhas dispersas" para "intermitente" quando há alterações de orientação do escoamento horizontal para vertical descendente. A existência de uma velocidade mínima da mistura capaz de assegurar o arrasto das bolhas pelo líquido foi também investigada. Diferentes correlações para a velocidade de deslizamento e parâmetro de distribuição foram testadas para o cálculo da fração de vazio. Isto foi realizado através da obtenção da velocidade média do gás local, por meio da obtenção de imagens em alta velocidade seguido de um processamento digital das mesmas. A fração de vazio foi calculada a partir da relação entre as velocidades superficiais e locais do gás. Através da comparação entre 2124 pontos experimentais, foi possível obter as melhores correlações de fração de vazio para diferentes intervalos, resultando na obtenção de diferentes valores de velocidades mínimas de mistura / Abstract: The technological challenges in the oil and gas production have increased considerably in recent years due to the search for safety, cost reduction and production optimization, as indicated by the large number of studies on flow assurance. One major concern is the multiphase flow in subsea equipment where different flow patterns and thermo-fluid-dynamic phenomena may occur. The present work is aimed at evaluating experimentally possible flow assurance phenomena at the inlet of a Subsea Skided ESP (mudline ESP) such as one installed at Espadarte field offshore Brazil. Attention was paid to possible surging of the pump due to the presence of gas bubbles within the liquid and change in flow orientation from horizontal to vertical downward upstream the ESP intake. First, the conditions at the transition between dispersed bubbles and intermittent flow were investigated in a horizontal U-type tube with top and down arms and 90-degree bends. A flow circuit of 60mm i.d. size and 32m was built and tested using air and water in a wide range of mixture compositions, allowing comparisons with horizontal and downward flow maps found in the literature. The behavior of flow pattern boundaries was experimentally evaluated and indicated no possibility of gas accumulation on the upper bend due when the flow pattern changes from dispersed bubbles to intermittent as the flow orientation changes from horizontal to downward. The requirement of a minimum mixture velocity capable of ensuring enough drag of the bubbles by the liquid was also investigated. Several different correlations for drift velocity and distribution parameter were tested for calculation of the void fraction. This was achieved by measuring the local average gas velocity using a high speed imaging and digital image processing. The void fraction was calculated from the ratio between superficial and local gas velocities. From comparison with 2,124 data points, the best void fraction correlation for each range was determined, from which reliable values for the minimum mixture velocity were determined / Mestrado / Explotação / Mestre em Ciências e Engenharia de Petróleo

No description available.

The phenomenon of gas entrainment, as a result of impinging liquid jets, was experimentally investigated. The purpose of these investigations was to create a solid experimental database necessary for the development and validation of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) codes. In this work, various experimental setups were built to allow employing various imaging measurement techniques with high spatial and temporal resolution. High-speed imaging was applied for characterizing the flow structure that develops under the free surface. It was found that gas entrainment takes place as soon as the jet impact velocity overcomes the value of 1.2 m/s. The bubble plume, formed as a result of impingement, consists of two distinct regions: an inner region with high turbulence and fine freely dispersed bubbles and an outer region, where larger bubbles move towards the free surface. Two mechanisms are responsible for the occurrence of gas entrainment. High-speed camera observations were validated by means of ultrafast x-ray computed tomography, an innovative non-intrusive measurement technique. Also, quantitative information regarding the bubble plume was acquired from the high-speed observations, in terms of: penetration depth, width and spreading angle of the bubble plume. Measurements, based on two wire-mesh sensors, were performed to assess the gas entrainment rate. In these measurements, void fraction distributions and gas velocities were quantified. The entrainment rate was calculated as an integral over the entrained volumetric gas fraction. It was found to be a function of the jet velocity and length. Results were validated using dual-plane x-ray computed tomography. Results were in agreement with the ones obtained from the wire-mesh sensors and approximately four to six times smaller than predictions found in related publications. Instantaneous as well as time-averaged velocity fields of the continuous phase were gained by means of particle image velocimetry (PIV). Axial time-averaged velocities followed a power law profile, typical for fully developed flow conditions. Two recirculating vortices were found in the flow: one occurs as a result of the water adhering to the lateral wall of the tank and the flow being confined by the bottom wall, while the second one is generated in the wake of rising bubbles. Bubble entrainment was found to reduce liquid phase mean velocities and to enhance fluctuations in the streamwise direction. This is reflected in the distribution of the turbulence kinetic energy. Last but not least, several examples of comparisons between experimental data and CFD results stand to demonstrate the importance of the experimental observations gathered in the frame of this work. It is shown that the experimental data provides a good basis not only for qualitative comparisons, but also for quantitative correlations.