The impact of swirl (i.e., flow with axial and azimuthal velocity components) on the turbulent flow in a pipe is studied using two-component laser-Doppler velocimetry (LDV). There are practical motivations for the flow geometry. For example, previous studies demonstrate that introducing swirl in the tube bank of a paper machine headbox can significantly increase mixing, and hence increase fiber dispersion and orientation isotropy in the finished paper product. The flow characteristics in a pipe downstream of a single straight tapered fin, a single fin with 180??ist but otherwise identical geometry, and four twisted fins were therefore studied at a pipe-based Reynolds number of 80,000. Radial profiles of the mean and rms fluctuations of the streamwise and azimuthal velocity components are measured; results for the straight and twisted single fin are compared to determine the effects of fin geometry and swirl on the turbulent wake downstream of the fin. From a practical viewpoint, it is also desirable to have adjustable swirl, where swirl can either be turned on or off depending upon the type of paper product being produced. The next generation swirler concept consists of fins fabricated from two-way shape memory alloys. Using the two-way memory effect, the fins will be in their straight configuration when cold and twisted configuration (hence acting as a swirler) when hot. This study is the initial phase in developing new active control mechanisms, known as the Vortigen concept, for increasing productivity, and hence reducing wasted raw material and energy, in the pulp and paper industry.

Understanding how swirl flows can be applied to processes in the oil and gas industry and how problems might hinder them, are the focus of this thesis. Three application areas were identified: wet gas metering, liquid loading in gas wells and erosion at pipe bends due to sand transport. For all three areas, Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations were performed. Where available, experimental data were used to validate the CFD results. As a part of this project, a new test loop was conceived for the investigation of sand erosion in pipes. The results obtained from CFD simulations of two-phase (air-water) flow through a pipe with a swirl-inducing device show that generating swirl flow leads to separation of the phases and creates distinct flow patterns within the pipe. This effect can be used in each of the three application areas of interest. For the wet gas metering application, a chart was generated, which suggests the location of maximum liquid deposition downstream of the swirling device used in the ANUMET meter. This will allow taking pressure and phase fraction measurements (from which the liquid flow rate can be determined) where they are most representative of the flow pattern assumed for the ANUMET calculation algorithms. For the liquid loading application, which was taken as an upscaling of the dimensions investigated for the wet gas metering application, the main focus was on the liquid hold-up. This parameter is defined as the ratio of the flowing area occupied by liquid to the total area. Results obtained with CFD simulations showed that as the water rate increases, the liquid hold-up increases, implying a more effective liquid removal. Thus, it was concluded that the introduction of a swirler can help unload liquid from a gas well, although no investigation was carried out on the persistance of the swirl motion downstream of the device. For the third and final application, the erosion at pipe bends due to sand transport, the main focus was to check the erosion rate on the pipe wall with and without the introduction of a swirler. The erosion rate was predicted by CFD simulations. The flow that was investigated consisted of a liquid phase with solid particles suspended in it. The CFD results showed a significant reduction in erosion rate at the pipe walls when the swirler was introduced, which could translate into an extended working life for the pipe. An extensive literature review performed on this topic, complemented by the CFD simulations, showed the need for a dedicated multiphase test loop for the investigation of sand erosion in horizontal pipes and at bends. The design of a facility of this type is included in this thesis. The results obtained with this work are very encouraging and provide a broad perspective of applications of swirl flows and CFD for the oil and gas industry.

Lean premixed combustors are highly susceptible to combustion instabilities, caused by the coupling between heat release fluctuations and combustor acoustics. In order to predict the conditions under which these instabilities occur and their limit cycle amplitudes, understanding of the amplitude dependent response of the flame to acoustic excitation is required. Extensive maps of the flame response were obtained as a function of perturbation amplitude, frequency, and flow velocity. These maps illustrated substantial nonlinearity in the perturbation velocity - heat release relationship, with complex topological dependencies that illustrate folds and kinks when plotted in frequency-amplitude-heat release space. A detailed analysis of phase locked OH PLIF images of acoustically excited swirl flames was used to identify the key controlling physical processes and qualitatively discuss their characteristics. The results illustrate that the flame response is not controlled by any single physical process but rather by several simultaneously occurring processes which are potentially competing, and whose relative significance depends upon forcing frequency, amplitude of excitation, and flame stabilization dynamics. An in-depth study on the effect of acoustic forcing on the turbulent flame properties was conducted in a turbulent Bunsen flame using PIV measurements. The results showed that the flame brush thickness and the local consumption speed were modulated in the presence of acoustic forcing. These results will not only be a useful input to help improve combustion dynamics predictions but will also help serve as validation data for models.

This work addresses the issue of transverse combustion instabilities in annular gas turbine combustor geometries. While modern low-emissions combustion strategies have made great strides in reducing the production of toxic emissions in aircraft engines and power generation gas turbines, combustion instability remains one of the foremost technical challenges in the development of next generation combustor technology. To that end, this work investigates the response of a swirling flow and swirl-stabilized flame to a transverse acoustic field is using a variety of high-speed laser techniques, especially high-speed particle image velocimetry (PIV) for detailed velocity measurements of this highly unsteady flow phenomenon. A description of the velocity-coupled transverse instability mechanism is explained with companion measurements describing each of the velocity disturbance pathways. Dependence on acoustic frequency, amplitude, and field symmetry is discussed. Significant emphasis is placed on the response of a swirling flow field to a transverse acoustic field. Details of the dynamics of the vortex breakdown bubble and the shear layers are explained using a wide variety of measurements for both non-reacting and reacting flow cases. This thesis concludes with an overview of the impact of this work and suggestions for future research in this area.

<p>This thesis work aimed at increasing the knowledge regarding phenomena occurring when gas is injected using a top-blown lance on to a bath. All results are based on physical modeling studies carried out both using low and high gas flow rates and nozzle diameters ranging from 0.8 mm to 3.0 mm. At the low gas flow rates, the penetration depth in the bath was studied. The experiments focused on studying the effect of nozzle diameter, lance height and gas flow rate on the penetration depth. It was found that the penetration depth increases with decreasing nozzle diameter, decreasing lance height and with increasing gas flow rate. The results were also compared with previous work. More specifically, it was studied how the previous published empirical relationships fitted the current experimental data. It was found that the relationships of Banks [1], Davenport [2], Chatterjee [3] and Qian [4] agreed well with the experimental data of this investigation for nozzle diameters of 2.0 mm and 3.0 mm. However, for smaller nozzle diameters there were considerable deviations. Therefore, a new correlation heuristically derived from energy conservation consideration was suggested and showed better agreement for small nozzle diameters.</p><p>The experiments carried out at higher gas flow rates focused on the study of swirl motion. The effects of nozzle diameter, lance height, gas flow rate and aspect ratio on the swirl motion were investigated. The amplitude and period of the swirl as well as the starting time and the damping time of the swirl were determined. The amplitude was found to increase with an increased nozzle diameter and gas flow rate, while the period had a constant value of about 0.5 s for all nozzle diameters, gas flow rates and lance heights. The starting time for the swirl motion was found to decrease with an increased gas flow, while the damping time was found to be independent of gas flow rate, nozzle diameter, lance height and ratio of depth to diameter.</p>

<p>Three-dimensional turbulent flow in a cylindrical hydrocyclone is considered and studied by means of computational fluid dynamics using software packages CFX and Fluent. The aim has been to identify the methods that can be used for accurate simulation of the flow in three-dimensional configurations in hydrocyclones at high swirl numbers.</p><p>As a starting point, swirling pipe flows created by tangential inlets, where detailed experimental data were available in literature, were considered. It was found that the velocity profiles for the flow with a swirl number of 2.67 could be predicted accurately using a Reynolds stress model and an accurate numerical discretization on a fine-enough mesh. At a higher swirl number, 7.84, under-prediction in the tangential velocity profiles was observed; however the prediction of the axial velocity profiles was satisfactory. The validated methods were then used to simulate the flow in a cylindrical hydrocyclone at a swirl number as large as 21. The calculated tangential velocity profiles were compared against experimental data measured with a pitometer. Acceptable agreements were recorded except near the geometric axis of the cyclone. Due to the lack of the aircore in the numerical model, disagreements near the axis of the cyclone could be expected to some extent.</p><p>Numerical experiments performed in the present work indicated that the RNG k-ε model is not likely to be capable to predict highly swirling flows accurately and a Reynolds stress model is required. For three-dimensional models, where the computing capacity and the available memory set strong restrictions on the computational mesh, optimizing the maximum mesh resolution available play an important role on the accuracy and stability of the solution procedure. The most stable results in the present study were found using the Reynolds stress model proposed by Launder et al. on an as regular and structured mesh as possible using a higher order discretization scheme in Fluent. Therefore, the meshing capabilities of the pre-processor, the available turbulence models and the accuracy of the numerical methods must be considered in parallel. Acceptable results were also generated using the Baseline Reynolds stress model implemented in CFX, however, only with a transient procedure which was likely to be more time-consuming.</p><p>Present simulations present a complex flow structure in the cylindrical cyclone with a double axial flow reversal. The effect of such a flow pattern on the fractionation of the fibres with small differences in density needs to be investigated in future studies.</p>

A study was carried out into the computational fluid dynamic simulation of bio-oil combustion. Measurements were taken in an empirical burner to obtain information regarding the flow behaviour. A surrogate fuel was developed to mimic the unique chemical and physical properties of bio-oil combustion. The resulting computational model of the burner domain and surrogate fuel was compared with empirical data. The bio-oil model displayed a good agreement with the data in terms of the combustion behaviour, but was limited by the uncertain flow solution associated with the burner used.

A study was carried out into the computational fluid dynamic simulation of bio-oil combustion. Measurements were taken in an empirical burner to obtain information regarding the flow behaviour. A surrogate fuel was developed to mimic the unique chemical and physical properties of bio-oil combustion. The resulting computational model of the burner domain and surrogate fuel was compared with empirical data. The bio-oil model displayed a good agreement with the data in terms of the combustion behaviour, but was limited by the uncertain flow solution associated with the burner used.

The aim of this thesis is to increase engine efficiency by studying the flow structures created in an engine cylinder during the intake phase and the effect of the subsequent compression. The invention of the combustion engine has enabled three centuries of economic growth fueled by energy stored as hydrocarbons. However, during the latter part of the twentieth century negative consequences on health and environment of the combustion engine were observed. In order to reduce emissions without increasing fuel consumption, improved knowledge of all physical processes occurring in the engine are necessary. The aim of this thesis is to increase the understanding of the flow prior to combustion, which can lead to reduced engine emissions and fuel consumption. Intake flow structures are studied using large eddy simulations and experiments on a steady swirl test rig. Flow acceleration was observed to reduce the swirl coefficient, and higher swirl coefficient was found during valve closing as compared to during valve opening. This implies that the rotation is stronger during the later part of the intake then what has been previously assumed. In addition, the computations show that the volume above the valves has a profound effect on the swirl created during the intake. To take this into account a novel way of calculating the swirl number was suggested. This approach gives a lower swirl number as compared to the commonly used Thien methodology. The effects of compression are studied using simulations of predefined flow structures undergoing compression. The peak turbulence levels were found to be increasing with tumble number and decreasing with swirl. It was noted that compression increased the turbulent fluctuations in the cylinder axis leading to anisotropic turbulence and that a small tilt angle was observed to have a significant effect on swirl homogeneity at top dead center.  In this thesis, a new methodology was proposed and validated for calculation of in-cylinder turbulence for a flat piston. The results of the thesis enhance the understanding of the dynamic effects encountered during intake as well recognizing that a small tumble component has a strong effect on the flow structures prior to combustion. These results can be used to improve the simplified computational methods used to optimize the engine. / <p>QC 20150420</p>

Short annular diffusers were essential components for turbomachines that have been used to expand the air entering the compressor, as interstage ducts between gas generators and power turbines, and on the exhaust gases exiting the turbine. The industrial community was interested and invested in improving diffuser design that was challenging owing to the unfavourable fluid flow effects. Efficient design of fluid flow devices was possible through the complementary use of experimental testing and computational fluid dynamics (CFD). A numerical shape optimization study was undertaken to determine preferential annular diffuser configurations. Experimental data were compared against CFD that simulated the steady-state Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations with two-equation turbulence models. This investigation reached equivalent conclusions with respect to the influences associated with diffuser geometry and swirl. Vorticity effects caused by square tabs, that were not as well understood, were investigated. The tabs were effective in reducing the central toroidal recirculation zone created by a swirling flow, but at a static pressure penalty for the area ratio, AR<2.73, diffusers tested. Results identified several shortcomings in the CFD that typically over-estimated pressure recovery and outlet velocity uniformity; however, properly qualitatively predicted wall pressure distributions and outlet velocity profiles. The use of CFD on modest grids, with preference given to the realizable k-epsilon turbulence model, for annular diffusers that have length to inlet height ratio of 12 and at least AR=2.73 with up to 20-degrees inlet swirl was encouraged as a design tool. / Thesis (Ph.D, Mechanical and Materials Engineering) -- Queen's University, 2014-05-29 09:03:16.591