A Numerical Approach for Modeling of Turbulent Newtonian Fluid Flow in Eccentric Annulus

Abstract

Turbulent flow is a complicated process that frequently appears not only in nature but also in engineering applications. Numerical methods frequently are used to solve turbulent flow problems due to the trouble in solving Navier-Stokes equations. Navier-Stokes equations including inner pipe rotation effect are solved via two different numerical techniques. The efficiency of the proposed numerical technique is compared with the obtained solutions of Newton-Raphson method. The proposed method is computationally expensive, however, it may allow tackling the non-linearity of challenging problems in hydraulics. A mechanistic model including proposed numerical method is also developed in order to predict pressure gradient for fully developed turbulent flow through fully eccentric horizontal annulus including pipe rotation. The computational frameworks are developed in MATLAB. Mathematical model is confirmed by the experimental study, which is conducted in Izmir Katip Celebi University. Results show that computational fluid model is a capable of estimating frictional pressure gradient with an error of less than 14 %.