Numerical study of turbulent cavitating flows in thermal regime

Abstract

PurposeThe aim of this work is to quantify the relative importance of the turbulence modelling for cavitating flows in thermal regime. A comparison of various transport-equation turbulence models and a study of the influence of the turbulent Prandtl number appearing in the formulation of the turbulent heat flux are proposed. Numerical simulations are performed on a cavitating Venturi flow for which the running fluid is freon R-114 and results are compared with experimental data.Design/methodology/approachA compressible, two-phase, one-fluid Navier–Stokes solver has been developed to investigate the behaviour of cavitation models including thermodynamic effects. The code is composed by three conservation laws for mixture variables (mass, momentum and total energy) and a supplementary transport equation for the volume fraction of gas. The mass transfer between phases is closed assuming its proportionality to the mixture velocity divergence.FindingsThe influence of turbulence model as regard to the cooling effect due to the vaporization is weak. Only the k – ε Jones–Launder model under-estimates the temperature drop. The amplitude of the wall temperature drop near the Venturi throat increases with the augmentation of the turbulent Prandtl number.Originality/valueThe interaction between Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes turbulence closure and non-isothermal phase transition is rarely studied. It is the first time such a study on the turbulent Prandtl number effect is reported in cavitating flows.