Thermal Mixing and Flow Characteristics Study in a T-Junction

Abstract

The objective of the current paper is to investigate the turbulent flow characteristics, thermal mixing behavior, and backflow features of coolant fluid in a T-junction using three-dimensional numerical simulations. The impact of critical flow parameters and different branch pipe axial and transverse incident angles on thermal mixing performance are explored as a function of momentum ratio. The investigation identifies the impact of jet flow, deflection flow, and wall jet flow patterns. The results reveal that the upside backflow of T-junction is more significant for a lower momentum ratio (<0.32) and decreases with higher momentum ratio (0.32 < momentum ratio < 2.7). The efficiency of thermal mixing is considerably improved by changing the incident angle and momentum ratio. Thermal mixing length decreases by ∼39%, 28%, and 21% as compared to the reference case. The current findings will help researchers to understand flow behavior and thermal mixing in a T-junction. It is also useful in high-temperature engineering applications for the evaluation of thermal cracking and safety management.