A Coupled Pressure-Based Finite-Volume Solver for Incompressible Two-Phase Flow

Abstract

This article reports on the formulation and testing of a coupled pressure-based algorithm for the solution of steady incompressible disperse two-phase-flow problems. The method is formulated within a Eulerian-Eulerian framework in the context of a collocated finite-volume scheme. An equation for pressure is derived from overall mass conservation following the segregated mass conservation–based algorithm (MCBA) approach and using an extended two-phase flow form of the Rhie-Chow interpolation technique. The newly developed pressure-based coupled solver differs from pressure-based segregated solvers in that it accounts implicitly for the pressure–velocity and the interphase drag couplings that are present in disperse multiphase flows to yield a system of coupled equations linking the velocity and pressure fields. The performance and accuracy of the coupled multiphase algorithm are assessed by solving eight one-dimensional two-phase flow problems spanning the spectrum from dilute bubbly to dense gas–solid flows. Each problem is solved over three grid systems with sizes of 10,000, 30,000, and 50,000 control volumes, respectively. Results are compared in terms of iterations and CPU time with similar ones generated using the segregated MCBA-SIMPLE algorithm. The newly developed coupled solver is shown to yield substantial decrease in the required number of iterations and CPU time, with the rate of solution acceleration varying between 1.3 and 4.6.