2012 Volume 29 Issue 3 Pages 331-342
We simulated gas-liquid flow to predict the distribution ratio of a distributor. The computational region was divided into two regions: a bend pipe and a distributor. The boundary condition of the bend pipe outlet was connected to the distributor inlet with velocity and volume fraction of the liquid. The velocity at the inlet of the distributor was uniform with that at the inlet of the bend pipe. The volume fraction of the liquid was modified to conserve the mass flow rate of the liquid, because the liquid film inside the bend pipe disappeared with numerical diffusion. We used the volume of fluid (VOF) method for the gas-liquid interface calculation. Results of numerical analysis include profiles of the flow field, distribution ratio, and quality. Modified analysis results exhibit a higher quantity of retained liquid film than the unmodified one, meaning that the flow reproducibility was improved. Moreover, numerical analysis results of the distribution ratio and quality were closer to our experimental measurements than those obtained by unmodified analysis. The accuracy of the calculation in the distribution ratio of liquid was within 4% of computational error. These results demonstrate that the proposed calculation method is an effective means of predicting the distribution of the distributor.
