CFD Analysis of Pressure Variation inside Iron-Ore Slurry Pipelines

Abstract

Abstract: Slurries, basically regarded as two – phase (solid – liquid) mixtures of ore and the carrier medium, generally water, are transported through underground pipelines. The rheological properties of the slurry also play an important role in determining the salient parameters of hydraulic transport such as head loss and pressure drop in commercial slurry pipelines. CFD has provided an upper hand in mathematical modelling and flow simulation, as it provides accurate and dependable flow simulation results. This article primarily focuses on determining the pressure drop across the ends of the pipeline, as slurry flows through it, and to establish a graphical depiction of the various simulations made using different set of conditions. The pressure drop for R500 radius of curvature of bends was found to be lying between 4.27% to 6.53%, as the bend angles increased from 3° to 18°, while the same was found to be lying between 3.49% to 6.2% for R2500 radius of curvature of bends. The pressure drop for R500 radius of curvature of bends was found to be lying between 4.91% to 8.3%, as the inlet velocity of slurry increased from 0.5 m/s to 3m/s, while the same was found to be lying between 5.05% to 8.63% for R2500 radius of curvature of bends.