Abstract
In order to increase an interfacial area for the promotion of mass transfer in refining processes, a new method exciting surface wave on a molten metal has been proposed in the way introducing an intermittent alternating magnetic field with the stepwise change of amplitude. For investigating characteristics of the induced surface waves, their behavior on a liquid gallium was measured by use of a laser level sensor and a high speed camera by changing values of a magnetic field and an intermittent frequency. Increase in the amplitude of the magnetic field provided a liquid metal disturbance, which propagated on the liquid metal surface to a center of a vessel with a constant velocity, in the vicinity of a wall. Although, propagating velocity of the surface wave slightly increased at a center of a vessel. Propagating velocity of the surface wave increased with increasing in the magnetic field and was independent of the intermittent frequency. Both the width and the height of the surface wave increased during its propagation from the wall to the center so as to keep the constant wave volume. Increase in the magnetic field changed the height and the volume of the wave while the wave width was kept constant. Increase in propagating velocity of the surface wave might be caused by increase in the height of surface wave. A part of characteristics of surface wave could be explained by Stokes wave theory.
