Particle Transport in Bent Pipe by ANSYS CFX

Description

Particle Transport in Bent Pipe CFD Simulation, ANSYS CFX Tutorial

Description

In this project, copper Particle Transport Bent Pipe is investigated using ANSYS CFX software. It is typical practice in many fields to encounter solid particles in pipes and bent pipes. The presence of these particles may lead to several issues, including decreased flow rates and even damage to machinery.

Depending on the substance being delivered, the age and condition of the pipes, and the operational settings, the existence of these particles is possible.

Solid particles, such as sand, scale, and corrosion products, are common in the oil and gas business. Pipelines are vulnerable to erosion and corrosion from these particles, which may lead to leaks and eventual collapse. They can also build up in the pipeline’s bends and other areas, decreasing flow and raising pressure drop.

Water flow is entered into the domain with a mass flow rate of 0.05kg/s, while the copper particles with a diameter of 1 micron enter the domain with a mass flow rate of 0.001kg/s.

The 3D model of this project has been created by SpaceClaim software. The diameter of the pipe is equal to 10 mm. The bent blend radius is 10mm, while the length of the pipe in the Z direction is 100mm.

We have meshed this geometry using ANSYS Meshing software. The mesh type is unstructured, and its cell number equals 139,461.

Particle Transport Bent Pipe Methodology

The Fully Coupled Particle Transport Fluid Morphology is used to model the motion of copper particles.

The flow regime in this simulation is the Scalable k-Epsilon model.

The Advection Scheme and Turbulence Numeric are set to High Resolution.

Conclusion

At the end of the solution process, two-dimensional contours, vectors, and streamlines related to velocity, pressure, Turbulence Kinetic Energy, and particle volume fraction are obtained.

The contour of the particle volume fraction shows the exact value of the distribution of the particles all over the domain.

Also, the pressure contour and streamlines indicate how the static pressure level decreases as the flow approaches the outlet until it reaches 0.

The vortex behind the bends is also an important phenomenon that may transport the particles and cause them to accumulate.