Algorithm for cavity flow in a new-born goaf and experimental verification

Prevention and control measures of spontaneous combustion of coal and gas accumulation in a goaf require an accurate description of its gas flow state.However,the commonly used fluid dynamics in porous media is not suitable for the new-born goaf with fracture cavity combination,multi-scale,and large blocks.In this study,we propose a cavity flow algorithm to accurately describe the gas flow state in the new-born goaf.The genetic algorithm(GA)is used to randomly generate the binary matrix of a goaf caving shape.The difference between the gas flow state calculated by the lattice Boltzmann method(LBM)and the measured data at the boundary or internal measuring points of the real goaf is taken as the GA fitness value,and the real goaf caving shape and the gas flow state are quickly addressed by GA.The experimental model of new-born goaf is established,and the laser Doppler anemometry(LDA)experiment is carried out.The results show that the Jaccard similarity coefficient between the reconstructed caving shape and the real caving shape is 0.7473,the mean square error between the calculated wind speed and the LDA-measured value is 0.0244,and the R2 coefficient is 0.8986,which verify the feasibility of the algorithm.

Investigation of the Viscoelastic Effect on the Metzner and Otto Coefficient Through LDA Velocity Measurements

The Metzner and Otto correlation is the single practical method for incorporating non-Newtonian effects in the mixing process. In this article, the Metzner and Otto' s idea, the role of viscoelasticity on the Metzner and Otto coefficient, ks, effects of flow regime on ks and the determination of fc3 for Rushton turbine impeller have been studied using the direct method of the laser Doppler anemometry (LDA) velocity measurement for the case of viscoelastic liquids. The normalized mean tangential velocity profiles are independent of Rushton turbine impeller speeds. Contrary to literature findings, it is shown that the variation of local shear rate against the impeller speed is better correlated by the power equation, i.e. y= k'a Nb' , in the transition region, i. e. - 30 < Re <- 2000. Also, a correlation between improved coefficient, ks', and the elasticity number of viscoelastic liquids is given which is very helpful in designing of the mixing of both viscoelastic and inelastic non-Newtonian fluids through relating rheological properties to kinematical and dynamical parameters of the mixing process.

Experimental Investigation of the Decay from A Ship’s Propeller

In the present study, an experimental investigation of the decay of the maximum velocity and its turbulent characteristics behind a ship propeller, in ＂bollard pull＂ condition （zero speed of advance）, is reported. Velocity measurements were performed in laboratory by use of a Laser Doppler Anemometry （LDA） measurement system. Earlier researchers described that the maximum axial velocity is constant at the initial stage of a ship＇s propeller jet （Fuehrer and Romisch, 1977; Blaauw and van de Kaa, 1978; Berger et al, 1981; Verhey, 1983） as reported in a pure water jet （Albertson et al., 1950; Lee et al., 2002; Dai, 2005）, but a number of researchers disagreed with the constant velocity assumption. The present study found that the maximum axial velocity decays in the zone of flow establishment and the zone of established flow with different rates. The investigation provides an insight into the decays of both the maximum velocity and the maximum turbulent fluctuation in axial, tangential and radial components and the decay of the maximum turbulent kinetic energy. Empirical equations are proposed to allow coastal engineers to estimate the jet characteristics from a ship＇s propeller.

Fluid Vibration Induced in T-Junction with Double Side Branches

A T-junction is a fundamental fluid element prevalent in pipe networks of water supplies and power plants. In the present study, a double T-junction was investigated for flow instability and fluid vibration. Both axi-aligned and skewed double T-junctions are examined from viewpoint of flow instability. With single-phase flow in an open-ended double T-junction, fluid vibration is induced in both side branches because of a high shear rate with a point of inflection. The frequency of vibration in the downstream branch is higher than that in the upstream branch. Except for the upstream branch in the skewed double T-junction, the frequency is higher than that in a single T-junction. The fluid vibrations are closely associated with the fluid interference created by the presence of the two side branches.

LARGE-EDDY SIMULATION OF FLOW AROUND CYLINDER ARRAYS AT A SUBCRITICAL REYNOLDS NUMBER

The complex three-dimensional turbulent flows around a cylinder array with four cylinders in an in-line square configuration at a subcritical Reynolds number of 1.5 × 10^4 with the spacing ratio at L/D = 1.5 and 3.5 were investigated using the Large Eddy Simulation （LES）. The full field vorticity and velocity distributions as well as turbulent quantities were calculated in detail and the near wake structures were presented. The results show that the bi-stable flow nature was observed at L/D = 1.5 and distinct vortex shedding of the upstream cylinders occurred at L/D = 3.5 at Re = 1.5 × 10^4. The techniques of Laser Doppler Anemometry （LDA） and Digital Particle Image Velocimetry （DPIV） are also employed to validate the present LES method. The results show that the numerical predictions are in excellent agreement with the experimental measurements. Therefore, the full field instantaneous and mean quantities of the flow field, velocity field and vorticity field can be extracted from the LES results for further study of the complex flow characteristics.

CFD-DEM simulation of turbulence modulation in horizontal pneumatic conveying

A study is presented to evaluate the capabilities of the standard k–ε turbulence model and the k–ε turbulence model with added source terms in predicting the experimentally measured turbulence modulation due to the presence of particles in horizontal pneumatic conveying, in the context of a CFD–DEM Eulerian–Lagrangian simulation. Experiments were performed using a 6.5-m long, 0.075-m diameter horizontal pipe in conjunction with a laser Doppler anemometry （LDA） system. Spherical glass beads with two sizes, 1.5 and 2 mm, were used. Simulations were performed using the commercial discrete element method software EDEM, coupled with the computational fluid dynamics package FLUENT. Hybrid source terms were added to the conventional k–ε turbulence model to take into account the influence of the dispersed phase on the carrier phase turbulence intensity. The simulation results showed that the turbulence modulation depends strongly on the model parameter Cε3. Both the standard k–ε turbulence model and the k–ε turbulence model with the hybrid source terms could predict the gas phase turbulence intensity trend only generally. A noticeable discrepancy in all cases between simulation and experimental results was observed, particularly for the regions close to the pipe wall. It was also observed that in some cases the addition of the source terms to the k–ε turbulence model did not improve the simulation results when compared with those of the standard k–ε turbulence model. Nonetheless, in the lower part of the pipe where particle loading was greater due to gravitational effects, the model with added source terms performed somewhat better.

Experimental Studies on Turbulence Kinetic Energy in Confined Vortex Flows

Turbulence kinetic energies in confined vortex flows have been studied. The studies were based on the experiments performed in a vortex chamber. In the experiments, a Laser Doppler Anemometry (LDA) was used to perform flow measurements inside the vortex chamber, which provided the data for the kinetic energy analysis. The studies concentrated on the influences of the contraction ratio and the inlet air flow rate on the kinetic energy, and analyzed the characteristics of the kinetic energy in the confined vortex flows, including the distributions of the tangential component, radial component and total turbulence kinetic energy. In the paper, both the experimental techniques and the experimental results were presented. Based on a similarity analysis and the experimental data, an empirical scaling formula was proposed so that the tangential component of the turbulence kinetic energy was dependent only on the parameter of the contraction ratio.