Challenges of Simulating Droplet Coalescence within a Spray

Abstract

This article reports various challenges that have been encountered in the process of developing validated Lagrangian and Eulerian models for simulating particle agglomeration within a spray dryer. These have included the challenges of accurately measuring droplet coalescence rates within a spray, and modeling properly the gas–droplet and droplet-droplet turbulence interactions. We have demonstrated the relative versatility and ease of implementation of the Lagrangian model compared with the Eulerian model, and the accuracy of both models for predicting turbulent dispersion of droplets and the turbulent flow-field within a simple jet system. The Lagrangian and Eulerian droplet coalescence predictions are consistent with each other, which implies that the numerical aspects of each simulation are handled properly, suggesting that either approach can be used with confidence for future spray modeling. However, it is clear that considerable research must be done in the area of particle turbulence modeling and accurate measurement of particle agglomeration rates before any Computational Fluid Dynamics tool can be employed to accurately predict particle agglomeration within a spray dryer.