The influence of the coefficient of restitution on flow regimes within horizontal particle-laden pipe flows

Abstract

Numerical simulations of the particle-laden gas–solid flow in horizontal circular pipes have been used to identify the role of particle collision coefficients in flow regimes within it. A four-way coupling Euler–Lagrangian approach was employed, using direct numerical simulations of the gas phase and Lagrangian particle tracking to account for the drag, gravitational and lift forces, together with particle–wall and inter-particle interactions. The influences on the flow of the mass loading ratio (Φm) and of the coefficients of restitution for collisions both between particles and the wall (ep−w) and between particles (ep−p) are assessed by examining the fluid and particle velocities, particle concentration distribution, turbulence kinetic energy, static pressure, inter-phase transferred momentum, and the secondary flow motions of both the fluid and particle phases. Three dominant flow regimes that include three sub-regimes based on their secondary flow patterns are identified, the transition between which depends on the combination of Φm, ep−w, and ep−p. Additionally, the quantitative dependence of these transitions on these three parameters is also reported for a series of Stokes and Froude numbers.