Pressure Drop and Velocity Dynamics of Turbulent Flow Across a U-Bend Pipe: A Numerical Analysis
摘要
U-bend pipes are used as a part of heat exchangers, chilling plants, and sea water desalination units. Flow through U-bend pipes essentially undergoes turbulent flow when used for practical purposes. This study focuses on assessing turbulent flow through a U-bend pipe using the SST k-omega turbulence model through numerical simulation. The method was validated with existing results in previous literature and the good agreement between the two motivates to deal with a number of cases by varying different parameters. It was found that the trend of pressure and velocity vectors formed for the considered range of Reynolds numbers remains the same for the U-bend geometry. However, the gradients increase with increasing Reynolds number. A formation of secondary flow appears close to the middle of the bend and it becomes prominent at the bend’s exit. The mean bulk of velocity gradually moves from the inner curve of the bend to the outer curve as the flow proceeds from the inlet to the outlet section of the U-bend.