Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Edited by

N Rhodes

Published by Professional Engineering Publishing Limited,

Bury St Edmunds and London, UK.

First Published 2001

This publication is copyright under the Berne Convention and the International Copyright Convention.
All rights reserved. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or
review, as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, no part may be reproduced,
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addressed to: The Publishing Editor, Professional Engineering Publishing Limited, Northgate Avenue,
Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk, IP32 6BW, UK. Fax: +44 (0)1284 705271.

2001, with Authors unless otherwise stated.

ISBN 1 86058 3520

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

Printed by The Cromwell Press, Trowbridge, Wiltshire, UK.

The Publishers are not responsible for any statement made in this publication. Data, discussion, and conclusions
developed by authors are for information only and are not intended for use without independent substantiating
investigation on the part of potential users. Opinions expressed are those of the Author and are not necessarily
those of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers or its Publishers.

Contents
Author's Details

iv

About the Editor

Foreword
Chapter 1
Chapter 2

vii
The Issue of Numerical Accuracy in Computational Fluid Dynamics
D Drikakis

Detection of Multiple Solutions using a Mid-cell Back Substitution

Technique Applied to Computational Fluid Dynamics
S R Kendall and H V Rao

23

A Comparison of a Conventional RANS and a Lattice Gas Dynamics

Simulation - a Case Study in High-speed Rail Aerodynamics
A Gaylard

43

Mesh Generation - the Ricardo Philosophy

S M Sapsford and M E A Bardsley

57

Chapter 5

The Validation of Rapid CFD Modelling for Turbomachinery

H-H Tsuei, K Oliphant, and D Japikse

67

Chapter 6

Numerical Determination of Windage Losses on High-speed Rotating

Discs
S Romero-Hernandez, M R E Etemad, and K R Pullen

91

Computational Fluid Dynamics for Gas Turbine Combustion

Systems - where are we now and where are we going?
K Menzies

99

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Using CFD to Investigate Combustion in a Cement Manufacturing

Process
D Giddings, S J Pickering, K Simmons, and C N Eastwick

113

Chapter 9

Validation of the Coal Combustion Capability in the Star-CD Code

A Ghobadian, F Lee, and P Stephenson

123

Chapter 10

Blast Wave Simulation

M Docton, S Rees, and S Harrison

131

Built Environment Simulations using CFD

D Woolf and G Davies

143

Chapter 12

Using CFD in the Design of Electric Motors and Generators

S J Pickering, D Lampard, J Mugglestone, M Shanel, and D Birse

151

Chapter 13

CFD Modelling of a Two-phase Mixing/Separation Flow

WM Dempster

161

CFD Computation of Air-Oil Separation in an Engine Breather

I Care, C Eastwick, S Hibberd, K Simmons, and Y Wang

175

Cavitation in a Pressure-activated Ball Valve

FGMendonca

187

Chapter 11

Chapter 14
Chapter 15

Authors' Index

198

Subject Index

199

iv

Authors' Details
Details of contributing authors are listed below.
Chapter 1 - The Issue of Numerical Accuracy in Computational Fluid Dynamics
D Drikakis, Department of Engineering, Queen Mary, University of London, UK
Chapter 2 - Detection of Multiple Solutions using a Mid-cell Back Substitution Technique
Applied to Computational Fluid Dynamics
S K Kendall and H V Rao, Department of Engineering, The University of Huddersfield, UK
Chapter 3 - A Comparison of a Conventional RANS and a Lattice Gas Dynamics Simulation - a
Case Study in High-speed Rail Aerodynamics
A Gaylard, Aerodynamics and CFD, MIRA, Nuneaton, UK
Chapter 4 - Mesh Generation - the Ricardo Philosophy
S M Sapsford and M E A Bardsley, Ricardo Consulting Engineers Limited, Shoreham-by-Sea, UK
Chapter 5 - The Validation of Rapid CFD Modelling for Turbomachinery
H-H Tsuei, K Oliphant, and D Japikse, Concepts NREC Inc., Sandy, Utah, USA
Chapter 6 - Numerical Determination of Windage Losses on High-speed Rotating Discs
S Romero-Hernandez, M RE Etemad, and K R Pullen, CASE Section, Department of Mechanical
Engineering, Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, London, UK
Chapter 7 - Computational Fluid Dynamics for Gas Turbine Combustion Systems - where are
we now and where are we going?
K Menzies, Combustion Systems - Engineering, Rolls-Royce pic, Bristol, UK
Chapter 8 - Using CFD to Investigate Combustion in a Cement Manufacturing Process
D Giddings, S J Pickering, K Simmons, and C N Eastwick, School of Mechanical, Materials,
Manufacturing Engineering, and Management, The University of Nottingham, UK
Chapter 9 - Validation of the Coal Combustion Capability in the Star-CD Code
A Ghobadian and F Lee, Computational Dynamics Limited, London, UK; P Stephenson, Innogy pic,
Swindon, UK
Chapter 10 - Blast Wave Simulation
M Docton, S Rees, and S Harrison, Frazer-Nash Consultancy Limited, Dorking, UK
Chapter 11 - Built Environment Simulations using CFD
D Wool/and G Davies, Ove Arup and Partners, London, UK
Chapter 12 - Using CFD in the Design of Electric Motors and Generators
S J Pickering, D Lampard, J Mugglestone, and M Shanel, School of Mechanical, Materials,
Manufacturing Engineering, and Management, The University of Nottingham, UK; D Birse,
ALSTOM Electrical Machines Limited, Rugby, UK
Chapter 13 - CFD Modelling of a Two-phase Mixing/Separation Flow
W M Dempster, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK
Chapter 14 - CFD Computation of Air-Oil Separation in an Engine Breather
/ Care, Rolls-Royce pic, Derby, UK; C N Eastwick, S Hibberd, K Simmons, and Y Wang, University of
Nottingham Rolls-Royce UTC, UK
Chapter 15 - Cavitation in a Pressure-activated Ball Valve
F G Mendonca, Computational Dynamics Limited, London, UK

About the Editor

Dr Norman Rhodes, BSc MSc PhD FIMechE CEng, is Divisional Director at Mott
MacDonald, and head of Mott MacDonald's Simulation and Modelling Group. He is
responsible for the application of flow simulation techniques to solve engineering design
problems. He has been actively involved in CFD work for over 20 years. Major areas of
work include fire and smoke control, complex ventilation system evaluation, and fluid
dynamics of heat-exchange processes.
Dr Rhodes is Chairman of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers 'Energy Transfer and
Thermofluid Mechanics Group' and is Secretary of the Permanent International Association
of Road Congresses (PIARC) working group on 'Fire and Smoke Control in Tunnels'.

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vii

Foreword
Most fluid dynamic situations are characterized by three-dimensionality, turbulence,
and the interactive effects of physical processes such as combustion, heat transfer, and
buoyancy. These factors are, in turn, influenced by the geometrical nature of the
problem and the engineering systems which may be in place or under design.
Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) techniques are increasingly used to study and
understand such situations.
The advantage of the CFD approach is that the complex physical interactions which
occur in a problem can be modelled simultaneously, and hence, their relative influence
on the total behaviour understood. However, complete fundamental knowledge of all
the underlying physics may not exist, and there are, therefore, inherent assumptions in
the mathematical process which give rise to possible inaccuracy. With care, however,
these approximations can be minimized to a level where the accuracy of CFD
techniques is perfectly satisfactory for design purposes.
The availability of general-purpose CFD codes now make the application of these
techniques relatively easy, but they do not supply the engineering knowledge or wisdom
to apply them correctly. It is important, therefore, to understand how CFD is applied,
the approximations used, and the factors which influence the accuracy of any
simulation.
The purpose of the seminar held at the Institution of Mechanical Engineers on which
this book is based, was to provide a forum for the discussion of challenging applications
of CFD and to identify the developments in techniques which are likely to occur in the
next generation of codes. The examples provided in this volume give a wide range of
CFD applications, show the versatility of the techniques and provide the reader with
some hints on best practice.
Validation of CFD models is greatly encouraged. It is worth reflecting that there are
said to be two kinds of fluid dynamicists, those who engage themselves in numerical
analysis of fluids and those who determine fluid behaviour from experiments. It is
generally held that no one believes the results of a numerical analysis of fluid flow
except the numerical analyst and everyone believes the results of the experiment except
the experimentalist!
There is, sadly, some truth in this anecdote. Experiments are real, a numerical analysis
is a simulation; experiments are difficult to reproduce and ensure correct measurement,
simulations can be repeated in a more controlled way; much of engineering science is
supported by experiment and observation, simulation with computers is relatively new
and requires a different background knowledge, which this book goes a little way to
provide.

Dr Norman Rhodes
c/o HNTB, USA
June 2001

This page intentionally left blank

1
The Issue of Numerical Accuracy in
Computational Fluid Dynamics
D Drikakis

Synopsis
This chapter reviews various issues regarding the accuracy and efficiency of numerical
methods used in the simulation of incompressible and compressible flows. The methods
include high-resolution and high-order discretization schemes, explicit and implicit solvers,
and non-linear multigrid methods. The potential to apply these methods as an 'implicit
modelling' approach in the simulation of transitional and turbulent flows of engineering
interest, is also discussed in contrast to the current turbulence modelling practices.

1.1

Introduction

The accuracy and efficiency of computations of transport phenomena depend strongly on the
numerical properties of the discretization scheme and iterative solver employed for solving
the system of equations describing these phenomena. The practice during code development
is to check the accuracy of the methods/models by comparing the numerical results with
analytic solutions, wherever possible, and/or experimental data, if available. Analytic
solutions exist only for a very limited number of simple flows. Experiments specifically
designed for Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) validation purposes are expensive and
time-consuming to be set up. Yet, they are not free of shortcomings and difficulties due to
instrumentation constraints.
To increase the reliability of numerical simulations the common practice is to obtain grid and
time-step independent solutions. This can possibly be achieved for two-dimensional laminar
flows, but it would be a hopeless task for three-dimensional, transitional, and turbulent flows.
The difficulties to obtain reliable solutions are even more severe in the case of time-dependent
simulations because the grid-independence investigations should always be accompanied by
time-step independence studies. The above difficulties impose stringent constraints in our
ability to provide reliable results in short turnaround times, the latter being extremely

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

important in an industrial design environment, but they also motivate research in the two
directions:
(i)
(ii)

To develop high-resolution and high-order methods in both space and time, which
would enable us to attain the desired accuracy without resorting to very fine meshes that
are not affordable with current computers;
to develop advanced numerical solvers such as non-linear multigrid methods, for
accelerating the solution of the fluid flow equations.

There are indications (l)-(3) emerging from research on numerical methods carried out over
the past two decades, but more intensively over the past few years, which conspire to the fact
that a class of fluid dynamics numerical algorithms called non-linear monotone, highresolution, and high-order methods can provide accurate results in coarsely resolved
simulations. Most of the non-linear monotone schemes originate from Godunov's method (4)
and were originally designed to capture shocks and other discontinuities (5)-(17) while more
recently, Godunov-type schemes have also been developed for incompressible flows (18)(21). The implementation of these schemes in conjunction with non-linear multigrid solvers,
e.g. (22), implicit relaxation methods, e.g. (23), and/or high-order explicit solvers, e.g. (24),
can lead to fast solutions of physically complex flows even on personal computers or desktop
workstations.
The chapter presents an overview of the above methods and discusses by means of various
computational examples, from the author's research work, the current status and challenges
that lie ahead.

1.2

High-resolution and high-order of accuracy

1.2.1 Governing equations

The physics of incompressible and compressible flows is governed by the Navier-Stokes
equations. These equations can be solved by considering the coupled generalized conservation
laws, i.e. the continuity, momentum, and energy equations

where v, p, e, and q stand for the velocity components, density, total energy per unit volume,
and heat flux, respectively. The pressure tensor P is defined by

where, p(p,T) is the scalar pressure, l i s a unit diagonal tensor, T is the temperature, and n is
the dynamic viscosity coefficient. To complete the above system, an equation of state (EOS)
for the scalar pressure must be employed. In the case of a perfect gas the EOS is: p=pRT,
where R is the gas constant.

The Issue of Numerical Accuracy in Computational Fluid Dynamics

The coupled system of the above equations can also be written in a matrix form, for a general
curvilinear co-ordinates system as

where the indices 7 and V stand for the inviscid and viscous fluxes, respectively.
U = (p, p v, e)T is the unknown solution vector; E, F, and G are the fluxes that contain the
inviscid and viscous terms; , r;, and are the curvilinear co-ordinates; J is the Jacobian of
the grid transformation from Cartesian to curvilinear co-ordinates, and H contains source
terms arising from external forces, turbulence modelling, chemical reactions etc. When no
physical diffusion effects are considered, such as viscosity, thermal conduction or molecular
diffusion, the fluxes with the subscript V can be dropped thus obtaining the Euler equations.
1.2.2
Monotonicity, conservation, and bounded total variation
The numerical solution of the Euler and Navier-Stokes equations requires careful
discretization of the spatial and time derivatives. It is broadly accepted that the numerical
accuracy is mainly affected by the discretization of the advective terms (inviscid fluxes in
(5)). There are a number of different methods that can be utilized to discretize these terms but
regardless of their details, the accuracy is dependent on four fundamental numerical
properties:
(i)
(ii)
(iii)
(iv)

Monotonicity;
Total Variation Diminishing (TVD);
Conservation; and
Entropy condition.

The latter is primarily associated with the computation of flows containing discontinuities. A
numerical scheme is considered as monotone if it does not lead to an oscillatory behaviour of
the numerical solution. The monotonicity condition is also strongly linked to the concept of
bounded total variation which says that the total variation, (TV)

of any physically admissible solution u does not increase in time. Conservation implies that
the mass, momentum, and kinetic energy integrated over the computational space do not
change due to the algorithm. Finally, the entropy condition is related to the fact that certain
numerical schemes provide solutions not physically acceptable, since they are associated with
a decrease in entropy which is not, however, allowed by the second principle of
thermodyn amic s.
The above properties are strongly linked to two numerical effects that can be introduced in the
numerical solution, namely the numerical dispersion and numerical diffusion (dissipation).
From the computational view point, the challenge is to design numerical methods which
would minimize the above effects. Spectral methods (25) have been used in flows with simple
geometries in order to reduce numerical dissipation. However, apart from the difficulty of
extending these methods for complex geometries, there exist additional difficulties associated
with aliasing errors resulting from the evaluation of non-linear terms on a discrete grid as well
as from the Gibbs phenomenon of oscillations, especially in the case of flows with
discontinuities. These effects become even more important under the presence of steep
gradients and have been extensively discussed in the literature (25), (26).

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

A promising route for developing accurate numerical methods which can also be applicable to
engineering flows, is the non-linear monotone schemes in the context of finite volume
methods. The state of the art of these schemes aiming at satisfying the aforementioned
properties are also referred to as high-resolution and high-order methods. These methods
emerge from the theory of hyperbolic conservation laws and the original Godunov method
(4). The latter is the forerunner of all the well known approximate Riemann solvers, e.g. (7),
(8), upwind Godunov schemes, e.g. (6), (10), (11), (14), TVD methods, e.g. (9), (12), (13),
(15), and of schemes with order of accuracy higher than two (see discussion in Section. 1.2.4).
1.2.3 High resolution
High-resolution schemes are those with the following properties (9), (17):
(i) Provide at least second order of accuracy in smooth areas of the flow;
(ii) Produce numerical solutions free from spurious oscillations; and
(iii) In the case of discontinuities, the number of grid points in the transition zone containing
the shock wave is smaller in comparison with that of first-order monotone methods.
High-resolution can be realized by numerically reconstructing the variables at the cell faces of
a computational volume via the solution of a Riemann problem. This can be achieved by
using Godunov-type methods which offer an ingenious computational framework for
developing schemes that adjust the amount of numerical dissipation locally, i.e. at the cell
faces, in order to maintain monotonicity and conservation.
The reconstruction of the variables should be at least second-order accurate and can be
obtained by deriving average procedures for the calculation of the unknown variables, which
take into account the characteristic signal velocities. The latter are defined by the eigenvalues
of the Euler equations. In the case of multi-dimensional and multi-physics problems the
reconstruction can be obtained not only for the velocity, energy, as well as density and/or
pressure variables, but also for the unknown variables of any additional partial differential
equations arising from modelling considerations and conservation laws describing the multiphysics nature of a problem.
High-resolution Godunov-type methods can provide accurate results in complex unsteady
flows even when coarse grids are employed. In Fig. 1.1 we present results from simulations
(16) of unsteady shock-wave diffraction over a cylinder. A series of investigations regarding
shock-wave diffraction have been performed by the author and his collaborators over the past
few years (16), (27), (28), due to the importance of this problem in explosion dynamics. The
computations in (16) were performed on coarse grids without local grid-refinement, using
hybrid upwind Godunov-type methods. The predictions for the pressure loads on the cylinder
surface were compared with the corresponding results from unstructured adaptive-grid
computations (27). As can be seen from Fig. 1.1, without using grid adaptation the results
obtained by the Godunov-type methods on coarse grids are comparable to those obtained by
utilizing adaptive grids.
Two further examples from the author's work on high-resolution Godunov-type methods for
compressible and incompressible flows are given below. In (23), the generalized Riemann
problem has been considered for the case of compressible turbulent flows; the latter being
modelled by using statistical turbulence models in the context of two and three-equation
linear and non-linear eddy-viscosity models, e.g. k-e and k-a> models, where, k, e, and co
stand for the turbulent kinetic energy, turbulent dissipation rate, and specific turbulent

The Issue of Numerical Accuracy in Computational Fluid Dynamics

Fig. 1.1 Unsteady shock-wave diffraction around a cylinder at an incident Mach

number Af; =5;
(a) wall pressure histories at different positions around the cylinder using:
(i) different Godunov-type methods (16) and a coarse structuredbased grid without adaptation and
(ii) unstructured adaptive grids (27).

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Fig. 1.1 Unsteady shock-wave diffraction around a cylinder at an incident Mach

number Mm =5;
(b) isodensity contours at different time instants

The Issue of Numerical Accuracy in Computational Fluid Dynamics

dissipation rate, respectively. According to (23), the reconstructed variables (denoted below
by tilde), for a two-dimensional Cartesian co-ordinate system1 by

where H is the total enthalpy of the fluid and XQ is the zeroth eigenvalue. The terms RI and R2
are functions of the mean, PJ, (pu)j, (pv)j, ej, as well as of the turbulent, (pk)j, (pe)j, flow
variables defined on the three characteristics denoted by the index j = 0, 1, 2. The functions RI
and R2, as well as the reconstructed variables in equation (1.6), are analytically derived (23).
The advective fluxes 1, F1, and G1 in equation (1.5) are calculated using the tilde variables
(1.6). Reconstructions such as the above provide better accuracy as well as direct coupling of
the Navier-Stokes and turbulence transport equations through the functions R1 and R2. Results
for both steady and unsteady flows using the above Godunov-type scheme can be found in
(23), (29)(30).
Similar Godunov-type reconstructions can also be constructed for incompressible flows. The
incompressible Navier-Stokes equations are derived under the assumption of constant density
flow. In this case, the continuity and momentum equations are decoupled because no pressure
or density terms appear in the former. One way to directly couple the equations is to use the
artificial-compressibility (AC) approach proposed by Chorin (31). A pseudo-time derivative
of pressure, (F'dp/dr (P is the artificial compressibility parameter), is added to the continuity
equation thus providing coupling between continuity and momentum equations in the case of
constant density flows. For steady flows the pseudo-time pressure derivative will become zero
as the steady state is approached. The AC approach can also be extended to time-dependent
flows via dual-time stepping (21), (32)-(34).
Various Godunov-type methods for incompressible flows have been presented in the literature
(18), (19), (21). The characteristic-based method of (19), (21) defines the primitive variables
for a two-dimensional Cartesian co-ordinate system2 by

where AQ = u, ^ = A0 + s, A2 = A0 - s, and s = JAQ2 + /J . Similarly to equation (1.6), in

equation (1.7) the indices also denote the corresponding characteristics. The variables on the
1 The definition of the reconstructed compressible flow variables for a curvilinear co-ordinate system can be
found in (23).
2 The definition of the reconstructed incompressible flow variables for a curvilinear co-ordinates system can be
found in (19) and (21) for two-dimensional and three-dimensional problems, respectively.

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

characteristics are defined by second-, or higher-order interpolation from the values in the
neighbouring cells (19), (21). Similarly to the compressible flow case, the advective fluxes of
the incompressible equations are calculated using the tilde variables of equation (1.7).
Results from the implementation of the above method in incompressible flows featuring
instabilities and transition to turbulence (35), (36) are discussed below. The study of two- and
three-dimensional instabilities in channel flows at relatively low Reynolds numbers is
motivated by the increasing interest in understanding transport phenomena appearing in nanoengineering applications. In Fig. 1.2, we present the development of instabilities at different
Reynolds numbers for two-dimensional suddenly-expanded flows (35); the instabilities
appear as asymmetric separation, though the geometry as well as the initial and boundary
conditions are perfectly symmetric. Our results are in agreement with the stability analysis of
this flow (37). We also found (35) that the onset of the instability is affected by the order of
interpolation employed in calculating the characteristic variables (35). The best results were
achieved for a third-order Godunov-type interpolation.

Fig. 1.2 Simulation of incompressible suddenly-expanded flows featuring

instabilities (35), using a high-resolution Godunov-type scheme (19), (20).
The instability grows as the Reynolds number increases.

The Issue of Numerical Accuracy in Computational Fluid Dynamics

More recently, we have also conducted investigations of three-dimensional instabilities and

laminar-to-turbulent transition in pulsatile flows through a stenosis (36). In the context of
biofluid mechanics, the computational study of flows through stenoses is motivated by the
need to obtain a better understanding of the impact of flow phenomena on diseases such as
atherosclerosis and stroke. These phenomena include asymmetric flow separation,
instabilities, laminar-to-turbulent transition and turbulence; the above have profound effects
on the wall-shear stress distribution. Yet, understanding of these phenomena can potentially
lead to the development of better diagnostic criteria and clinical detection techniques, e.g.
ultrasound. In Fig. 1.3, we show the stenosis model used in our investigation (36) as well as
the development of the instability downstream of the stenosis.
In this section the discussion focused on high-resolution Godunov-type methods that provide
second-order of accuracy3. In the next section, we discuss various ways to increase the global
accuracy of the discretization beyond second-order.
1.2.4
High-order of accuracy
High-order methods aim to increase the accuracy and, simultaneously, avoid spurious
oscillations. The investigation of numerical schemes with order of accuracy higher than two
was initiated in the 1980s by Harten et al. (39) with the development of the essentially nonoscillatory schemes (ENO). Most of the research in this area has been performed in
connection with the one-dimensional equations of gas dynamics (24), (40).
The basic idea behind ENO schemes is to avoid growth of spurious oscillations by defining
the fluxes within an interpolating stencil in such a way that the solution is, possibly, the
smoothest one. Using the ENO approach the accuracy of the flux calculation can go beyond
second-order of accuracy but the implementation of these schemes is not trivial at all.
Here, we briefly discuss the uniformly high-order (UHO) scheme of (21). This scheme also
draws from the ideas underlying the essentially nonoscillatory (ENO) approach (24), (39). It
aims at increasing the accuracy of the intercell fluxes via a high-order interpolation (flux
reconstruction) procedure that can be briefly summarized as follows.
The characteristic-based scheme of (19) is initially used to provide a first approximation for
the advective fluxes, e.g. (E1),-, at the cell centers i. Then, the cell-centered approximated
fluxes are interpolated to provide high-order accurate left (EL) and right (ER) intercell fluxes.
For example, the Eg flux is defined by

where r denotes the order of accuracy of the resulting scheme, with n = 0 V r > 3 and n - 1 if
r = 3; and the coefficients a[ are constant weights, defined by an analytic procedure that
minimizes the numerical dissipation and dispersion (21). This high-order interpolation can be
retained throughout the computations only in the case of periodic boundaries; in the vicinity
of solid boundaries the second-order-accurate scheme would be used. Finally, the left and
right intercell fluxes can be combined by using the Lax-Friedrichs (41), Roe (7), or (42)
3 We refer to second-order of accuracy in both space and time. We also note that some methods, e.g. (15),
provide directly second-order of accuracy in space and time, where in other cases, e.g. the characteristicbased scheme (19), (21), the global accuracy is achieved only by combining the Godunov-type method with
high-order TVD Runge-Kutta schemes (24).

10

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

schemes to calculate the new intercell flux E1+1/2 which is subsequently used in the
discretization of the advective flux derivative, i.e. dE /' dx = v(E i+l/ 2,>.; - EI-1/2.J''
) / Az .

Fig. 1.3 Study of incompressible three-dimensional pulsatile flow through a

stenosis (36) using a high-resolution Godunov-type scheme (19), (20). The
upper plot shows the stenosis model and inlet waveform while the lower
plot shows, by means of the velocity isosurface u - 0.92, the development
of the instability downstream of the stenosis. The instability results in
complete breaking of the axisymmetry of the flow and transition to
turbulence.
The third-order version of the method has been recently implemented with success in
incompressible flows featuring complex vortical structures (3), (21), and some results are

The Issue of Numerical Accuracy in Computational Fluid Dynamics

11

presented below. In Fig. 1.4, the instantaneous solutions from the simulation of a periodic
double mixing layer at Re=5000 are compared using three different numerical methods:
(i)

The uniformly high-order scheme (UHO) (21) in conjunction with a characteristicbased method (CBM) (19), (20);
(ii) The first-order; and
(iii) Second-order Rusanov flux (42).
The second-order flux is utilized in conjunction with the MUSCL scheme (6).

Fig. 1.4 Instantaneous plots from simulations (21) of a double mixing layer
(Re = 5000; 64 x 64 grid). Comparison of the results obtained by
the 3rd-order uniformly high-order (UHO) - characteristic-based
method (CBM) (21) with the corresponding results obtained by
first- and second-order accurate Godunov-type schemes (42).

12

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

The results of Fig. 1.4 have been obtained on a (coarse) 64 x 64 grid in order to examine the
accuracy of the schemes in under-resolved simulations. The flow evolution on a 128 x 128
grid is shown in Fig. 1.5. The results reveal that the increased dissipation exhibited by firstand second-order schemes leads to a misrepresentation of the flow structures in the case of
under-resolved simulations, while using higher-order discretization most of the flow features
are captured even on the coarse grid.

Fig. 1.5 Evolution of a double mixing layer as predicted on a

128 x 128 grid by the third-order UHO-CBM scheme
(21).

1.3. Robustness and efficiency

In addition to the accuracy issue, another central issue regarding the implementation of
numerical methods is to obtain efficient solutions regardless of the complexity of the flow
problem and with the minimum possible adjustments of numerical parameters, e.g. time step,
under-relaxation coefficients, flux limiters, multigrid sub-iterations.
A factor that can significantly affect the performance of a CFD code is the iterative method
used to march the numerical solution towards convergence, in both steady and time-

The Issue of Numerical Accuracy in Computational Fluid Dynamics

13

dependent flows. The numerical solvers can be broadly classified into explicit and implicit
methods. The choice of the method is strongly related to the physical scales needed to be
resolved as well as to the time step limitations imposed by the small grid spacing in certain
regions of the computational domain, e.g. near solid boundaries. A possible approach is to
solve all transport equations using a Runge-Kutta explicit method. Such a scheme is
relatively easy to implement but it results in CFL numbers less than 1 in theory, and about
0.5, in practice. Although explicit solvers exhibit slow convergence rates, their ease of
implementation makes them very attractive, especially when they are combined with
advanced convergence acceleration techniques such as multigrid methods, e.g. (22), (43).
A second approach is to use implicit-unfactored relaxation schemes, e.g. (45), (46). These
provide higher CFL number than explicit and implicit-factorization methods. Concerning
additional equations arising from modelling, e.g. the turbulence transport equations, one can
implement them in conjunction with the fluid flow equations following a loosely-coupled
approach (henceforth labelled 'implicit-decoupled'). A block-implicit solution for the NavierStokes equations is first obtained followed by the solution of the turbulence transport
equations. Due to the decoupling of the fluid flow and turbulent transport equations the
convergence rates may significantly decrease, especially in time-dependent flows.
Finally, a third approach is to solve all equations in a strongly coupled fashion using an
implicit method (23), (29), (46); this approach is labelled 'implicit-coupled'. The implicitcoupled approach provides robust solutions but it is more complicated in the development,
e.g. for three-dimensional compressible flows using a two-equation turbulence model, the
Jacoby and eigenvector matrices for seven equations should be derived and numerically
implemented. Comparison between explicit, implicit-decoupled, and implicit-coupled
solutions is shown in Fig. 1.6 for the case of compressible flow around an axisymmetric body,
featuring shock/boundary-layer interaction and separation.
One particularly attractive alternative to implicit-unfactored methods is the use of non-linear
multigrid schemes, e.g. (22), in conjunction with explicit TVD Runge-Kutta methods (24).
The latter can provide third- or fourth-order accurate discretization in time and, additionally,
offer a flexible framework for extending the computer code with additional differential
equations in the case of multi-physics flow problems. For the case of the Navier-Stokes
equations the non-linear multigrid method of (22) is realized via an unsteady-type procedure.
The equations are not solved exactly on the coarsest grid but some pseudotime iterations are
performed on the finer grids and some on the coarsest grid. Numerical experiments showed
that significant acceleration can be achieved in both steady (22) and time-dependent flow
problems (21). In time accurate computations the multigrid solution of the equations is
obtained by performing multigrid cycles at each real time step (Fig. 1.7). Results from the
acceleration of the numerical convergence using the above method are shown in Fig. 1.8 for
the case of three-dimensional flow in a channel with a 90 degree bend (see (22) for more
details).
More recently, the development of dynamically-adaptive multigrid methods for the NavierStokes equations has also been presented (44). The dynamically-adaptive multigrid exploits
the non-uniform convergence behaviour of the numerical solution during the iterations and
solves the equations only in those cells for which convergence has not yet been achieved. As
a result, the size of the computational problem is adaptively and progressively reduced, and so
is the computing time.

14

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Fig. 1.6 Comparison of convergence histories between implicit-coupled, implicitdecoupled and explicit solvers for a transonic turbulent, compressible,
flow featuring shock/boundary layer interaction and separation (23).

Fig. 1.7 Schematic representation of the non-linear multigrid method of (22)

for time-dependent simulations (3), (21).

The Issue of Numerical Accuracy in Computational Fluid Dynamics

15

Fig. 1.8 Acceleration of the convergence using the non-linear multigrid

method for three-dimensional flow in a channel with a 90 degree
bend (22). The single grid and mesh-sequencing convergence
histories have also been plotted for comparison purposes. The meshsequencing provides a better initial guess for the fine grid
computations by utilizing a sequence of coarse grids (without using
multigrid) and interpolating the most recent coarse-grid solution
onto the fine grid (see (22) for more details).

1.4. Simulation of turbulent flows

The computation of turbulent shear flows has been mainly pursued by three different
approaches:
(i) The Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS);
(ii) The large eddy simulation (LES);
(iii) The direct numerical simulation (DNS).

16

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

The RANS approach is the most broadly used in the context of engineering flows. So far, the
main issue in connection with RANS has been the development of statistical turbulence
models in the context of linear and non-linear eddy-viscosity models, and second-moment
closures. In all cases additional transport equations require solution in conjunction with the
Navier-Stokes equations. The primary aim of RANS turbulence modelling is to create a
simpler framework for simulating flows of engineering interest. However, this is far from
being the case, especially when complex models such as non-linear eddy-viscosity models
(NLEVM), e.g. (47), are employed. Numerical implementation of these models is not a trivial
task, since the details of the implementation may have profound effects on the convergence.
Complex models such as NLEVM and second-moment closures are far from being
numerically robust, and significant efforts still need to be spent with respect to improving
both their accuracy and efficiency.
Implementation of NLEVM in conjunction with Godunov-type methods and implicit schemes
has been presented by the author and his collaborators in the recent past for both steady and
unsteady compressible flows (30), (48). Results from dynamic-stall simulations around an
oscillating aerofoil are shown in Fig. 1.9. We note that similar vortex flow phenomena occur
in both oscillating and ramping aerofoils (Fig. 1.9). The results for the oscillating aerofoil
correspond to subsonic flow conditions (Mra = 0.2, Re = 106) with mean incidence angle
o = 15 degrees, amplitude, and reduced-frequency of oscillations i = 10 degrees and
/* = 0.1, respectively. The computations for the unsteady airloads have been compared with
the corresponding experimental results from (50). The NLEVM provides overall better results
but the differences between experiments and computations are still substantial. Moreover,
long computing times can be required in the case of complex models such as NLEVM or
second-moment closures. It has also been found (48) that in many flow cases the one-equation
Spalart-Allmaras model (52) can provide similar results to the NLEVM. This can also be
seen in the results (Fig. 1.10) from transonic buffet computations (53), where similar
predictions for the buffet onset are obtained by the one-equation Spalart-Allmaras (52) and a
non-linear eddy-viscosity model (47).
Concerning the LES approach the main issue is to account for the unresolved small scales. In
the context of LES the unresolved structures are represented by a subgrid scale model (SGS).
The modelling difficulties, particularly in wall bounded flows, seem to be similar to those
encountered in the RANS approach. Additionally, LES requires fully three-dimensional
unsteady computations to be performed, though some successful two-dimensional simulations
of flows with large separation have also been reported (55). Yet, the classical LES approach
resorts to very fine meshes, though coarser than those used in DNS. The objective of DNS is
to resolve all scales of turbulent motion down to the Kolmogorov eddy. Adequate resolution
must ensure that simulated structures are correct and not numerical artifacts. However,
currently DNS for turbulent flows of engineering interest is not feasible due to the lack of
adequate computing resources.
In the case of simulations of complex engineering flows the question is also whether one
needs to simulate the flow down to the smallest scale. The Kolmogorov spectrum (56)
describes how the energy density of turbulent structures decreases rapidly with increasing the
wave number, where the Kolmogorov scale is the scale at which the viscous dissipation
dominates the inertial flow of the fluid. The downward transfer of energy from large to small
scales is called the turbulent cascade process. The latter stops at the Kolmogorov scale, where
an eddy is so small that it diffuses rapidly. Previous computations, experiments and
theoretical analysis (see e.g. (1) has shown that the physics of the turbulent cascade is
controlled by the macroscopic scales of the flow and the process of dissipation of this energy

The Issue of Numerical Accuracy in Computational Fluid Dynamics

17

due to molecular viscosity takes place primarily at scales considerably larger than the
Kolmogorov scale. Another important issue is that the energy transfer is dominated by local
interactions. In other words, the energy does not skip from the large to the small scales, but
the energy extraction from a given scale occurs as a result of interactions with eddies no more
than an order of magnitude smaller.

Fig. 1.9 Results from dynamic stall simulations (48), (49) around a NACA 0012
aerofoil at subsonic deep-stall flow conditions. The upper plots show the
density field at maximum incidence for an oscillating and a ramping NACA0012 aerofoil (see (48), (49) for more details). The lower plots compare the
results between a linear (LS) (51) and a non-linear EVM (NL) (47) for the lift
and drag coefficients. The experimental results are from (50).

18

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Fig. 1.10 Results (53) for the buffet onset (angle of incidence versus Mach number) for a
transonic turbulent flow around a NACA-0012 aerofoil using a Godunov-type
method (23) in conjunction with an implicit-unfactored solver (29), (46). The
solutions obtained by the one-equation SA model (52) (crosses) and a nonlinear eddy-viscosity model (47) (squares), are compared with the
experimental results from (54); SIO stands for 'shock-induced oscillations'.
The flow field at different time instants is also shown.

The Issue of Numerical Accuracy in Computational Fluid Dynamics

19

The above advocate that accurate simulation of turbulent flows can possibly be performed at
scales much larger than the Kolmogorov scale. Independent research studies (l)-(3), (21),
have shown that LES of turbulent flows can also be performed on coarse grids without using a
SGS model, if high-resolution monotone methods are employed for solving the flow
equations. In this case the numerical solution of the Navier-Stokes equations is filtered
through the numerical scheme and the accuracy of the simulation relies entirely on the
dissipation and dispersion properties of the non-linear monotone advection method.

Fig. 1.11 Kurtosis distributions for the Burgers' turbulence using different
computational approaches (3) (see the text for more details). The best
results are obtained by the TVD-CB Godunov-type scheme without using
a SGS model.
In (3), this approach is referred to as
direction, particular efforts should be
monotone schemes which would lead to
An example from our recent work on

'VLES' or 'Very Large Eddy Simulation'. In this

spent in developing and investigating non-linear
accurate representation of the large energetic scales.
VLES is shown in Fig. 1.11. We have performed

20

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

simulations in the context of Burgers' turbulence4 (57), (58) by employing different

Godunov-type methods with and without utilizing a SGS model. In Fig. 1.11, we show results
from high-order statistics as obtained by the VLES computations using the following three
approaches:
(i)
(ii)

The Godunov-type CB scheme without a SGS model (this solution is labelled 'CB');
A recently developed TVD version of the CB scheme (3) without a SGS model (this
solution is labelled TVD-CB');
(iii) The CB scheme in conjunction with the modified version (59) of the dynamic SGS
model (60) (this solution is labelled 'D-Model').

The above solutions are compared with the results obtained by DNS of the Burgers'
turbulence, using a very fine grid and a small time step (3). The computations reveal that the
best results are obtained by the TVD-CB scheme without using a SGS. Moreover, the addition
of the SGS model on the CB scheme does not lead, overall, to better results. In (3), we have
also performed similar investigations for mixing layer flows. Currently, we are also
conducting studies regarding the use of the TVD-CB scheme and other Godunov-type
methods as an 'implicit modelling' approach in complex transitional and turbulent flows of
engineering interest.

1.5. Concluding remarks

We discussed a number of computational approaches for simulating steady and timedependent, laminar and turbulent, as well as incompressible and compressible flows. We
highlighted, in particular, the benefits with respect to numerical accuracy that one can derive
by using non-linear monotone methods such as Godunov-type methods. Intensive research
using these methods for accurately predicting shock waves and other gasdynamic phenomena,
has been conducted for over three decades. Research to fully exploit the properties of these
methods in the simulation of transitional and turbulent flows, is still in its infancy. The
preliminary indications are very encouraging, but significant efforts still need to be spent in
order to understand the dissipation and dispersion behaviour of these methods in the above
flows.
Relevant to the above understanding is also the issue of numerical artifacts produced by
computational methods (61), (62). The differential equations are represented by difference
equations and thus spurious solutions due to the numerical scheme, time step, initial and
boundary conditions, and time interval for which the calculation proceeds, may be introduced.
From the perspective of numerical analysis, an understanding of the occurrence of spurious
solutions is buried in the details of the truncation error. In the past, phenomena of stable and
unstable multiple solutions and spurious steady state numerical solutions occurring below and
above the linearized stability limit of a numerical scheme were observed (63). Further
research using the Navier-Stokes equations (35) has also shown that bifurcations to and from
spurious asymptotic solutions are not only highly scheme and problem dependent, but also
initial data and boundary condition dependent. Therefore, simulations of complex flow
phenomena such as turbulence should always be considered bearing in mind the
aforementioned uncertainties.
To achieve high-accuracy in under-resolved simulations of flows of engineering interest is a
major challenge. This can only be done by developing high-order methods which satisfy the
4 The Burgers' equation can be considered as an one-dimensional analog to the Navier-Stokes equations,
though they lead to different energy spectra.

The Issue of Numerical Accuracy in Computational Fluid Dynamics

21

properties mentioned in Section 1.2. The combination of these methods with advanced
acceleration algorithms such as the dynamically-adaptive multigrid can possibly provide the
desired accuracy in short computing times thus making complex turbulent flow computations
affordable in an industrial design environment.

1.6 References
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
(7)
(8)
(9)
(10)
(11)
(12)
(13)
(14)
(15)
(16)
(17)
(18)
(19)
(20)
(21)
(22)
(23)
(24)
(25)
(26)
(27)
(28)
(29)
(30)
(31)
(32)
(33)
(34)
(35)

Oran, E. S. and Boris, J. P. (1993) J. Comp. Phys., 7, 523-533.

Margolin, L. G., Smolarkiewicz, P. K., and Sorbjan, Z. (1999) Physica D, 133, 171178.
Drikakis, D. (2001) (to appear) Proceedings of ECCOMAS CFD Conference.
Godunov, S. K. (1959) Mat. Sb., 47, 357-393.
Boris, J. P. and Book, D. L. (1976) J. Comp. Phys., 20, 397^31.
Van Leer, B. (1979) J. Comp. Phys., 32, 101-136.
Roe, P. L. (1981) J. Comp. Phys., 43, 357-372.
Osher, S. and Solomon, F. (1982) Math. Comp., 38, 339-374.
Harten, A. (1983) J. Comp. Phys., 49, 357-393.
Colella, P. and Woodward, P. R. (1984) J. Comp. Phys., 54, 174-201.
Ben-Artzi, M. and Falcovitz, J. (1984) J. Comp. Phys., 55, 1-32.
Sweby, P. K. (1984) Siam J. Numer. Analysis, 21, 995-1011.
Yee, H. C. (1987) J. Comp. Phys., 68, 151-179.
Colella, P. (1990) J. Comp. Phys., 87, 171-200.
Billet, S. J. and Toro, E. F. (1997) J. Comp. Phys., 130, 124.
Zoltak, J. and Drikakis, D. (1998) Comp. Methods Appl. Mech. Engng, 162, Nos. 1-4,
165-185.
Toro, E. F., (1999) Riemann Solvers and Numerical Methods for Fluid Dynamics,
Second edition, Springer.
Bell, J. B., Colella, P., and Glaz, H. M. (1989) J. Comp. Phys., 85, 257-283.
Drikakis, D., Govatsos, P. A., and Papantonis, D. E. (1994) Int. J. Numer. Methods
Fluids, 19, 667685.
Drikakis, D. (1996) Advances Engng Software, 26, 111-119.
Drikakis, D. (2001) Godunov Methods: Theory and Applications, (Edited by
E. F. Toro), Kluwer Academic Publishers, pp. 263-283.
Drikakis, D., Iliev, O., and Vassileva, D. P. (1998) J. Comp. Phys., 146, 301-321.
Barakos, G. and Drikakis, D. (1998) Int. J. Numer. Methods Fluids, 28, 73-94.
Shu, C-W and Osher, S. (1988) J. Comp. Phys., 77, 439471.
Canute, C., Hussaini, M. Y., Quarteroni, A., and Zang, T. A. (1988) Spectral
Methods in Fluid Dynamics, Springer-Verlag.
Zang, T. A. (1991) Appl. Numer. Math., 7, 27.
Drikakis, D., Ofengeim, D., Timofeev, E., and Voinovich, P. (1997) /. Fluids
Structures, 11, 665-691.
Ofengeim, D. and Drikakis, D. (1997) Shock Waves, 7, 305-317.
Barakos, G. and Drikakis, D. (1999) Comps Fluids, 28, 899-921.
Barakos, G. and Drikakis, D. (2000) to appear in AIAA J., 38, January.
Chorin, A. J. (1967) J. Comp. Phys., 2, 12-26.
Merkle, C. L. and Athavale, M. (1987) AIAA Paper, 87-1137.
Soh, W. Y. and Goodrich, J. W. (1988) J. Comp. Phys., 79, 113-134.
Rogers, S. E., Kwak, D., and Kiris, C. (1991) AIAA J. 29, 603-610.
Drikakis, D. (1997) Phys. Fluids, 9, 76-87.

22

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

(36) Mallinger, F. and Drikakis, D. (2001) Proceedings of the Turbulence Shear Flow and
Phenomena - TSFP2 Conference, Stockholm, Sweden.
(37) Shapira, M., Degani, D., and Weihs, D. (1990) Comps Fluids, 18, 239-258.
(38) Drikakis, D. (1995) Parallel Computational Fluid Dynamics: Implementation and
Results using Parallel Computers, (Edited by A. Ecer, J. Periaux, N. Satofuka, and
S. Taylor), Elsevier Science B.V., 191-198.
(39) Harten, A., Engquist, B., Osher, S., and Chakravarthy, S. R. (1987) J. Comp. Phys.,
71,231-303.
(40) Jiang, G-S. and Shu, C-W. 1996) J. Comp. Phys., 126, 202-228.
(41) Lax, P. D. (1994) Comm. Pure Appl. Math., VII, 159-193.
(42) Rusanov, V. V. (1961) /. Comp. Math. Phys. USSR, 1, 267-279.
(43) Jameson, A. (1983) Appl. Math. Comp., 13, 327-356.
(44) Drikakis, D., Iliev, and Vassileva, D. P. (2000) /. Comp. Phys., 165, 566-591.
(45) Chakravarthy, S. R. (1988) VKI Lecture Series, Computational Fluid Dynamics,
1988-05.
(46) Drikakis, D. and Durst, F. (1994) Int. J. Numer. Methods Fluids, 18, 385^13.
(47) Craft, T. J., Launder, B. E., and Suga, K. (1996) Int. J. Heat Fluid Flow, 17, 108115.
(48) Barakos, G. and Drikakis, D. (2000) Phil. Trans. R. Soc. Land. Ser A, 358, 32793291.
(49) Drikakis, D. and Barakos, G. (2000) CD-Rom Proceedings of the ECCOMAS
Conference.
(50) McAlister, K. W., Pucci, S. L., McCroskey, W. J., and Carr, L. W. (1982) NASA
TM-84245, September.
(51) Launder, B. E. and Sharma, B. I. (1974) Letters in Heat Mass Transfer, 1, 131-138.
(52) Spalart, P. R. and Allmaras, S. R. (1992) AIAA Paper 92-0439.
(53) Barakos, G. and Drikakis, D. (2000) Int. J. Heat Fluid Flow, 21, 620626.
(54) McDevitt, J. B. and Okuno, A. F. (1985) NASA-TP-2485, NASA Ames.
(55) Muti Lin, J. C. and Pauley, L. L. (1996) AIAA J., 34, 1570-1576.
(56) Kolmogorov, A. N. (1962) /. Fluid Mech., 13, 82.
(57) Kraichnan, R.H. (1968) Phys. Fluids, 11, 265-277.
(58) Hosokawa, H. and Yamamoto, K. (1975) J. Stat. Phys., 13, 245272.
(59) Lilly, O.K. (1992) Phys. Fluids, 4, 633635.
(60) Germano, M., Piomelli, U., Moin, P., and Cabot, W. H. (1991) Phys. Fluids, 3.
(61) Drikakis, D. and Smolarkiewicz, P. K. (2000) J. Comp. Phys., submitted.
(62) Drikakis, D., Margolin, L., and Smolarkiewicz, P. K. (2001) Proceedings of ICFD
Conference, (to appear).
(63) Yee, H. C., Sweby, P. K., and Griffiths, D. E. (1990) NASA TM 102820, April.

2
Detection of Multiple Solutions using a Mid-cell
Back Substitution Technique Applied to
Computational Fluid Dynamics
S R Kendall and H V Rao

Synopsis
Computational models for fluid flow based on the Navier-Stokes equations for compressible
fluids lead to numerical procedures requiring the solution of simultaneous non-linear
algebraic equations. These give rise to the possibility of multiple solutions, and hence there is
a need to monitor convergence towards a physically meaningful flow field.
The number of possible solutions, which may arise, is examined and a mid-cell back
substitution technique (MCBST) is developed to detect and avoid convergence towards
apparently spurious solutions.
The MCBST was used successfully for flow modelling in micron-sized flow passages, and
was found to be particularly useful in the early stages of computation, optimizing the speed of
convergence.

2.1
Deq
Ej

H
H20
L-'dev

L,h
m
n
N2

Notation
Equivalent diameter
Represents the error resulting from the back substitution of the mid-cell
(Vim) values into the original finite difference flow equations
Passage depth
Abbreviation used for de-ionized water
Flow developing length
Passage length
Maximum grid mesh number in the y-direction
Maximum grid mesh number in the ^-direction
Abbreviation for nitrogen gas

m
m
m

24

P
Re

u
V

w
X

y
yim

yto
z

aD
Ax
Ay
Az
P

2.2

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Pressure
Reynolds number
Velocity component in the x-direction
Velocity component in the y-direction
Velocity component in the z-direction
x co-ordinate
y co-ordinate
The extrapolated values for u, v, and/7, at the mid-cell positions of the
flow mesh
The solution of the unknown values for u, v, andp, at the nodal points
of the flow mesh
z co-ordinate
Arbitrary coefficient used in determination of the developing length
Grid size in the x-direction
Grid size in the y-direction
Grid size in the z-direction
Fluid density
Fluid viscosity

N/m 2
m
m
m
m
m

m
m
m
m
kg/m3
kg/ms

Introduction

The non-linear nature of the simultaneous algebraic equations encountered in the numerical
solution of the Navier-Stokes equations governing the flow of fluid, gives rise to the
possibility of multiple solutions (1). However, only one of these numerical solutions will be a
true representation of the actual physical flow field. It is, hence, necessary to monitor the
convergence of the solution in order to detect and avoid physically meaningless solutions.
In this chapter, the number of possible numerical solutions which may arise is examined using
an alternative approach, which may also be confirmed with the more general technique known
as Bezout's Theorem (2). A mid-cell back substitution technique is developed for monitoring
solution convergence.
The convergence technique developed here was originally intended for the computation of
the flow fields in micron-sized passages. However, the technique may also be applied to
general flow problems.
The computational results obtained for micron-sized passageways have been compared with
corresponding experimental flow data. A brief description of the experimental equipment is
also presented.

2.3
2.3.1

Theory

Occurrence of multiple solutions in numerical procedures employing

the Navier-Stokes equations
The numerical solution of the Navier-Stokes equations based upon the finite difference
equations, along with appropriate boundary conditions, may be assumed to result in algebraic
equations up to a third degree, as follows:

Detection of Multiple Solutions using a Mid-cell Back Substitution Technique

25

NI = number of linear algebraic equations,

N2 = number of quadratic algebraic equations,
Nj = number of cubic algebraic equations.
The procedure may readily be extended to accommodate higher than third order algebraic
equations, when necessary. The total number of algebraic equations, N, is given by:

The above equations are written in terms of the unknown values of u, v, andp at various nodal
points for a steady state problem. It is shown in Appendix A, that the total possible sets of
solutions is given by:

It is possible that some of these roots may be imaginary.

2.3.2
Mid-cell back substitution technique applied to two-dimensional flow
Let the finite difference equations for the unknown u, v, and p values at the nodal points
within a two-dimensional flow field be represented by the following W equations:

where y,, z = l, 2,
If yio , i = l, 2,

,N are the unknown values of u, v, and p at the nodal points.

, N is one of the solutions to the ' N ' algebraic equations, then

The solution of the unknown values for u, v, and p are represented by yio at various grid nodal
points shown in Fig. 2.1, and these yi0 values may be used to extrapolate mid-cell values
denoted by the symbol yim, for i - 1, 2, ..., N.

Fig. 2.1 Two-dimensional flow field depicting grid system and mid-nodes

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

26

Using Taylor's expansion (3):

where,

Substitution of yim, i = 1, 2, ..., N, into the functions, fj, j = 1, 2, ..., N defined in equation
(2.2), provides magnitudes off/, which are equated to Ej, as defined below:

Ej, j = 1, 2, ..., N, represent the 'error' resulting from the back substitution of the mid-node
(y,m) values into equation (2.2).
Ej may alternatively be expressed, thus:

where 5,- are defined in equation (2.4).

The partial derivatives

(df/}

, may have magnitudes that result in the following possible

(dyi) yi=ya,

inequalities:

where
Smia

= Minimum of the absolute values of Si , i = l, 2, ..., N

5ms
Emia

= Maximum of the absolute values of 5, , i = l, 2, ..., N

= Minimum of the absolute values of Ej , j = l, 2, ..., N

"max

= Maximum of the absolute values of Ej , j' = 1, 2, ..., N

E0

is a positive number suitably selected dependent upon the grid aspect ratio
\ y.
, usually
J having
5 a value between 1 and 10.
^ /Ax)

Detection of Multiple Solutions using a Mid-cell Back Substitution Technique

27

If the solutions of the yi0 values are such that the inequality in (2.7) is valid, then the solution
is considered acceptable. If inequality (2.8) is true, then the corresponding solution is rejected.
2.3.3 The principle of the mid-cell back substitution technique
If the yim values were inserted into the equations represented by (2.2), they would result in an
error Ej, as given in equation (2.5). Where the condition given by inequality (2.7) is satisfied,
the maximum error Emm, will be small.
On the other hand, if the solutions for y,-0 result in Ej values, which satisfy the condition given
in inequality (2.8), then this will lead to a large value of Emax.
In the mid-cell back substitution procedure described in Section 2.3.2, a sequence of iterates
is generated that converges to the solution of the system, provided that the initial
approximations 'yio', derived from the inlet boundary conditions, are sufficiently close to the
true solution. By monitoring the convergence of the solution using the mid-cell substitution
extrapolations, any divergence of the generated errors can be detected at an early stage in the
solution procedure. The initial approximations 'y,0', may then be adjusted within predetermined increments and limits, and the whole solution procedure re-initiated.
Hence, the mid-cell back substitution procedure is a means of avoiding solutions y,-0j which
generate large values of (<3f J /<?y,) which lead to large 'Ej' values.
2.3.4 The two-dimensional flow model
The two-dimensional flow model for micron-sized passageways was developed based upon
the finite difference form of the Navier-Stokes equations. In order to accommodate the large
aspect ratios encountered with the flow field grids for micro-passage flows, a 'block marching
procedure' was developed to minimize the number of simultaneous equations to be solved (4).
2.3.5 Computer resources
The computer used extensively in the solution of the numerical flow model was a Fujitsu
MCCVPX240/10 supercomputer located at the University of Manchester, Oxford Road,
Manchester, UK. Access to this computing system was confined to 12-hour slots, once or
twice a week, depending on overall demand.

2.4

Experimental study of flow through micron-sized passages

In order to establish the validity of the theoretical models, an experimental investigation of

the flow characteristics in micron-sized passageways was undertaken. The design and
construction of micro-passages, pressure transducers, and a positive displacement flow
metering test-rig was necessary.
2.4.1 Construction of the micron-sized test passages
The micron-sized test passages were designed to emulate two-dimensional flow to achieve the
best comparison possible between experimental results and those obtained from a twodimensional computational model. The passage widths were made at least 100 times greater
than their respective depths in order to accomplish this.
The passages were designed for a simple method of manufacture based on the use of
polyimide thin film spacers, (see Fig. 2.2).

28

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

The surface roughness of the Perspex used in the fabrication of the micro-passages was
mapped using a 'DEKTAK' surface tester, which indicated a surface roughness averaging out
to no more than 0.1 JMI.

Fig. 2.2 Micro-passage construction

2.4.2 Flow parameters measured
The two most useful flow parameters which can be measured directly and best describe the
nature of fluid flow, are (a) pressure, and (b) flow rate.
Due to the very small passage dimensions involved, specially designed pressure transducers
were required to measure the pressure differentials. The mass flow rate can be precisely
metered and controlled using a positive displacement piston.
2.4.3 Pressure transducers
In the absence of commercially available products for pressure measurement in micron-sized
flow systems, investigations indicated that a diaphragm/strain gauge design provided the best
means of measuring pressure differentials along a micron-sized passage. The main
influencing factors in this decision were, the availability of diaphragm strain gauges making it
possible to build pressure transducers that complement the size of the micro-passages.
Figure 2.3 shows a special purpose diaphragm strain gauge designed specifically for use in
pressure transducers (5). The full-bridge patterns shown are designed to take maximum
advantage of the strain distribution on a rigidly clamped diaphragm of uniform thickness.
The pressure transducer design, incorporating diaphragm strain gauges, can be seen in Fig.
2.4, and is specifically intended for the measurement of pressure differentials.

Fig. 2.3 Diaphragm strain gauge

Detection of Multiple Solutions using a Mid-cell Back Substitution Technique

29

Fig. 2.4 Pressure transducer assembly

2.4.4 Delivering precise steady fluid flows
The most important feature of the main test-rig is that it supplies a very precise steady flow of
fluid to the micro-passages. The required precision and consistency for the flow rates was
accomplished using positive displacement piston/cylinder arrangements (refer to Fig. 2.5).
The substantial difference in viscosity and density between nitrogen and de-ionized water
precluded the use of a single flow assembly for supplying both these fluids. Hence,
two separate assemblies were designed. The larger assembly shown on the left-hand side of
Fig. 2.5 is for delivering nitrogen gas, while the smaller arrangement on the right supplies
de-ionized water.
2.4.5
Performance of the experimental test-rig
The test-rig worked well as a whole, proving very reliable in delivering a precise and constant
flow rate of both nitrogen gas and de-ionized water to an accuracy of 0.00116 per cent.
The pressure transducers worked particularly well, demonstrating good linearity in their
outputs and responding to pressure changes quickly in accordance with their designed
stabilizing times.

2.5

Results

2.5.1
Results obtained using an experimental test-rig
Experiments were conducted with various passage depths measured in micro-metres, two
fluids, and a variety of inlet flow rates as determined by the positive displacement of a piston.
Fig. 2.6 shows a schematic layout of the unique experimental test-rig employed in the
validation of the computational results.

30

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Fig. 2.5 Piston/cylinder assemblies

Detection of Multiple Solutions using a Mid-cell Back Substitution Technique

31

Fig. 2.6 Schematic drawing of test-rig and ancillary equipment

Key to accompany Fig. 2.6
1. Phosphor Bronze Cylinder (Nitrogen), I.D. = 80 mm
2. Stainless Steel Piston (Nitrogen), O.D. = 80 mm
3. 16 mm Diameter X 2 mm Lead Precision Ball Screw
4. Bearing Support Unit for 16mm Diameter Ball Screw
5. Phosphor Bronze Cylinder (Water), I.D. = 20 mm
6. Stainless Steel Piston (Water), O.D. = 20 mm
7. 10 mm Diameter X 1 mm Lead Precision Ball Screw
8. Bearing Support Unit for 10 mm Diameter Ball Screw
9. 43:1 ratio Gearhead
10. D.C. Servo Motor
11. Tachogenerator
12. Shaft Encoder
13. Servo Amplifier

14.
15.
16.
17.
is.
19
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.

Motor Controller
Limit Switch
0.5 pn In-line Filter (stainless steel)
3-way Ball Valve (stainless steel)
In-line Ball Valve (stainless steel)
Micron-sized Passage
Pressure Transducer (diaphragm strain gauge
design)
Micro-Manifold
Strain Indicator, configured as a full bridge
Simultaneous Sample and Hold Board
Analogue to Digital Converter

32

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

2.5.2
Results from the computational model
The flow fields, utilizing the MCBST, were computed for the micro-passages corresponding
with the experimental studies undertaken.
From experience, the permissible error in the finite difference equations arising from back
substitution can be related to the size of the flow field mesh.
A satisfactory back substitution error value is governed by the size of the flow field mesh
employed.
A weighted correction technique was employed within the iterative solution procedure. Using
the dependent variable u, as an example of the dependent variables u, v, and p, the weighted
correction in u is defined as:

or

where, u0 is the initial estimate for the M-velocity, and M' is the change in ut, as produced by the
iterative solution procedure. If the weighted correction in either u, v, and p, is greater than
desired permissible levels, then new initial estimates are obtained using the following
equation, and the whole iterative solution procedure resumed:

To promote stability of a solution, especially in the early stages of convergence, a relaxation

factor can be applied to the dependent variables u, v, and p, by introducing a
relaxation coefficient into equation (2.10) in the following manner:

The corrections in the dependent variables were determined using the LU decomposition
procedure (6), and the relaxation coefficient aK was usually set between 0 and 1 (i.e.
underrelaxation). The optimum relaxation coefficient can vary depending upon the type of
fluid, the number of nodal points on the finite difference mesh, and the mesh spacing itself.
Keeping the relaxation coefficient constant throughout the entire convergence procedure was
found to be inefficient. Therefore, a system which monitors convergence was incorporated
which gradually adjusts the relaxation coefficient in accordance with the convergence trends
exhibited by the dependent variables.
Typical results for fluid flow in micron-sized passages can be exemplified by the relationship
of the fluid's centre-line M-velocity compared against the length of passage through which it
flows. Figure 2.7 shows how this value for the ccntrc-hne M-velocity initially peaks following
inlet to the passageway and then steady's out.

Detection of Multiple Solutions using a Mid-cell Back Substitution Technique

33

It is this type of flow behaviour which benefited from the inclusion of the MCBST because it
enhanced the likelihood of the numerical solution converging.

Fig. 2.7 Variation in the centre-line u-velocity along the length of the passage
2.5.3 Results obtained using a commercial CFD package
As part of the analysis program, a commercially available package was also utilized in
analysing the flow of nitrogen gas through a 55 [lm deep rectangular passage. The commercial
package chosen adopts the pressure correction equation (7) in its numerical procedure, and
sets up a system of equations for the global solution of the flow field.
In making a comparison with the 'block marching system' that was devised originally for the
numerical analysis of micro-passage flows (see Section 2.3.4), the centre-line w-velocity was
the prominent feature chosen for comparison purposes.
The results from the commercial program compared very favourably with the centre-line uvelocity from the 'block marching system' shown in Fig. 2.7, in fact within 3 per cent overall.
This shows that the 'block marching procedure' incorporating the MCBST is a viable CFD
technique.
2.5.4 Comparison of results using the friction factor variable
Since small values of Reynolds Number may be affiliated with micro-passage flows, the
relationship between friction factor /, and the Reynolds Number in laminar steady flows
through micron-sized passages was examined.
Friction factors were obtained for a range of micro-passage flow cases, using both
computational and experimentally determined pressure gradients (dp/dx). The Fanning
friction factor (8) is defined by the following equation:

34

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice0000

The friction factors determined from the computational and experimental results are compared
with theoretically predicted values for one-dimensional incompressible laminar steady flow
(9), given by the following equation:

The results for friction factors from the experimental work with micro-passages, the
corresponding computational results based on two-dimensional laminar steady flow, and
traditional correlations for one-dimensional fully developed laminar flow between parallel
plates, are presented in Table 2.1.
Table 2.1 Comparison between theoretical, computational and experimentally
found friction factors in micron-sized passages
Passage depth
and type of
Fluid,
respectively

Reynolds
Number
Re

Friction factor /
calculated using
the equation

30 urn
De-ionized water
30 /Mn
Nitrogen gas
55 iun
De-ionized water
55 jjun
Nitrogen gas
I mm
De-ionized water

13.2

/=^
Re
1.818

49.3

Friction factor / ,
Friction factor / ,
calculated from
calculated from
Experimental
Computational
pressure variations
pressure variations
along micro-passages along micro-passages
2.349

2.463

0.487

0.643

0.706

82.4

0.291

0.379

0.405

109.6

0.219

0.239

0.239 *

800

0.03

0.046

The comparison of friction factors determined from computational and experimental results
exhibit a good correlation. The theoretically predicted traditional values are, however,
consistently lower than the other two.
An error analysis for the experimentally determined friction factors has been carried out. In
the specific case corresponding to the value marked * in Table 2.1, the probable error in the
friction factor was found to be 0.0207.
2.5.5
Developing length and the variation of du/dx
The variation of centre-line du/dx along the passage length is a useful means of determining
the developing length of the flow.
The relationship for developing length in laminar flow can be written:

Detection of Multiple Solutions using a Mid-cell Back Substitution Technique

where CCD is an arbitrary coefficient, Deq = 2 H , and Re =

35

Table 2.2 shows the range of magnitudes for the coefficient aD when considering macroflows in circular pipes and flow between parallel plates/rectangular passages.
Table 2.2 Values for <XD in Macro-flow systems
Macro-flow system
Circular pipes
Parallel plates/rectangular passages

(XD

0.058 to 0.06
0.0065

Reference
(10), (11)
(12)

The results from the computational analysis were used to establish developing lengths using
the following exponential projection method, to ensure consistency.

Fig. 2.8 Determining developing lengths using a exponential projection method

Using the exponential expression:

where a and b are arbitrary constants.

Applying equation (2.15) between points 1 and 2 in Fig. 2.8:

36

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Similarly, applying equation (2.15) between the points 1 and 3, then 2 and 3 in Fig. 2.8,
enables the determination of the constants a , b , and a , b . For each pair of points a value
of x*, corresponding to a y value of 0.01, is obtained as follows:

The results are tabulated as follows:

Table 2.3 Arbitrary constants combinations for the exponential projection procedure
Points
(Refer to Fig. 2.6)
land 2
lands
2 and 3
Mean

Constants

a
a
a"

b
b"
b"

*i*
J2*
Xj.

x1 + x2* +
3

*3*

The mean value of x" in Table 2.3 is then used to represent the position along the x -axis in
Fig. 2.8 which corresponds to a y value that has reached 99 per cent of it's final value.
Hence,

With the computational data obtained for various micro-passage cases, and using equation
(2.14) the following table of ttp values has been prepared.
Table 2.4 The relationship between Reynolds number and developing
length in micron-sized passages
Passage depth
30ujn
30 um
55u,m
55 um
1 mm

Fluid
De-ionized water
Nitrogen gas
De-ionized water
Nitrogen gas
De-ionized water

Re
13.2
49.3
82.4
109.6
800

aD
0.057
0.049
0.029
0.025
0.018

Table 2.4 shows that for very small Reynolds numbers the D coefficient appears to attain
higher values. It is possible that the relationship between OCD and Re is as shown in Fig. 2.9.

Detection of Multiple Solutions using a Mid-cell Back Substitution Technique

In Fig. 2.9, all the

continuum flow.

aD

37

values tabulated in Table 2.4 fall within the range denoted by micro-

= 0.0065

Micro-continuum Flow

Macro-continuum Flow

Key for Fig. 2.7

is the Reynolds Number for a passage having a depth equal to the molecular mean free path

of the fluid.

K, = 50
K, = 50,000

Fig. 2.7 Reynolds Number and an relationship

2.5.6 Modelling compressibility
A practical method of establishing the validity of the theoretical model involves the
comparison between the magnitudes of pressure gradient (dp/&), determined from the
experimental and computational analysis of corresponding flow cases Comparisons showed a
good agreement between experimental and computational results, with the largest difference
amounting to 8.9 per cent, and the smallest to 0.13 per cent, refer to Table 2.5.

Table 2.6 gives the identification codes used to denote specific passage dimensions and flow
conditions, all of which have been analysed using both the computational model and the
experimental test-rig.

2.5.7 Convergence of the computational procedure

The convergence of the numerical solution utilizing a 55 prn deep passageway and Nitrogen
gas as the working fluid (hence the passage designation N55a), is shown in Fig. 2.10.
It can be observed from the figure that convergence was a little er-rat:c at first, indicating the
value of the mid-cell back substitution procedure in helping to avoid divergence of the
solution in the early stages of computation.

38

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Table 2.5 Comparison between computational and experimental dpldx values

Computational
Simulation
Identification
(Refer to Table 2.6)
N30a
N30b
N55a
N55b
W30a
W30b
W55a
W55b

Computational
Results fordp/dx
(Pa/mm)

- 785
- 2140
- 988
-1598
-1428
- 2384
- 1192
- 2435

Experimental
Results for dp/dx
(Pa/mm)

- 750
- 2350
-1000
- 1600
- 1550
- 2500
- 1200
- 2600

Difference between
Computational and
Experimental Results
(%)
4.7
8.9
1.2
0.13
7.9
4.6
0.7
6.3

Table 2.6 Identification codes used to denote the flow parameters

Passage
Identification

Fluid

N30a
N30b
N55a
N55b
W30a
W30b
W55a
W55b

N2
N2
N2
N2
H20
H20
H2O
H20

Passage
Depth

Passage
Length

(H

(H

30
30
55
55
30
30
55
55

901
901
1610
1651
901
901
1651
1651

Passage Inlet
Pressure
(bar)
1.85-1.89
2.72-2.95
2.0
3.0
2.57
3.56
2.0
3.25

Maximum uvelocity
(m/s)
5.026
13.404
20.334
34.043
0.157
0.262
0.442
0.892

Fig. 2.10 Convergence of computational procedure

Maximum
v -velocity
(m/S)

0.352
0.938
1.423
2.383
0.011
0.018
0.031
0.062

Detection of Multiple Solutions using a Mid-cell Back Substitution Technique

2.6

39

Conclusions

The mid-cell back substitution procedure was found particularly useful in the early stages of
computation, where early detection of spurious solutions can avoid unnecessary computing
time. The simulation of fluid flow in passages < 20 jjun in depth demonstrated a good deal of
sensitivity to inlet boundary conditions, in addition to aspect ratios. The mid-cell back
substitution technique (MCBST) avoided unnecessary pursuance of non-physical solutions.
The CFD analysis of micro-passage flows inevitably result in large aspect ratios, giving rise
to a large number of equations. The 'block marching system' alleviates this problem by
dividing the passage up into more manageable block lengths involving fewer simultaneous
equations in their solution.
The adoption of the mid-cell back substitution procedure can be used as an alternative to the
'staggered grid' technique (13) whereby the velocity and pressure components are calculated
at separate grid locations. The staggered grid technique requires additional computer storage
space, which is not necessary with the mid-cell back substitution procedure.
The developing lengths evaluated from the two-dimensional computational model were found
to be greater than values indicated in the literature. The developing length was also found to
increase in a non-linear manner with lower values of Reynolds Number.
The friction factors at low Reynolds Numbers compared with traditional correlations suggest
that a higher degree of sensitivity to the compressible nature of the fluid is exhibited by flows
in micro-passages.
The use of the polytropic relationship between pressure and density appears to be a tenable
approximation for modelling the effects of compressibility in two-dimensional laminar steady
flow.

2.7
(1)

(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
(7)
(8)

References
Kendall, S. R. (1996) Analysis of fluid flow through micron sized rectangular passages,
PhD thesis, Chapter 4, Section 4.7, Solution Convergence, The University of
Huddersfield.
Raghavan, M. and Roth, B. (1995) Solving polynomial systems for the kinetic analysis
and synthesis of mechanism and robot manipulators, Trans ASME, 117, 71-79.
Stroud, K. A. (1987) Further Engineering Mathematics, MacMillan Education
Limited, pp. 259-261, ISBN 0-333-34875-3.
Kendall, S. R. (1996) Analysis of Fluid Flow Through Micron Sized Rectangular
Passages, PhD thesis, Chapter 4, Section 4.6.3, The University of Huddersfield.
Diaphragm Strain Gauge N2A 06 2102H-350: Resistance of 120Q + 1.0% and a
gauge diameter of 6.0 mm. Supplier - Measurements Group UK Limited, Basingstoke.
Press, W. H., Flannery, B. P., Teukolsky, S. A., and Vetterling, W. T. (1990)
Numerical Recipes, Cambridge University Press, pp. 31-38, ISBN 0-521-38330-7.
Patankar, S. V. (1980) Numerical Heat Transfer and Fluid Flow, Hemisphere
Publishing Corporation, pp. 124-126, ISBN 0-89116-522-3.
McAdams, W. H. (1958) Heat Transmission, McGraw-Hill Book Company, pp. 155159, ISBN 0-07-Y854831-1.

40

(9)
(10)
(11)
(12)
(13)

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Sucec, J. (1985) Heat Transfer, Wm. C. Brown Publishers, pp. 434^35, ISBN 0-69700257-8.
Fox, R. W. and McDonald, A. T. (1985) Introduction to Fluid Mechanics, Third
edition, John Wiley & Sons, pp. 331-333, ISBN 0-471-82106-3.
Langhaar, H. L. (1942) Steady flow in the transition length of a straight tube, J. Appl.
Mech., 64.
Sucec, J. (1985) Heat Transfer, Wm. C. Brown Publishers, pp. 42527, ISBN 0-69700257-8.
Patankar, S. V. (1980) Numerical Heat Transfer and Fluid Flow, Hemisphere
Publishing Corporation, pp. 115-126, ISBN 0-89116-522-3.

Detection of Multiple Solutions using a Mid-cell Back Substitution Technique

41

Appendix A
If y io , i= 1,2, ..., N are possible solutions to the N equations in (2.1), then let us denote the yio
solution values as follows:

Thus, r t ,r 2 ,...,r N 1 ; s 1 ,s 2 ,...,s N 2 ; t1,t 2 ,...,t N

yio, i= 1, 2, ..., N values.

is the alternative nomenclature for the

Also, let the equations in (2.1) be represented as follows:

N, Linear equations

l1,

l2,

N2 Quadratic equations

qi,

N3 Cubic equations

c,,c 2 ,

, 1N1
q2

,qN2,
,CN

Step A
Assume that rt, r2, ..., rN , tl, t2, ..., tN and s2,s},...,sN^ are known. Substituting these
values into the quadratic equation ' q}' gives us:

where, F(S,) will be a quadratic expression of i,. Hence, in principle, we get two roots of sl
from (2.3), which are represented as sj and sf. Now substituting for:

into the quadratic equation ' q2', we can set up:

where, Fl and F2 are quadratic expressions of s2. Hence, in principle, we can find roots of s2
as:

Thus, we have four possible sets of roots, as follows:

42

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

We can proceed in this manner until 2"2 sets of roots are obtained.

StepB
Consider that rt, r2, ..., rN , st, s2, ..., SN^, ?2, ..., tN are known values. Then substituting
these values into equation ' c,' will give:

where G(?,) is a cubic expression of t,. In principle, we have three possible roots from Z,, let
these be denoted t', f,2 and t,3. Now substituting for -

into the cubic expression ' c2' , we obtain:

where G1, G2, G3 are cubic expressions of t2. In principle, we can then obtain nine roots of t2.
Let these roots be denoted by: t\, t2, t\,..., t\. Hence, we have nine possible sets of roots, and
continuing along these lines we get, 3Nl possible sets of roots.

StepC
Since step A can be carried out with each of the possible 3"! sets of roots 'tt,t2, ....,tN3', we
can see that a total of (2N2 x 3N3) sets of roots can be established.

StepD
For all the (2 NI x 3 N3 J sets of roots in step C '$,, s2,...., SN2 ' and 'tl,t2,....,ttl ' , w e can set
up linear equations l,J2,...,lNt

for rl,r2,...,rNt. Hence, we have unique values for

r ] , r 2 , . . . , r N for each of the sets of ' s,, s2,...., SN^ ' and 't1, t2, ....,t N3 '.
Hence, the total possible sets of r1, r2,...., rNi, s1, s2,...., SN2 , t1, t2,...., tN3 is given by:

3
A Comparison of a Conventional RANS and
a Lattice Gas Dynamics Simulation - a Case
Study in High-speed Rail Aerodynamics
A Gaylard

Synopsis
In recent years, external aerodynamics Lattice Gas Dynamics (LGD) simulations have
become a viable alternative to conventional Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) CFD.
Potentially, they offer a more straightforward route to fully automated mesh generation and
the routine acquisition of unsteady flow data. Before embracing the technique, it is important
to understand how it compares with conventional CFD in terms of total set-up and simulation
time, the computational resources required, and the results obtained. In addition, how CFD
simulation can support an experimental programme and the degree of correlation that can be
expected between these approaches are other vital dimensions in the effective application of
CFD.
This chapter explores these issues through a case study in high-speed rail aerodynamics. The
fourth framework-funded RAPIDE project has afforded the opportunity of simulating the
flow around a German high-speed train, the ICE2, using commercial codes that employ both
techniques. In addition, comparison will be made with measurements made in the windtunnel.

3.1

Introduction

Train designers, operators, and regulatory authorities need to understand the aerodynamic
performance of their trains if they are to address key safety and performance issues, for
example:
-

reducing energy consumption;

assessing the likelihood of train overturning by strong convective wind gusts; and
establishing safe working practices to ensure the security of people and objects at the
trackside.

44

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Traditionally, this has been done using wind-tunnels and relatively small scale models.
However, these are subject to well known limitations principally centred on lack of kinematic
similarity (i.e. Reynolds Number effects) and the difficulties of adequate ground simulation
for such long slender bodies (1). Therefore, CFD methods are attractive in that they offer the
potential for aerodynamic simulation which overcomes these limitations. However,
substantial barriers need to be overcome if CFD methods are to fully realise their potential, in
particular:
-

predictive accuracy;
total set-up and simulation time; and
computational resources required.

In recent years the emergence of commercially available Lattice Gas Dynamics (LGD)
software suitable for application to vehicle aerodynamics, has promised significant progress
in overcoming these barriers. This chapter seeks to compare the performance of a commercial
LGD code (2) (PowerFLOW), with a conventional Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes code
(STAR-CD) on a simulation of the aerodynamic performance of a high-speed rail vehicle and
thus gauge the progress made in overcoming the barriers to the application of CFD for
external aerodynamics applications.
This case study in high-speed rail aerodynamics has been developed from work undertaken
for RAPIDE1 (3), a collaborative European project funded under the European Commissions'
Fourth Framework programme. The project is led by DB AG and includes SNCF, FS and
AEA Technology-Rail, along with the vehicle manufacturer, ADTranz. As part of this
extensive project MIRA were tasked with two complementary activities, below, which
support the calculation of the flow around a complete train (4).
-

CFD simulation of the air flow around an ICE2 driving trailer.

Wind-tunnel experiments at both 1/8* and 1/15th scale to establish the aerodynamic
performance of the ICE2 driving trailer.

The following sections will briefly review the details of the vehicle geometry, RANS and
LGD models and then seek to compare the results with those obtained in the wind-tunnel
experiments.

3.2

ICE2 model

The ICE2 model was based on CAD data supplied by the manufacturer. Fig. 3.1 shows a
complete train running in Germany. The work discussed in this chapter focussed on the flows
around the leading vehicle and a trailing carriage.
Before either construction of the wind-tunnel or CFD models some features of the real vehicle
were simplified to facilitate a direct comparison between the results obtained from the CFD
models and reduced scale wind-tunnel tests. The principal features simplified were:
corrugated inter-car gap corridor connection surface; an
- bogies and running

1 Railway Aerodynamics for Passing and Interaction with Dynamic Effects

A Comparison of a Conventional RANS and a Lattice Gas Dynamics Simulation

45

Fig. 3.1 ICE2 train

Figure 3.2 shows the modelling simplification made to the inter-car gap corridor connection
surface. The corrugations present on the real vehicle have been replaced with a smooth
surface taken at an averaged vertical position through the corrugations. This simplification
was made as the prime consideration, for this project was to have similarity between windtunnel and CFD models to provide a clear indication of the capabilities of the numerical
approach.

Fig. 3.2 Actual and modelled inter-car gap surfaces

In Fig. 3.3, the extent of the simplification of the bogies and running gear is revealed. These
modifications reduced the complexity of the CFD calculations and also facilitated the
construction of scale wind-tunnel models. This approach permitted geometric similarity
between the CFD and wind-tunnel models to be, therefore, achieved economically.

3.3

CFD modelling details

3.3.1 Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes (STAR-CD)

The mesh representing the driving trailer and trailing carriage was constructed from mainly
hexahedral elements with some 'wedge' cells created to capture a triangular (plan) 'spoiler'
on the underside of the driving trailer nose. This was accomplished using the
ICEMCFD/HEXA meshing tool.

46

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Fig. 3.3 Actual and modelled leading bogie

Centre-line symmetry was exploited to reduce the size of the calculation, a valid approach as
the CFD simulations were all run with zero yaw onset flow. Regions of complex recirculating
flow, such as the inter-car gap and the zone around the bogies, were further resolved with
local embedded mesh refinement. Cell angularity was minimized using local and global 'O'
grids that also facilitated a closely spaced mesh adjacent to the vehicle body enabling the
maximum y+ value on the vehicle body to be kept below 50, whilst respecting the minimum
y+ requirement of the wall treatment used (standard wall functions). The computational
domain was sized to minimize numerical errors, the inlet boundary being placed eight vehicle
heights upstream of the driving trailer nose and both the upper and side boundaries (constant
pressure) set six vehicle heights from the train body. The 'floor plane' was simulated by using
a sliding wall moving at freestream velocity (35 ms-1). The final mesh comprised close to
2 400 000 fluid cells. The mesh in the vicinity of the train nose is illustrated by Fig. 3.4, this
shows high levels of mesh resolution on the principal body radii and the 'wedge' cells used to
capture the triangular (plan) spoiler on the underside of the nose.

Fig. 3.4 Views of the mesh on the ICE2 nose

Turbulence closure was obtained via the RNG-derived K-e model. The third-order accurate
MARS scheme was used to handle the spatial discretization of the convective fluxes. A l/15th
scale CFD calculation was then run to convergence using STAR-HPC running on a 12
processor Silicon Graphics Origin 2000 compute-server.
3.3.2
Lattice gas dynamics (PowerFLOW)
A PowerFLOW model was set up by providing a triangular surface mesh, using
ICEMCFD/TETRA. Once imported into the pre-processor, regions of additional refinement

A Comparison of a Conventional RANS and a Lattice Gas Dynamics Simulation

47

were specified, as can be seen in Fig. 3.5. This resulted in a lattice (mesh) comprising 16.46
million voxels (cells) and requiring 4 058 MB RAM.

Fig. 3.5 LGD model showing the region close to the train nose
Figure 3.6 shows the surfaces for the complete model. As there is no easy method for
truncating the body using this solver, then two driving trailers with one intermediate carriage
were modelled. This has the added benefit of providing a prediction for the wake flow.

Fig. 3.6 LGD model surfaces

The simulation was then run until body force coefficients became invariant with time, as
illustrated in Fig. 3.7. Thus, the simulation 'converged' to a 'steady-state'.

48

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Fig. 3.7 Drag coefficient history for the LGD model

3.4

Wind-tunnel experiments

3.4.1
1/15th scale model
MIRA's Model Wind-Tunnel (MWT) was used in its moving ground configuration to
undertake measurements of aerodynamic forces and surface pressures. This facility has the
following general specification:
-

3/4 open jet test section, semi-open return (Eiffel).

Jet nozzle of dimensions 2 m wide by 1 m high.
Maximum test velocity 40 ms-1.
Average turbulence intensity in the empty test section of 1.1 per cent.
Moving ground implemented using a 3 m long by 1 m wide belt with both belt suction
and platen cooling.
Boundary layer suction and tangential blowing upstream of the belt leading edge.
Aerodynamic forces and moments measured using an external three-component balance
(drag and one lift component are measured within the model).

Figure 3.8 shows the model mounted on an external aerodynamic balance via external
supports. A trailing half carriage is also visible, which terminates in an ellipsoidal
aerodynamic fairing. In this configuration, the nose of the model has been 'gritted' to promote
early boundary layer transition, and both the driving trailer and half trailing carriage are
connected to the balance for convenience during a flow visualization exercise. When force
measurements were made the 'tail wire' was moved forwards, so only the driving trailer was
mounted on the balance.
3.4.2
1/8th scale model
A further experimental programme was undertaken with a l/8th scale model, utilizing MIRA's
Full Scale (automotive) Wind-Tunnel (FSWT). The FSWT has the following specification.
Closed test section, closed return (NPL type).
Test section 7.94 m wide by 4.42 m high.
Maximum test velocity 36 ms- 1 .
Average turbulence intensity in the empty test section 0.9 per cent.
Fixed ground.
Floor boundary layer control via a 'boundary layer fence' (or 'scoop').
Aerodynamic forces and moments measured using a six-component underfloor balance.
180 degree turntable.

A Comparison of a Conventional RANS and a Lattice Gas Dynamics Simulation

49

The model was installed on the balance using a bespoke mounting frame, for which a drag
tare correction was obtained. The general arrangement is illustrated in Fig. 3.9.

Fig. 3.8 l/15th scale ICE2 model in MIRA's MWT

Fig. 3.9 CAD drawing showing model mounting arrangement

3.5

Comparisons

3.5.1
Set-up and run times
Before either the CFD models could be set-up or the wind-tunnel tests undertaken, a
significant effort was required to produce representative CAD from the data provided by the
manufacturer. The effort required to set-up and solve the model using the two CFD techniques
is quantified in Table 3.1.

Computational

50

Fluid

Dynamics

in

Practice

Table 3.1 Set-up and run times for RANS and LGD codes
CFD Method
RANS (STAR-CD)
LGD (PowerFLOW)

Mesh and set-up model

/Man hours
105
11.5

Run Model
/Hours (on 10 processors)
68.47

223.28 (includes 14.11 hrsfordi scrtization)

3.5.2 Surface pressure

Both of the scale models had static pressure tapings mounted along the centre-line of the
driving trailer nose, running from the tip of the nose over the roof, ending directly above the
downstream edge of the bogie cut-out. This enabled the collection of surface pressure data,
which is presented in Fig. 3.10, along with the comparable data from both of the CFD models.
It is clear from Fig 3.10, that the most significant difference is between the two wind-tunnel
experiments, rather than the CFD simulations and experiment. This arises, in the main, from
two sources: Reynolds Number effects and wind-tunnel variability. The 1/15* scale model
was tested at a Reynolds Number (ReH) of 567 x 103, whilst the larger l/8th scale model
permitted a Reh of up to 1.1 x 106 to be obtained during the test programme. Measurements of
drag coefficient made on the 1/15* scale model with varying flow velocity indicated that even
using remedial measures to promote transition, such as trip wires and grit, significant
Reynolds Number sensitivity still existed. In addition, the variation that exists between
different wind-tunnels, even when the same model is tested, is both significant and well
known (5).

Fig. 3.10 Comparison of surface pressure coefficients (Cp)

Comparing the two CFD methods it can be seen that they are in close agreement over the
suction zone associated with the leading roof radius, but the RANS solver over-predicts the
surface pressure on the raked front face of the driving trailer, relative to the LGD solver. The
evidence provided by both wind-tunnel experiments, particularly the measurements made on
the l/8 th scale model, suggests that the LGD models results are more realistic in this specific

A Comparison of a Conventional RANS and a Lattice Gas Dynamics Simulation

51

regard. It is acknowledged, however, that since the LGD simulation incorporated the rear of
the train whilst the RANS model did not, a fortuitous cancellation of errors resulting from the
presence of this feature cannot be excluded in principle. In practice, the aspect ratio of the
vehicle is sufficient that such an effect should not prove capable of causing the discrepancy
between the measurements observed.
3.5.3
Flow structure
3.5.3.1 The importance of CFD as a flow visualization tool
CFD is, perhaps, at its most useful when providing comprehensive flow visualization. In
many industrial applications it is more commonly applied as a flow visualization tool than a
source of absolute quantitative data. Applied in this manner, CFD is often able to explain why
fluid systems behave in the way they are observed to. Therefore, it is important to ascertain
whether a relatively new tool, such as LGD solvers, are able to reliably elucidate flow
structures. Two important regions of the vehicle are now examined to investigate the
capability of the LGD solver to provide realistic flow visualization data. These regions are:
-

inter-car gap; and

tail.

3.5.3.2 Inter-car gap (ICG)

The cavity formed by two adjacent vehicles and the corridor connection between them can
contain highly three-dimensional recirculating flow. This can, depending on the design of the
vehicles, incur a significant drag penalty by transporting low-energy air from the underfloor
and injecting it into the roof (or bodyside) boundary layer (1). Therefore, the ability to
visualize the flow in this zone and predict any net mass transfer from the vehicle underside is
an important test of the utility of a CFD code.
Fig. 3.11 shows the results of a simple flow visualization exercise using the l/15th scale model
in the moving ground wind-tunnel. The large tufts show the bulk flow passing over the ICG
cavity driving a secondary flow in the ICG. The cotton tufts on the side of the corridor
connection show a net downflow. Those on the roof reveal a reversed flow.

Fig. 3.11 Wool tufts showing flow direction in the ICG, 1/15th scale model

52

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Both of these flow structures can be seen in Fig. 3.12, which uses flow 'streamlines' to reveal
the three-dimensional flow pattern predicted by the LGD model. These can be seen spiralling
down the ICG from top to bottom, as well as revealing reversed flow over the corridor
connection roof.

Fig. 3.12 LGD model showing flow direction in the ICG

Figure 3.13 presents the predictions of the RANS model for flow direction in the ICG. In
Fig. 3.13(a), the velocity vector plot shows flow reversal over the corridor connection roof
with the formation of what is effectively a driven cavity flow. In Fig. 3.13(b), contours of
vertical velocity are used to reveal the net downflow in the ICG, the lighter the colour on the
plot the larger the downflow velocity.

Fig. 3.13

RANS model showing flow direction in the ICG using:

(a) Velocity vectors on the centre-line, and
(b) Contours of the vertical velocity component (in a
plane mid-way between the centre-line and
bodyside) with lighter colours representing
downwards flow

A Comparison of a Conventional RANS and a Lattice Gas Dynamics Simulation

53

Therefore, it is clear that both CFD techniques are able to visualize the flow structure in this
region. However, it is worth noting that the LGD simulation is unsteady whereas the RANS
solution has been run as a steady-state simulation. Thus the added CPU cost (Table 3.1) of the
LGD method is justified, at least in part, by the opportunity to examine any flow unsteadiness
that may be present.
3.5.3.3 Flow close to the tail of the train ('near-wake')
As stated at the outset, the primary focus for MIRA's involvement in RAPIDE and thus the
case study developed from the project, was to model flow around the leading vehicle and first
carriage of the train. However, it was more convenient to use the LGD model to represent a
consist including a rear-facing driving trailer (i.e. tail car). Therefore, the data set from the
LGD CFD exercise is more comprehensive than that obtained using the RANS code. This
provides an added opportunity to assess the visualization capability of the LGD method by
assessing how well it predicts the flow structure around the tail of the train. This is an
important feature of the flow, as this is the early part of the vehicle wake. The wake of a train
has a significant impact, along with the slipstream in general, on the security of people (both
maintenance workers and passengers waiting at platforms) and objects at the trackside. Thus,
from an engineering perspective the ability to determine the flow structure in this 'near-wake'
region is an important one.
At present, as the RAPIDE project is not yet complete2 data with which to correlate the LGD
predictions are sparse, limited to the items listed below.
Surface flow visualization on the l/8th scale wind-tunnel model rotated through
180 degrees with the ellipsoidal fairing facing into the flow (hence using the flow over
the tail of a short train to represent that over a longer train).
Limited full-scale flow visualization carried out by one of the other RAPIDE partners
(6).
The LGD models prediction for the near-wake structure is shown in Fig. 3.14. This revealed a
flow dominated by a pair of strong and concentrated vortices sitting along the trailing
bodyside radii. These entrain flow around the bodyside radii and particularly from the rear
face of the driving trailer. This latter effect results in the flow on the rear face of the driving
trailer remaining attached until the tip of the tail is reached. Once shed from the driving trailer
surfaces, the vortices then impinge on the (moving) ground.
A comparison between surface flow visualization performed using the 1/8* scale wind-tunnel
experiment and the LGD model are shown in both Figs 3.15 and 3.16. Figure 3.15(a) reveals
the strong entrainment of fluid on the rear facing surface resulting in both attached flow and
high angularity. These features are present in the LGD model, as seen in Fig. 3.15(b), but the
CFD model predicts a lower degree of surface flow angularity, suggesting that the vortex
structure is more tightly bound to the surface in the wind-tunnel experiment than is predicted
by the LGD model.

2 In due course a comprehensive data set comprising full scale measurements, l/15th scale wind-tunnel
measurements over moving ground and a transient RANS simulation will be available (3).

54

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Fig. 3.14 LGD prediction of vortex structure in the near-wake

Fig. 3.15 Surface flow visualization, (a), and LGD model, (b)
A view from the side is presented in Fig. 3.16, again indicating that the LGD model is
predicting a similar flow structure, but with reduced flow angularity.

Fig. 3.16 Surface flow visualization, (a), and LGD model, (b)

A Comparison of a Conventional RANS and a Lattice Gas Dynamics Simulation

55

A final observation is that the position of the bodyside separation line is very similar in both
LGD model and wind-tunnel experiment. The full scale flow visualization data presented in
Fig. 3.17 confirms that both the l/8th scale wind-tunnel experiment and LGD model correctly
place the bodyside separation line. As more data becomes available it will be possible to
determine whether the CFD model or l/8th scale wind-tunnel experiment provides the best
match with reality.

Fig. 3.17 Full scale flow visualization (6)

3.6

Conclusions

The following conclusions can be drawn from the foregoing:

-

The rapid set-up time for the LGD code is a distinct advantage, particularly as one
of the major roles for CFD is as a preliminary assessment tool prior to wind-tunnel
testing.
There is a large difference between the level of computational resources required by
both CFD codes. The LGD model captured three times the geometry modelled using the
RANS solver but required approximately four times the RAM. Similarly, the CPU time
required was greater by a factor of 3.3. However Fig. 3.7 implies that the calculation
had reached a steady state at around 25 000 time steps. Thus this additional CPU
requirement could have been reduced by around 29 per cent. Hence, deploying the LGD
methodology requires more RAM than an equivalent RANS model but the CPU
requirement is not, in this case, significantly larger once differences in model size and
criteria for termination of the calculation are accounted for.
The LGD model produced a better prediction of centre-line surface pressure
distribution. Both CFD models gave more reliable results than the 1/15th scale model,
due to Reynolds Number effects.
Both CFD approaches correctly predicted the flow direction in the inter-car gap.
The LGD code appears to have produced a reasonable prediction for the near-wake
structure.
Within the context of the RAP1DE project, both CFD codes produced predictions on a
timescale which delivered the data before the wind-tunnel work could be undertaken.
Thus, decisions about the design of both wind-tunnel and full scale experiments could

56

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

be guided by the CFD predictions. If CFD is to be a viable tool in the armoury of the
ground vehicle aerodynamicist then this is where CFD modelling must fit in the project
lifecycle.

3.7

Acknowledgements

The author wishes to thank MIRA and the steering committee of the RAPIDE project for
permission to disseminate this information. Particular thanks are due to G Matschke
(DB AG), for both the original CAD and the full scale flow visualization experiment, and W
H Lee (MIRA) for constructing the surface and volume meshes. Finally, M A Brown (MIRA)
and R Gregoire (SNCF) are both thanked for their careful proof reading and suggestions.

3.8
(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

(6)

References
Gaylard, A. P., Howlett, A. B., and Harrison, D. J. (1994) Assessing drag reduction
measures for high-speed trains, Vehicle Aerodynamics, Loughborough University of
Technology, UK, 18-19 July, The Royal Aeronautical Society, London.
Anagost, A., Alajbegovic, A., Chen, H., Hill, D., Teixeira, C., and Molvig, K. (1997)
Digital physics analysis of the morel body in ground proximity, SAE Paper No.
9800371, SAE International Congress and Exposition, Detroit, Michigan, USA, 24-27
February.
Schulte-Werning, B., Matschke, G., Gregoire, R., and Johnson, T. (1999) Rapide: a
project of joint aerodynamics research of the European high-speed rail operators, ES1-3,
World Congress on Railway Research, Tokyo, Japan, 19-23 October.
Matschke, G., Schulte-Werning, B., Fauchier, C., Gregoire, R., and Gaylard, A. P.
(1999) Numerical simulation of the flow around a six-coach high-speed train, ES1-2,
World Congress on Railway Research, Tokyo, Japan, 19-23October.
Hucho, W.-H. (Ed.) (1998) Aerodynamics of Road Vehicles, from Fluid Mechanics to
Vehicle Engineering, Fourth Edition, Society of Automotive Engineers Inc., pp. 710713.
Matschke, G. Private Communication.

4
Mesh Generation - the Ricardo Philosophy
S M Sapsford and M E A Bardsley

Synopsis
Automatic hexahedral mesh generation with VECTIS has been around for almost ten years.
For applications related to IC engines, challenges in terms of movement of the computational
grid have been addressed even more effectively with the introduction of 'Boundary Mesh
Motion'. This chapter presents the philosophy behind the methods adopted and the integration
with CAD and other analytical methods to maximize the effectiveness of practical CFD.
Examples showing how CFD has been integrated into the design/development cycle at
Ricardo are shown.

4.1

Introduction

The main barrier preventing CFD becoming an everyday development tool has traditionally
been the time it takes to generate computational grids. When considering the specific
application to internal combustion (IC) engines, specific issues arise relating to mesh motion,
including the piston and valve motion, small clearances (low valve lifts and valve/piston
clearances), and re-entrant geometry. Numerous workers within the literature, e.g. (1), have
constantly referred to target times for mesh generation and analysis to achieve acceptability
within the design and development environment.
This chapter describes the industry-proven Ricardo mesh generation philosophy, the advanced
mesh motion capabilities, typical applications, and elapsed times for mesh generation and
analysis, and demonstrates that CFD can be very effectively integrated into design and
development programmes.

4.2

VECTIS CFD software

VECTIS is a CFD code that has been developed specifically to address fluid flow problems in
the vehicle and IC engine industries. Special attention has been given to treating complex
geometries efficiently in order to:

58

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Have greater impact during design and development;

Reduce timescales;
Reduce cost.

The use of VECTIS is focused on the following applications:

-

Coolant flows;
In-cylinder flows;
Flow/distribution in inlet systems (direct coupling to WAVE 1-D simulation);
Flow/distribution in exhaust systems and catalysts (direct coupling to WAVE 1-D
simulation);
Thermal management (direct coupling to FLOWMASTER 1-D simulation).

Of these, it is geometrical complexity and moving meshes that pose the greatest challenge in
terms of generating useful results within a reasonable timescale, and it is these applications
that form the focus of this chapter.

4.3 Mesh generation

Mesh generation in VECTIS starts with the geometry of the flow domain defined by a
triangulated surface model. The model is usually generated in a CAD system and is imported
into VECTIS in one of two standard data exchange file formats; STL or VDA-FS. STL files
contain a triangulated surface representation; VDA-FS files contain polynomial surfaces
which are triangulated by VECTIS to a user-defined tolerance.
The triangulated surface has to form a completely closed solid, without holes, gaps, or
overlaps. To ensure that this is achieved, VECTIS provides a number of tools for the
manipulation and repair of triangulated surface models. The reason for this requirement is that
the mesh generator relies heavily on testing to see whether a point lies inside or outside the
model. If the model is not a closed solid, ambiguities can arise in these inside/outside tests.
The mesh structure employed by VECTIS is Cartesian with local mesh refinement, and
truncation of boundary cells. The mesh density is primarily controlled by the 'global mesh'
which is defined interactively by the user. Figure 4.1 shows the Cartesian global mesh around
a cylinder. In general, the spacing of the mesh lines in each of the three co-ordinate directions
can be non-uniform.

Fig. 4.1 Triangulated surface model with global mesh

Mesh Generation - The Ricardo Philosophy

59

Mesh generation proceeds in three stages. First, all global cells which lie entirely outside the
model are eliminated (Fig. 4.2(a)). Then, the global cells are subdivided or 'refined' near the
boundary in order to more closely approximate the shape of the flow domain (Fig. 4.2(b)).
Finally, the refined cells are truncated to conform exactly to the original boundary (Fig. 4.2(c)).

Fig. 4.2(a)

Fig. 4.2(b)

Fig. 4.2(c)

The amount of cell refinement near boundaries is controlled by the 'refinement level'
parameter which is specified by the user. This parameter dictates how many times a global
cell may be cut in two. A refinement level of 1 allows a global cell to be subdivided into a
maximum of 2 x 2 x 2 refined cells, level 2 allows 4 x 4 x 4 subdivision, level 3 allows
8 x 8 x 8 etc. The example in Fig. 4.2 uses level 2 refinement. Refinement of a cell is not
applied uniformly in all three directions, e.g. a cell may be divided in the x direction but not
the y or z directions. This makes more efficient use of cells than a method such as an octree
approach, in which the only option for cell refinement would be 2 x 2 x 2 subdivision to
produce eight smaller cells. Figure 4.2 exhibits a number of the different mesh configurations
which can be produced by level 2 refinement. This example is only two-dimensional; in three
dimensions, there can obviously be a very large number of possible refinement patterns. The
refinement algorithm works by evaluating all the possible combinations which respect the
boundary shape, and selecting the possibility which produces the fewest cells. The algorithm
also ensures a gradation of cell sizes towards the boundary, thus ensuring that the smallest
cells are close to the boundary, where gradients in the solution usually require the finest
resolution.
Cell refinement can also be introduced by defining regions of the global mesh which have
refinement applied to them regardless of the presence of the boundary. This block refinement
can be useful for increasing the mesh resolution around particular flow features, without
increasing the global mesh density. The example in Fig. 4.3 shows layers of level 2 and level
1 refinement around a small cylinder.
The truncated cells at the boundaries are, in general, completely arbitrary polyhedra. Their
volumes and face areas are calculated accurately so that the mesh is a true representation of
the original geometry. Special measures are taken in the VECTIS solver in order to
accommodate the resulting mesh structure. One-to-many connectivity, arbitrary cell shapes
and variation of cell sizes are all treated so as to ensure accurate solution of the flow field near
the boundary. Figures 4.4(a) and (b) show a typical surface model and computational mesh
for an in-cylinder flow domain where the block refinement regions can be clearly seen.
This mesh generation method is reliable and easy to use. The use of mesh refinement and cell
truncation allows the mesh to capture geometrical details over a range of scales without

60

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

producing a mesh with too many cells. It is completely automatic and requires no input from
the user other than specification of the global mesh and the refinement level. It runs at a speed
of 5000-10 000 cells per minute for most applications on a typical Unix workstation, and
thereby contributes significantly to the goal of reducing the elapsed time for a CFD analysis.

Fig. 4.3 Block refinement

Fig. 4.4(a) Surface model

4.4

Fig. 4.4(b) Typical computational mesh

Geometrical complexity

A good example of extreme geometrical complexity is the underbonnet environment.

Analysis of the underbonnet region is becoming a routine part of vehicle thermal management
as the thermal performance of the vehicle becomes ever more demanding. Styling, packaging,
performance, and comfort all place their own demands on a cooling system that is already
challenged.

Mesh Generation The Ricardo Philosophy

61

In the underbonnet region there are numerous individual components all of which must be
captured in adequate detail. Figure 4.5 shows a slice through a typical vehicle.

Fig. 4.5 Underhood geometry

The powertrain, exhaust system, ancillaries, fan shroud, pipes etc. can all be seen (due to the
way they are modelled the heat exchangers and fan are not visible in this figure). The majority
of the time is actually spent preparing the geometry prior to mesh generation. This is required
to repair errors, check for component interference and also to offset thin surfaces to give them
realistic geometrical thickness. Once this is completed the mesh can be generated
automatically in approximately four hours (~2 million cells). Figure 4.6 shows a slice through
a typical mesh.

Fig. 4.6 Slice through underhood mesh

62

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

The other challenge for this type of analysis is the disparity in cell sizes between the
extremities of the vehicle model in a wind tunnel compared to the detail required under the
bonnet. For this, the mesh refinement approach described earlier is exploited. For the mesh
shown in Fig. 4.6, the typical cell size in the underhood region is 20 mm with refinement
down to 5 mm where extra resolution is required. Outside the underhood region where a
section of a virtual wind tunnel is modelled, the cell sizes are graduated away from the
underhood region up to around 1 m.

4.5 Mesh motion

Having created a computational mesh, the user promptly faces another, sometimes daunting
challenge - getting it to move. The mesh motion in VECTIS is handled using the unique
boundary mesh motion feature.
Using this technique, the nodes on the moving boundaries (valves and piston in this case)
move with the correct displacement according to valve lift curves and piston displacement,
the latter being calculated by VECTIS automatically from user-supplied stroke and con-rod
length. Nodes on fixed boundaries such as the combustion chamber and valve guides are
restrained and hence do not move. Nodes on the liner and valve stems act as an interpolated
boundary between the moving and fixed boundaries.
As the boundaries move, the internal mesh structure automatically deforms in order to
minimize the distortion of each individual cell (Figs 4.7(a) and (b)). This is performed by
requiring that the displacement of any given point in the mesh is the mean of the
displacements of surrounding points: mathematically, this means that the displacement's
Laplacian is zero. This is exact in the limit of a dense mesh with large numbers of nearest
neighbours. Discretization errors can arise because of the finite spacing of the mesh but these
are resolved by iterative application of the mesh no-crossover condition to yield the final legal
mesh. The calculation is automatically continuously monitored for excessive cell distortion
(which could lead to mesh inversion) so that the calculation can be re-zoned onto a new mesh
when required.

Fig. 4.7(a) Computational mesh at

30 ATDC

Fig. 4.7(b)

Computational mesh at
50 ATDC

In addition, meshes can be moved in both directions; distorting from an initially Cartesian
grid and also progressing from a distorted mesh towards a Cartesian grid. The latter feature,

Mesh Generation - The Ricardo Philosophy

63

known as reverse boundary mesh motion, is useful for the compression stroke, particularly
inlet valve closure and piston approach to TDC, but a combination of reverse and forward
motion is particularly useful for valve overlap.

4.6 Validation
Validation of the new boundary motion feature has been carried out on both gasoline direct
injection (G-DI) engines and high-speed direct injection (HSDI) Diesel engines. The results
shown below are for a G-DI engine are compared with PIV measurements from the Ricardo
dynamic flow visualization rig (DFVR) (2) and LDA measurements obtained in an optically
accessed engine as shown in Figs 4.8(a) to (c). The comparison is described in detail in (3).

Fig. 4.8(a) Comparison of CFD

and LDA results

Fig. 4.8(b)

CFD results at 120

ATDC (DFVR
simulation)

Fig. 4.8(c) DFVR results at 120 ATDC

64

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Similar results have also been obtained for a swirling HSDI engine, again comparing with
DFVR and LDA results (Figs 4.9(a) to (c)).

Fig. 4.9(a) Comparison of CFD and LDA swirl velocity results

Fig. 4.9(b)

CFD results at 70 ATDC

(DFVR simulation)

Fig. 4.9(c) DFVR results at 70 ATDC

4.7 Typical application

The application to G-DI engines is of particular relevance as this represents a major
opportunity for CFD to have direct influence on the development of a 'new' combustion
system. The performance of a G-DI engine depends strongly on the interaction of a number of
variables including:
-

fuel injection characteristics;

fuel spray targeting;
injection timing;
ignition timing/location;
combustion chamber geometry;
charge motion.

Mesh Generation - The Ricardo Philosophy

65

A typical programme will involve CFD analysis at the concept stage to determine successful
strategies and then continued support through the development phases, investigating the
effects of, for example, bowl geometry, injector characteristics, and operating conditions. This
approach relies upon fast response. Set-up times including all mesh generation, mesh motion
specification, and problem definition are typically less than two days, with an analysis or
solution time of around one-and-a-half weeks (dependent upon complexity) for a complete
intake and compression stroke including fuel spray. Of course, iterations on injector
characteristics for stratified operation take considerably less time as only the last part of the
compression stroke has to be re-analysed.
This approach has enabled all the major G-DI strategies to be analysed and has lead to
VECTIS playing an important role in all major G-DI development programmes at Ricardo as
shown in Fig. 4.10(a)-(d).

Fig. 10(a) Top entry (reverse tumble) with

side injector (wall guided)

Fig. 10(b) Side port (swirl) with side

injector (wall guided)

Fig. 10(c) Side port (forward tumble) with

central injector (wall guided)

Fig. 10(d) Side port (forward tumble)

with side injector (air
guided)

4.8

Conclusions

Mesh generation is a critical factor determining the speed of all complex analyses. This
chapter has described Ricardo's practical approach to mesh generation with particular
emphasis on geometrical complexity and mesh motion.
This has enabled highly complex analyses to be carried out quickly and effectively,
successfully integrating CFD into design and development programmes.

66

4.9

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the Director of Ricardo Consulting Engineers Limited for
their support and permission to publish this chapter. The authors would also like to
acknowledge the help and support from their colleagues whose names do not appear in this
chapter.

4.10
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)

References
Bailly, O., Buchou, C., Floch, A. A., and Sainsaulieu, L. (1999) Simulation of the
intake and compression strokes of a motored 4-valve S.I. engine with a finite element
code, Oil Gas Sci. Tech. - Rev IFP, 54, 161168.
Jackson, N. S., Stokes, J., Heikal, M. R., and Downie, J. H. (1995) A dynamic flow
visualisation rig for automotive combustion system development, SAE 950728.
Faure, M. A., Sadler, M., Oversby, K. K., Stokes, J., Begg, S. M., Pommier, L. S.,
and Heikal, M. R. (1998) Application of LDA and PIV techniques to the validation of a
CFD model of a direct injection gasoline engine, SAE 982705.
Stevens, S. P., Bancroft, T. G., and Sapsford, S. M. (1999) Improving the
effectiveness of underhood airflow prediction, Proceedings of the 1999 Vehicle Thermal
Management Systems Conference (VTMS4), C543/058/99, IMechE, London UK.

5
The Validation of Rapid CFD Modelling for
Turbomachinery
H-H Tsuei, K Oliphant, and D Japikse

Synopsis
Good CFD calculations can be made to guide advanced turbomachinery design and
development. The computing time and storage requirements, however, differ greatly from one
computational approach to another and the resultant accuracy may well be debated. One
specialist has suggested that most of the important effects in a turbomachinery blade row
might be resolved using a coarse grid of only 30 000 nodes, while others insist on grids with
ten times this node count. Arguments abound concerning the use of a wall law function as an
engineering expedient. The present study draws on a set of seven (7) different stages, for
which much measured data is available, and provides answers to these issues of sufficient
depth to sensibly guide engineers in the economical and accurate utilization of their CFD
tools. A base for rapid calculations is established; it is expected that the design future will
focus intensely on agile, easy-to-use CFD as a base for advanced design development.

5.1

Introduction

Professor John Denton (1), observed that most of the important effects in a turbomachinery
blade row can be resolved using CFD with a moderately coarse grid of 30 000 node points.
This observation led to considerable thinking about and the eventual development of the
pbCFD (Pushbutton CFD 1) code now in use at Concepts ETI, Inc. (CETI). The code is
built around the original Dawes (2), (3), solver (BTOB3D), which was introduced in the late
1980s as the first commercially viable CFD package for turbomachinery blade rows. Some 50
organizations around the world have come to use the Dawes code and, in most cases, rather
extensively. Some companies to this day prefer this solver for bladed rows over any other
CFD solver. After identifying at least five mechanisms by which the code could be
accelerated by a factor of two, careful development work was undertaken to improve
accuracy, accelerate the code, and make the flow code very easy, almost trivial, for engineers
1 Pushbutton CFD is a trademark of Concepts ETI, Inc.

68

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

to employ; hence pbCFD was created. Two computational errors were found in BTOB3D
and corrected while creating pbCFD; these corrections change the quantitative results.
A second interesting hypothesis concerning modern CFD modelling involves the method by
which wall shear layers are resolved. Codes such as the Dawes BTOB3D or the
TASCflow 2 code often use a logarithmic law near the wall to extrapolate the first grid
point calculation down to the actual wall. While it is known that the log law forms an
excellent representation of a two-dimensional boundary layer, preferably working outside of
separation, it is also known that it is not a meaningful representation of fully threedimensional (skewed) boundary layers. Nonetheless, it is commonly used and it is the general
notion in the industry that if the first grid point is placed at a y+ in the range of 30-100, then
very reasonable results are obtained. By contrast, other people feel that low Reynolds number
turbulence models are preferable and allow one to compute the complete detail of the wall
shear region. In this case, a y+ value on the order of one should be used to get numerical
accuracy. The grid sizes for the latter may be quite large. Clearly, there is some conflict
between the notion that Professor Dawes put forth (use the law of the wall) and the advocates
for the low Reynolds number turbulence modelling, at least when viewed from the
perspective of practical industrial calculations.
The present work covers a number of different test cases and compares some of the currently
available computer codes. The modified Dawes code in the form of pbCFD and the
FINE/Turbo 3 code from NUMECA International, which utilizes the low Reynolds number
turbulence modelling approach, are used herein. The ideas presented above require
examination against data. It has become clear to the investigators that any single test case
could be very misleading when looked at alone. Consequently, it was felt that a more
statistical approach was necessary and that a number of relevant tests must be conducted. The
first collection of data comprises seven different centrifugal compressor and centrifugal pump
examples. These are simply the first group that was easy to assemble. It is a future objective
to expand this set of comparisons up to approximately 20 different stages, hopefully before
the end of 2000. In most instances, good data are available but work is required.
A fundamental rule of the work reported herein is to prohibit any parametric tweaking while
using pbCFD. In other words, once a basic set of modelling parameters is chosen, they
must be used for the whole set of comparisons. Certain supporting studies have been
conducted about sensitivity to the grid size and also to appropriate y+ values in order to
provide useful background research. Nonetheless, the final comparison values to be used to
judge the success of the pbCFD are based on a single set of operating parameters. In other
words, no final tweaking of grids is to be permitted, no manipulation of the turbulence model
shall be pursued, no messing with artificial viscosity is allowed, and, of course, a common
approach to handling y+ near the wall is used for all cases.
A few items should be noted. All of the work presented here must be considered preliminary
at this time and is subject to further revision. It is probable that some errors will be found
both in data and in CFD which must be fixed. Indeed, for the PR-1.8 case we have repeated
the traverse data three times in order to get data of sufficient accuracy that little error is being
contributed from the laboratory; similar steps may be required for other cases. Likewise, the
clearance flow or cavity leakage flow has not been modelled for pbCFD. Further checks
will be made and revisions reported at later times. These checks will include detailed
matching of the actual distribution of traverse data at the impeller exit including total
2 TASCflow is a trademark of AEA Technology plc.
3 FINE/Turbo is a trademark of NUMECA International, s.a.

The Validation of Rapid CFD Modelling for Turbomachinery

69

pressure, static pressure, and yaw angle. Finally, it must be noted that the design reports
referred to here are generally proprietary and are mentioned in the report for historical
documentation purposes. All proprietary information has been eliminated from this report.
Consortium stages such as the PR-4.5 and PR-1.8 are available to the participants of those
consortia only. The Eckardt data is generally available throughout the world. The turbopump
data are not available to the public.
It should also be noted that the calculations conducted here with pbCFD are converged to
the design mass flow rate. An extension was made to the original Dawes BTOB3D program
so that convergence to a desired back-pressure was replaced by convergence to a desired
design flow rate. This increases the computational time modestly, while providing
considerable design utility.
Any effort to validate CFD is still extremely complicated and one must be careful and not
read too much into initial results. We intend to continue to refine and expand this work and to
continue to question every detail that could influence results. The present work is focused
specifically on pbCFD based on the historic Dawes code. It has not yet been possible to
make calculations with FINE/Turbo at the same level of intensity (i.e., rapid turn around).
Consequently, any observation concerning FINE/Turbo is on an early, preliminary basis.
Nonetheless, the present FINE/Turbo results were prepared by a thoroughly trained expert
with this code and in some cases directly by NUMECA.

5.2

The PR45 compressor family

5.2.1 Background
The PR45 compressor family was studied through the 'Advanced Diffuser Consortium'
project. Measured data, as well as computational results, were recorded in detail (4), (5). The
design mass flow was 0.363 kg/s, with a rotational speed of 93 620 r/min. The inlet total
pressure is 101.3 KPa while the inlet total temperature is 293 K. The inlet swirl and pitch
angles are both zero. The geometry of this compressor is shown in Fig. 5.1.

Fig. 5.1 The PR45 impeller

This particular example was of considerable interest because early calculations showed no
separation in the passage, but as experimental results became available, it appeared that
separation must be involved and some backflow or recirculation was likely. A series of

70

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

studies was initiated which eventually led to the realization of some important modelling
parameters and some errors in the BTOB3D code which needed correction. One of the early
discoveries was that the full inlet duct must be realistically included with the impeller in order
to obtain reasonable results. In the initial calculations, used when the design was first
prepared, the inlet duct was only one-third the length of the actual duct used for test work.
Subsequently, when the full inlet duct length was employed, separation was found in the
impeller passages. As changes were made to upgrade the Dawes code into the pbCFD
algorithm, more sensitivity studies for this particular configuration were conducted.
Detailed examination with the upgraded pbCFD of the computed flow field showed
relatively large separation regions near both the splitter and main blade suction surface. The
separation covered a depth from about the mean section to the shroud line. The revised
pbCFD grid, with the extended inlet section, provided a greater boundary layer loss for the
flow near the shroud region before entering the blade passages to result in the recirculation
regions. Interestingly enough, with these separation regions present, the computed pressure
ratio and efficiency were still much higher than measured data. This review raised a question
about how accurate the original Dawes BTOB3D computational results were. Normally, we
anticipate a much lower impeller efficiency if sizeable separation regions are present in the
blade passages. It was observed that the original Dawes code neglects the energy diffusion
(heat conduction and dissipation) terms in the energy equation, which could contribute to an
observed overprediction in pressure and lead to a high efficiency.
To determine the effects of the energy diffusion terms on the calculation results, these terms
were implemented into the Dawes solver. The energy diffusion terms are:

Key results are displayed in Table 5.1. The 100 per cent speed line data for rotor efficiency
was used to compare with the computational results. All data for the first three (of four) cases
in this study utilize full traverses (po, p, and a) just downstream of the impeller in a vaneless
diffuser (the fourth case utilized total pressure probes in the throat of a subsequent vaned
diffuser).
As can be seen in this table, the computed efficiency is on the average of two points above the
measured values with the inclusion of the energy diffusion terms (compared to a much higher
efficiency prediction obtained without these terms). An additional error affecting viscous
evaluation of splitter blades was also discovered and fixed. Although the implementation of
the energy diffusion terms and the splitter fix improved the results of this case, this also
means the modified Dawes solver results will bring in a new perspective, which will impact
on experienced Dawes code users. More study may be needed to look at the effects of the
energy diffusion terms with a range of specific speeds and grid sizes.
5.2.2 y+ and grid sensitivity study
To better understand the effects of y+ = y^Tw / p / (v) and grid sensitivity on the original
Dawes solver solution quality, a study was undertaken. For detailed description of y+ and
turbulent boundary layer physics, please refer to reference (6). Different values of y+ were
obtained by either varying the grid stretching function while the total number of grid points

The Validation of Rapid CFD Modelling for Turbomachinery

71

was fixed, or by increasing the grid number in the hub-to-shroud and blade-to-blade
directions. The grid node number in the meridional direction remained unchanged because y+
variation depends on the first grid spacing to a wetted surface in the hub-to-shroud and the
blade-to-blade directions. The Dawes solver uses the algebraic BaldwinLomax turbulence
model coupled with a wall function for turbulent flow simulations. Such an approach requires
that the first grid point be located in the log layer region in order for the wall function to
provide a reasonable wall shear stress calculation.
Table 5.1 Measured efficiency compared with pbCFD predictions
Mass Flow Rate,
kg/s

Measured Rotor
Efficiency

0.388
0.385
0.365

0.867
0.867
0.867

Computed Rotor
Efficiency with Energy
Diffusion Terms
(pbCFD)
0.878
0.890
0.895

Computed Rotor
Efficiency w/o
Energy Diffusion
Terms
0.905
0.914
0.923

The first approach to obtain various y+ values is to use different grid stretching factors in the
hub-to-shroud and blade-to-blade directions. The pbCFD default grid size was used. Table
5.2 summarizes three different stretching factors and their corresponding computational
results. The y+ values in this table are average numbers throughout the blade passage. A
larger grid stretching factor means the grid will be clustered more heavily near a surface. All
the computations were performed on a Pentium 400 MHz platform and converged to within
1 per cent of the design flow rate of 0.363 kg/s.
Table 5.2 The effects of y+ on the solutions, based on the default grid size of
21 x 71 x 21, but different stretching factors using BTOB3D
Stretch
Mass
y+
Factor
Flow, kg/s
0.3662
87.33
1.2
51.47
0.3640
1.3
30.57
0.3629
1.4
18.21
0.3658
1.5
(Pressures are mass averaged)

n<t

0.8602
0.8520
0.8587
0.8578

T02m

Pvlma

P2ma

Pa

Pa

6.082E5
6.043E5
6.130E5
6.156E5

3.167E5
3.113E5
3.144E5
3.159E5

520.91
521.87
522.41
523.36

M2
1.012
1.021
1.025
1.025

1 % errCPU
20
38
42
45

2 % errCPU
15
30
33
39

The pbCFD default grid and stretch factor (1.2) gives a y+ close to 90. Knowing that the
wall function was designed to apply in the log layer, ideally y+ < 100, it is appropriate to
apply this y+ when using wall functions. However, this y+ value is more on the high end of
the wall function application criteria. Increasing the stretch factor to 1.3, 1.4, and 1.5 would
provide smaller y+ values of about 50, 30, and 20, respectively. The computed efficiency was
within a few tenths of a point from one another, and the computed flow variables at the TE
were in good agreement with each other. The measured rotor efficiency was about 0.867. The
computed results are all in good agreement with the measured efficiency (recall that leakage
is not yet included in this study). One noticeable difference is that the CPU time usage goes
up when the y+ value decreases. The stronger the grid stretching is, the larger the cell aspect
ratio is. This situation creates the so-called 'acoustic stiffness' condition (which means the
signal propagates much faster in one direction than another) and makes it difficult for
the solver to converge quickly. For pbCFD design screening, the default grid size
(21x71x21) with the default stretching factor (1.2) is therefore, recommended and suffers no
loss in accuracy.

72

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

The next step is to investigate the second possibility of reducing y+: increase the grid points
in both the hub-to-shroud and the blade-to-blade directions, while keeping the stretching
factor fixed at 1.2. The calculated results are shown in Table 5.3.
Table 5.3 The effects of y+ on solutions, based on the same stretching factor
but different grid sizes using BTOB3D.
Mass Flow,
y+
kg/s
0.3662
87.33
21x71x21
0.3648
28.36
31x71x31
8.04
0.3628
41x71x41
(Pressures are mass averaged)
Grid Size

nu

P02ma

P2ma

Pa

Pa

0.8602
0.8423
0.8235

6.082E5
5.982E5
5.969E5

3.167E5
3.105E5
3.116E5

T02m
K
520.91
522.92
527.84

M2

1.012
1.015
1.010

1 % errCPU
20
87
267

2 % err
CPU
15
65
191

In this table, as the grid increases, the y+ values decrease significantly, from about 90 to less
than 10. A consistent trend was observed. For the medium grid size (31x71x31) case, the y+
is about 30 and provides a very close prediction to the measured rotor efficiency. For the fine
grid case (41x71x41), with the fact that the y+ already falls in the viscous sublayer (y+ < 10),
coupled with the large grid size, the wall function produces excessive viscous stress near the
wall region to cause the loss to be higher than measured, hence resulting in a lower rotor
efficiency. It is recommended to not allow a first y+ value to fall in or near the viscous
sublayer when using the wall function. Although the medium grid size case gave a good
prediction, the only trade-off is the CPU time requirement. The CPU time needed to converge
the medium grid size case to the design flow was increased by a factor of four. This CPU time
requirement goes up exponentially when grid size increases.
From Table 5.1 and other results of this study, it is observed that the rotor performance
prediction does not depend on the y+ value alone. For example, a case using a 21x71x21 grid,
with a stretching factor of 1.4 and a second case of 1.2 (31x71x31), with a stretching factor of
1.2 are representative cases with y+ about 30. The predicted rotor efficiency for these two
cases was about one and a half points apart from one another. The latter predicted a lower
total pressure and Mach number at the TE, while the total temperature was almost the same.
This indicated that the finer grid produced a larger loss near the wall regions to result in this
discrepancy. We learn from Table 5.2 that the use of the pbCFD default grid provides a
very reasonable first approach, while a medium grid size might provide a finer solution
compared to test data. Further increasing the grid density in an attempt to reduce y+ to within
the viscous sublayer is not recommended when the wall function is used.
The tests were conducted using two different grid systems (31x71x31 and 41x71x41) with
the stretching factors of 1.2, 1.3, and 1.4. This was done to further investigate the effects of
grid size (moving in the direction of a numerical grid independence) versus the effects of wall
y+ values. The biggest effect found, however, was the tendency for large grid systems to force
the first grid point into the laminar sublayer or into the laminar to turbulent transition regime,
therefore significantly changing the computed results. No conclusions were reached
concerning grid independence; the problem concerning a y+ value in the range of 30 to 100
was reinforced. Additionally, the changing value of y+ throughout the computational
iterations was examined. As a rule, the value of y+ can drop anywhere from 10 per cent to 50
per cent from the initial calculation to the final converged result as the computational process
proceeds and hence, one must be careful, once again, to choose a grid system with a
sufficiently high initial y+ (on the order of 70 to 100 is recommended, recognizing that the
values will decrease during the iterations). A future development is clearly required: an
automatic method must be included within the codes to continuously scan for y+ values and

The Validation of Rapid CFD Modelling for Turbomachinery

73

to be sure that the grid system is realistic in terms of the first y+ value adjacent to a wall.
When such a procedure is available, then numerical grid insensitivity studies can be properly
conducted.
5.2.3
FINE/Turbo results
The FINE/Turbo solver was also used to perform the calculation for the baseline case.
Computational results of three different levels (coarse, medium, and fine) were included. The
coarse mesh size was about 8 000 nodes, the medium mesh size was 52 000 nodes, while the
fine mesh size was 382 000 nodes. The medium mesh size was comparable to the pbCFD
default grid size. The mass flow error was within 1 per cent of the design flow rate for the fine
mesh, about 1.5 per cent for the medium grid, and about 4 per cent for the coarse mesh. The
computation for the medium grid needed 41 CPU minutes on a Pentium 200 MHz processor
platform (equivalent to approximately 20 CPU minutes on a Pentium 400 MHz processor) to
converge.
The FINE/Turbo results also indicated that the separation regions existed near both the
splitter blade suction surface and the main blade suction surface. These recirculation regions
were also observed in BTOB3D and pbCFD solutions, as above. The FINE/Turbo results
(mass averaging is used for all CFD results) are summarized in Table 5.4. All of the
efficiency and rotor exit pressures are low compared to the data.
Table 5.4 FINE/Turbo prediction results for the PR45 baseline case
Mass
y+
nu
Flow
kg/s
0.3444 <5 0.6505
8,000
0.3588 <2 0.7168
52,000
382,000 0.3602 <1 0.6954
(Pressures are mass averaged)
Grid
Size

P02ma

P2ma

Pa

Pa

4.179
4.740
4.648

2.263
2.526
2.443

T02m

M2

Residual
Convergence

1 % errCPU

0.948
0.994
1.021

Less
than 3 orders

N/A
N/A
N/A

512.41
520.19
526.17

2%
errCPU
N/A
20
N/A

5.2.4 Summary
Comparative results are as follows. Figure 5.2 illustrates the pbCFD computational grid
and, while it definitely is not coarse in character, it is not a thoroughly resolved 'fine' grid.
Figure 5.3 shows the streamlines along a surface that is very close to the main blade pressure
side; it is located one computational surface or grid element away from the pressure side. The
streamlines are very orderly and the flow is essentially collateral. Figure 5.4 displays a similar
result but it is one computational station away from the splitter blade suction surface. In this
case, a region of backflow or recirculation is observed in addition to the normal development
of strong secondary flow. Similar results have been obtained with FINE/Turbo as shown in
Fig. 5.5. This computation, however, uses 382 000 node points, yet yields a qualitatively
similar flow field.
The y+ and grid sensitivity showed that a very good pbCFD prediction could be obtained if
the first y+ value is in the mid-range of the log layer, i.e., 70 < y+ < 100 (if the y+ is in the
viscous sublayer, a combination of inappropriate modelling methodology would likely occur).

74

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Fig. 5.2 pbCFD mesh for PR45 impeller, grid size = 21x71x21 = 31 311

Fig. 5.3

PR45 impeller: pbCFD streamlines and velocity vectors at one

computational surface away from the main blade pressure surface

Fig. 5.4

PR45 Impeller: pbCFD streamlines and velocity vectors at one

computational surface away from the splitter suction surface

The Validation of Rapid CFD Modelling for Turbomachinery

75

Fig. 5.5 PR45 Impeller: FINE/Turbo results streamlines and velocity

vectors at main blade suction surface, grid size = 382 000 nodes
A summary of rotor measured and predicted values is given in Table 5.5, the Dawes n is
close; the FINE/Turbo result (0.833) is a little bit low. The Dawes pressure ratio is high; the
FINE/Turbo pressure ratio is low. The FINE/Turbo solver uses a low Reynolds number
turbulence model to treat near wall turbulence; therefore, the first grid point must be placed in
the viscous sublayer (y+ < 10) to provide a reasonable prediction. The coarse, medium and
fine grids all have the first grid point in this regime. FINE/Turbo predicted a total pressure
ratio at the impeller exit of 4.6. This trend of underprediction was consistent for all three grid
sizes, with the fine grid approaching a total of 400000 nodes. The reason for this
underprediction remains unclear. More effort to investigate the accuracy and quality of the
FINE/Turbo solution is needed.
Table 5.5 Summary
Mass Flow Rate
kg/s
0.363
(FT) - FINE/Turbo

pr02m
pr02A
pr pbCFD
prFT
(meas)
(meas)
0.867
0.895
0.833
5.12
5.59
5.98
4.59
(02m) Impeller exit, mixed out state.
(02A) - Impeller exit, mass averaged.
nmeas

npbCFD

nFT

The pbCFD default grid using 32 000 nodes with a stretching factor of 1.2 (with y+ ~ 90)
performed very well compared to the medium and fine grid size calculations. The rotor
efficiency prediction, as well as major flow field characteristics, was captured by using this
coarse grid. To begin examining the flow field of a new design, and also when running
automatic optimization, it is highly recommended that the default grid size and stretch factor
should be used to provide fast engineering solutions. The Dawes code was not designed to
compute really large grid sizes. It works most efficiently when grid size is in the range of
30 K to 60 K nodes. The results of grid sizes over 100 K nodes could be misleading if the y+
becomes inappropriate. After course grid results, based on y+ information, one can fine-tune
the analysis by using a moderately larger node count if necessary.

76

5.3

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

The PR18 compressor

5.3.1 pbCFD results

The low pressure ratio (pr = 1.8) compressor, PR18, was studied through two different
consortia programs (4). The design mass flow was 0.15 kg/s, with a rotational speed of
43 560 r/min. The inlet total pressure and total temperature are 101.3 KPa and 300 K,
respectively. There was no net swirl at the inlet. At the design point, the rotor efficiency was
measured at 0.954 with a vaneless diffuser. The rotor pressure ratio was measured, by traverse
with mass averaging, at 2.09. The geometry of the PR18 compressor is shown in Fig. 5.6.

Fig. 5.6 PR18 stage

The pbCFD default grid size of 21x71x21 (total of 31 311 nodes) was used for this study.
All CFD control parameters were set to default values, including the use of the energy
diffusion terms. The PR18 compressor was composed of 16 main blades. The inlet extension
duct is bent 180 degrees prior to the impeller leading edge, and the downstream element
stretches to a location more than a full length of the impeller. The downstream radial
extension region was cut short by using a CFD replacement segment to force more grid points
in the impeller section to provide better predictions. It took 20 CPU minutes on a Pentium
400 MHz processor for the mass flow solver to converge the solution to within 1 per cent of
the design flow, 15 CPU min. to within 2 per cent of the design flow. The final mass flow at
the end of the computation was recorded at 0.1503 kg/s, almost exactly to the design flow of
0.15 kg/s. The predicted rotor efficiency was 0.933, about two points lower than the measured
data. Front cavity leakage is not included. In the computed results, the flow was well-guided
through the blade passages, with no separation region observed in the flow field. The
computational results with or without the energy diffusion terms only showed two tenths of a
point difference in predicted rotor efficiency, possibly due to the two-dimensionality of the
rotor blade and the low pressure ratio. Table 5.6 summarized the mass-averaged pbCFD
results.
An additional observation can be made from Table 5.6. Results are entered using only part of
the inlet duct (90 degree inlet) and the full inlet duct which covers 180 degrees of turning.
Once again, it is observed that modelling the full inlet is important. With only half of the inlet
duct, the stage efficiency is computed at one point higher efficiency than with the full inlet
duct.

The Validation of Rapid CFD Modelling for Turbomachinery

77

Table 5.6 The pushbutton CFD predictions for the PR18 compressor
Inlet

Mass Flow
kg/s
0.1503

90
inlet
0.1520
180
inlet
(FT) - FINE/Turbo

nu

P02m

P2

Pa

Pa

To2m
K

MI

Conv

l % err.
CPU min.
20

2% err.
CPU min.
15

1.750E5
386.44 0.662
0.942
2.347E5
2.5
5
1.776E5
386.58 0.648
2.355E5
2.0
30
0.933
1
(02m) - Impeller exit, mixed out state (02/1) - Impeller exit, mass averaged

20

5.3.2 FINE/Turbo results

The FINE/Turbo CFD solver was also used to perform the calculation of the PR18
compressor. Table 5.7 shows the overall results of the different computations. The mesh size
for one of the computations was comparable to the default mesh size in the pbCFD study
and an additional finer mesh was also computed by NUMECA. As shown in Tables 5.7 and
5.8, the calculated efficiency varies from one to two points below the measured value. These
NUMECA cases were run with only the 90 degree bend at the inlet.
Table 5.7 FINE/Turbo prediction results for PR18 compressor
PR18

NUMECA
NUMECA

Mesh Size
28 350
212 954

y+
~8
~4

Mass Flow,
kg/s
0.15
0.15

nu

P02m

Convergence

Pa

0.92
0.94

2.27e5
2.28e5

>3.0
>3.0

Figures 5.7 to 5.12 show the computed velocity vectors and streamlines. Figure 5.7 shows the
standard computational grid for the pbCFD computation. Figures 5.8, 5.9, and 5.10 show
the computed streamlines near the blade pressure surface (there are no splitters), in the midchannel and near the blade suction surface, respectively. The core flow (Fig. 5.9) is quite
orderly and reasonably collateral. The flow near the pressure surface and the suction surface
shows the development of substantial secondary flow, with the distinct possibility of
backflow near the end of the blade on the suction surface. It may also be observed that the
inlet duct is designed with very good flow control and no evidence of separation is observed
in the inlet, even though regions of moderate diffusion are unavoidable. This helps confirm a
design hypothesis that such inlet ducts can be configured without inlet separations.
Additionally, important results from FINE/Turbo are shown in Figures 5.11 and 5.12. Very
strong secondary flows are observed on the pressure surface with moderate distortion on the
suction surface (Figs 5.11 and 5.12, respectively). Some very small regions of localized
separation are observed. This separation at the inlet is not of concern in as much as it
essentially represents a horseshoe vortex which must exist at the inlet regardless. This type of
separation is not a classical two-dimensional or skewed boundary layer (3-dimensional)
separation, but simply the development of an inevitable secondary flow. Near the impeller
exit, a small separation zone appears to exist just at impeller exit, but with only a little
backflow into the impeller exit. Further studies should be conducted by changing impeller tip
depth, the diffuser pinch, and the possible use of splitters to change the blade number. In
general, there is qualitative similarity between the results between the two different codes.

78

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Figure 5.7

PR18 impeller with a 180 U-Bend inlet: pbCFD mesh,

grid size = 21x71x21.

Fig. 5.8 PR18 impeller. pbCFD streamlines and velocity vectors at

one computational surface away from main blade pressure
surface.

Fig. 5.9 PR18 impeller with a 180 U-bend inlet: pbCFD streamlines
and velocity vectors at mid-channel.

The Validation of Rapid CFD Modelling for Turbomachinery

Fig. 5.10

PR18 impeller with a 180 U-bend inlet: pbCFD streamlines

and velocity vectors at one surface away from the main blade
suction surface.

Fig. 5.11 PR18 impeller FINE/Turbo CFD calculation, grid size = 42 650
nodes, blade pressure surface.

Fig. 5.12

PR18 impeller FINE/Turbo CFD calculation, grid size = 42 650

nodes, blade suction surface.

79

80

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

5.3.3 Overview
Table 5.8 is a comparison between the pbCFD results and the FINE/Turbo results at
approximately the same mesh size. The CFD results over-predict the pressure ratio by about
10 per cent to 13 per cent. The FINE/Turbo (run at NUMECA) is closer to the measured
rotor efficiency than the FINE/Turbo run at CETI which is about seven points too low. The
results underpredicted the efficiency by about two points. Front cavity leakage must be
modelled in future work but this will require a multi-block scheme.
Table 5.8 Summary of results from pbCFD and FINE/Turbo
Imeas

npbCF

nnumeca

Pr02m,meas.

pr02, pbCFD

Pr

Z"

Prointuaimv

2.15

2.24

0.954
0.933
meas Measured;

5.4

2.32
0.935
2.09
FTnumeca - FINE/Turbo at NUMECA

Eckardt' radial compressor

5.4.1
Background
The so-called Eckardt compressor was an available stage that was carefully studied and
reported by D. Eckardt (1987). The rotor has 0 degree backsweep. At the design point, the
compressor operates at a rotational speed of 14 000 rpm with a design mass flow of 5.32 kg/s.
The rotor is composed of 20 main blades, with no splitters. The inlet conditions were the
standard operating conditions, with a total pressure of 101.3 KPa and a total temperature of
288 K. At 14 000 rpm, the measured rotor total pressure ratio was 2.180 and the stage
efficiency was measured at 0.951. The geometry is shown in Fig. 5.13.

Fig. 5.13 Eckardt rotor '0' as used for CFD studies

The standard pbCFD default grid (21x71x21) and stretch factor (1.2) were used to perform
the calculation. The energy diffusion terms were included in the computation. The calculation
converged to within 1 per cent of the design flow rate and took about 40 CPU minutes on a
Pentium 400 MHz platform. With a broader error margin, say 2 per cent, it still needed about
33 CPU minutes on the same computer. Detailed examination of the flow field solution
indicated that the relative Mach number for a major portion of the compressor blade passage
(from the pressure surface to mid-channel, from hub to mean area) fell below 0.2, a speed low
enough to cause the unpreconditioned pbCFD code to converge slower. This was the reason
that led to this uncharacteristically long CPU time. To show that the mass flow solver
functions properly and that the CPU time is reasonable for this compressor calculation, a

The Validation of Rapid CFD Modelling for Turbomachinery

81

single fixed pressure ratio run was tested to investigate the convergence characteristics. At a
fixed pressure ratio, the pbCFD code needed about 30 CPU minutes to converge the
solution to this specific pressure ratio. The mass flow solver, which iterates the code to match
a specified flow rate, converged the solution to within 1 per cent error of the design point in
60 CPU minutes. Because of the pbCFD code limitation, further improvement on CPU time
at the design point for the Eckardt compressor is not likely to occur without the
implementation of a preconditioning system to the pbCFD solvers (now in progress).
The computational results are tabulated in Table 5.9. The computation was conducted with the
effects of the thermal diffusion terms included. The predicted rotor efficiency was 0.951. The
measured total-to-static pressure ratio downstream of the TE was 1.471 at hub and 1.464 at
shroud. The measured total-to-total pressure ratio 7 per cent (in radius) downstream of the TE
was about 2.195. The computational data are in very good agreement with the measured data.
Table 5.9 The predicted Eckardt compressor rotor efficiency and flow
properties at design point
Mass Flow
kg/s

ntt

P02m

P2
Pa

T02m
K

M2

Pa

1% err.
CPU min.

2% err.
CPU min.

Computation

5.36

0.945

2.195E5

1.469E5

363.35

0.780

40

33

Data

5.32

0.951

2.205E5

1.447E5

363.5

5.4.2 y+ and grid sensitivity study for Eckardt compressor

The y+ and grid sensitivity effects on rotor performance prediction were also studied for the
Eckardt compressor. Different values of y+ were obtained by either varying the grid
stretching function while the total number of grid points is fixed, or by increasing the grid
number in the hub-to-shroud and blade-to-blade directions.
The first approach to obtain various y+ values is to use different grid stretching factors in the
hub-to-shroud and blade-to-blade directions. The default grid size was used. Table 5.10
summarizes three different stretching factors and their corresponding computational results.
The y+ values in this table are averaged throughout the blade passage. A larger grid stretching
factor means that the grid will be clustered more heavily toward a surface. All the
computations were performed on a Pentium 400 MHz platform and converged to within 1 per
cent error of the design flow rate of 5.32 kg/s.
In this table, when the stretching factor was 1.2, the resultant y+ was 175, a value much
higher than the ideal wall function applicable range. When y+ is lowered to about 100 or less,
but larger than 10, the predicted rotor efficiency, as well as other parameters, showed a very
consistent trend. Although slight overprediction for the pressure ratio is observed, overall, the
predicted results are in good agreement with the measured data. Indeed rotor efficiency
prediction is now improved and the agreement is very good. Further stretching the grid into
the viscous sublayer (y+ < 10) is not recommended.

82

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Table 5.10 The effects of y+ on the solutions, based on the default grid
size of 21x71x21, but different stretching factors
Stretch
Factor
1.2
1.3
1.4
1.5
1.6
1.7

Mass Flow,
kg/s
5.362
5.325
5.364
5.344
5.329
5.345

y+
175.9
112.0
59.6
33.0
19.4
11.7

ntt

P02m

P2

To2m

Pa

Pa

0.945
0.96
0.960
0.962
0.96
0.960

2.195E5
2.195E5
2.203E5
2.211E5
2.215E5
2.211E5

1.469E5
1.460E5
1.478E5
1.481E5
1.482E5
1.479E5

363.35
362.13
362.57
362.78
362.73
364.03

M2

0.780
0.786
0.777
0.778
0.779
0.781

1 % err
CPU
40
22
38
50
45
50

2 % err
CPU
33
18
30
35
30
35

Table 5.11 The effects of y+ on solutions, based on the same stretching

factor but different grid sizes
Grid Size

21X71X21
31X71X31
41X71X41

Mass Flow,
kg/s

y+

5.362
5.364
5.321

175.9
60.41
23.63

ntt

P02m

P2

T02m

Pa

Pa

0.9455
0.9562
0.9621

2.195E5
2.198E5
2.218E5

1.469E5
1.464E5
1.456E5

363.35
362.64
361.88

M2

0.780
0.785
0.790

1%
err
CPU
40
131
305

2%
err
CPU
33
76
191

In terms of grid sensitivity, a grid size of 31x71x31 was used. This selected grid size
represents the total number of grid points doubled. Table 5.12 shows the computational
results of the grid system of 31x71x31 with three different stretching factors. Consistent
prediction results were observed when the y+ value was in the log layer. When y+ falls below
10, in the viscous sublayer, both the predicted total pressure and efficiency started to go up, a
result of the wall function being cut off leading to insufficient loss near wall regions, as found
earlier in the PR45 compressor study. The CPU time required to converge the solution to
within 1 per cent of the design flow increases dramatically. The computational results showed
good agreement with the coarse grid calculation shown in Table 5.9. It again proves that, for
screening purposes, the coarse grid case (21x71x21), can be used sensibly in the design
iteration and optimization process to make engineering design decisions.
Table 5.12 The effects of Y+ on the solutions, based on the default grid size
of 31x71x31, but different stretching factors
Stretch
Factor
1.2
1.3
1.4

Mass Flow,
kg/s
5.364
5.311
5.296

y+
60.41
26.29
7.55

ntt

P02m

0.9562
0.9664
0.9706

2.198E5
2.212E5
2.225E5

Pa

P2
Pa
1.464E5
1.459E5
1.471E5

7*0 2m

M2

362.64
361.99
362.34

0.785
0.794
0.788

1 % err
CPU
131
191
191

2 % err
CPU
76
81
87

Figures 5.14 to 5.16 show the computed streamlines. Figure 5.14 displays the computational
grid and, while it is a moderately coarse grid, it clearly holds a substantial amount of detail.
Figure 5.15 shows the streamline distribution on the pressure surface and, as distinct from
other examples in this study, the flow is not collateral along the pressure surface, but rather
shows strong secondary flow development or boundary layer skewing. This passage has
excess width with very low Mach numbers along the hub surface. Figure 5.16 shows similar
streamlines along the suction surface and it is clear, with the strong skewing on both pressure
and suction surfaces, that a strong secondary flow must be developed in the core of the
passage.

The Validation of Rapid CFD Modelling for Turbomachinery

Fig. 5.14 Dawes mesh for Eckardt impeller: rotor '0' (0 backsweep),
grid size = 21x71x21

Fig. 5.15 Eckardt rotor '0': streamlines and velocity vectors at one
computational surface away from the main blade pressure
surface.

Fig. 5.16 Eckardt rotor '0': streamlines and velocity vectors at one
computational surface away from the main blade suction
surface.

83

84

5.5

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Liquid hydrogen rocket turbopump

The liquid hydrogen alternative rocket turbopump for the Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME)
was developed at CETI for NASA Marshall Space Flight Center. The work was sponsored by
a Phase I and II SBIR contract which is gratefully acknowledged. A matrix of geometry
variations was considered in the rotor design process, with the final design being a bowedblade turbopump impeller. A crossover diffuser was used in the stage. Because liquid
hydrogen is a cryogenic fluid, the inlet total temperature was -420 degrees F. The geometry of
the liquid hydrogen rocket turbopump is shown in Fig. 5.17.

Fig. 5.17 Liquid hydrogen turbopump as evaluated with pbCFD (tested in water)
The CFD analysis for this project was conducted using both the pbCFD and the
FINE/Turbo solvers. For the pbCFD solver, a procedure was used to convert pump
modelling to an air-equivalent compressor in order to perform the CFD calculations. This
included matching all dimensionless groups including head, flow, and Reynolds numbers. In
cryogenic liquid H2, the Mach number is substantial and it was roughly matched. By using the
rules of equal flow coefficient, head coefficient, and Reynolds number, fluid dynamic
similarity between the pump flow field and the air-equivalent blower/pump was guaranteed.
Therefore, the calculated streamlines and rotor efficiency, as well as flow angles, represent
the flow field characteristics in the (liquid) pump blade passages. The computations used
measured swirl angle (from appropriate prior rig tests) and flow angle as part of the inlet
boundary conditions. The predicted rotor efficiency ranged from 0.96 to 0.97 using pbCFD
and 0.976 to 0.996 using FINE/Turbo for these design variations. The measured rotor
efficiency was about 0.96. In the future, a proper preconditioning system will be added to
pbCFD to support incompressible calculations.
The study used both solvers to evaluate a matrix (Table 5.13) of different design candidates.
Two different design engineers independently rated the performance characteristics of each
design as noted in the table. Using a rating from 1 to 5, where 1 would be an extremely
benign or weak separation and 5 would be a strong or large separation, results of the two
reviewers were averaged together and entries were made in each category, one for pbCFD
and the other for FINE/Turbo. Each reviewer came up with almost the same results (but
their averaging yielded the x.5 values, as opposed to simple integers). Furthermore, each code
generally led to approximately the same stage as being preferable. Using FINE/Turbo,
iterations, 3 and 4 looked the best and using pbCFD iterations, 4 and 5 looked the best.
(The FINE/Turbo efficiencies given in Table 5.13 were computed well after the design was
completed and did not figure in the design choice. Early post-processing questions led to
values that were not reliable. The current values seem a bit high and the last case seems
unlikely.) It was concluded that Case 4 should be constructed. Case 4 was a very small

The Validation of Rapid CFD Modelling for Turbomachinery

85

modification of Case 3 with just a very slight change in the inlet shroud slope angle of '/2 a
degree. It is noted that the measured efficiency was approximately 96 per cent, as suggested in
Table 5.14. It may be noted for completeness, that the calculations made with the pbCFD
solver actually used a grid just over 50 000 node points; coarser grids using pbCFD are
discussed below. FINE/Turbo used 290 000 node points.
Table 5.13
Case

Design
Feature

Summary of BTOB3D and FINE/Turbo CFD results for

selected design iterations+
BTOB3D
Calculations

1 Nominal
contours, blade
angles,
thickness.

Massive separation and

reverse flow ahead of main
blade and at splitter suction
plus along main blade
suction surface.
2 Inlet blade
Small upstream separation,
angle increased moderate separation around
5.
L.E. of splitter pressure
side, and new large
separation on splitter and
main blade suction side.
3 Contours
Large separation on splitter
refined, hub S- suction surface; tiny
wall
backflow on main blade
introduced,
suction surface just before
splitter moved the splitter L.E. location.
forward.
4** Shroud inlet Tiny upstream separation,
angle reduced moderate splitter suction
0.5.
side separating strong
skewing along shroud.
5 Radical
Moderate separation in
changes in B front of main blade leading
distribution.
edge, moderate
Reduced
separation in front of and
turning in inlet, along splitter suction side
modest shroud and strong separation along
ramp. Reduced main blade suction surface.
shroud blade
angle by 2.5.
6 Increased blade Modest separation
thickness to
upstream of main blade and
increase
splitter blade, large
velocities at
separation on suction side
mid-passage. of splitter blade.

Separa- Impeller
tion Efficiency
Rating* From
BTOB3D
5.0

3.5

FINE/Turbo
Calculations

Separa- Impeller
tion Efficiency
Rating* From
FINE/Turbo
97.1% Moderate separation on
3.5
98.6
suction side of main
blade near leading edge.
Separation in front of
main blade.
97.0% Moderate separation
3.5
98.8
around splitter and main
blade L.E. NO main
blade L.E. separation.

4.5

96.7% Probable small

separation on suction
side of splitter and
maybe main blade near
the shroud.

2.0

97.6

3.5

97.0% Modest separation on

suction side of main
blade and slight
separation on suction
side of splitter blade
near the shroud.
96.9% Modest separation on
suction side of main
blade and slight
separation on suction
side of splitter blade
near the shroud.

2.5

98.2

2.5

97.3

3.5

4.0

97.0%

Modest separation on
3.0
main blade suction
surface, possible slight
separation on splitter
suction surface and
slight separation near
trailing edge on suction
surface of each blade,
all near the shroud.
5 = Strong or large separation.

* 1 = Weak separation;
3 = Moderate separation;
**
This design was selected for fabrication and testing.
+
Most of the changes are cumulative, i.e., case 4 includes most of the changes for cases 1-3.

99.6

86

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Table 5.14 Summary

(measured)
0.966

%
pbCFD
0.9655

%
FINE/Turbo
98.2

V
(measured)
0.79

V
pbCFD
0.70

V
FINE/Turbo
0.67

To further model the liquid hydrogen cryogenic pump, the pbCFD default grid size
(21x71x21) and stretch factor (1.2) was used to continue this study. The inlet conditions were
created in CCAD 4, with the total pressure and temperature set to the standard reference
conditions. The solution took about 20 CPU minutes on a Pentium 400 MHz platform to
converge to within 1 per cent of the air-equivalent compressor flow rate. The predicted rotor
efficiency was 0.9655, within half a point of the measured data. The rotor head rise
coefficient was measured at 0.7; the pbCFD value was \f = 0.79. In the computed pbCFD
solution, there existed recirculation regions near the splitter blade suction surface and in front
of the LE, which were observed from previous pbCFD computations.
Figures 5.18 to 5.22 show the computed streamlines. Computed streamlines are shown on a
number of key surfaces in this pump. Figure 5.18 is located close to the main blade pressure
surface and nearly collateral flow is observed, although a small bubble appears to exist just
before the leading edge of the main blade. The leading edge is not shown distinctly in this
figure, but it is perpendicular to the axis of the plot and is located just aft of the little bubbles
shown along the shroud streamline. Similar results are shown near the suction side of the
splitter blade, and again, some evidence of a small recirculation zone in front of the leading
edge may be observed with larger recirculation downstream of this point, but upstream of the
splitter blade (location not shown, but approximately after the separation vortex). Streamline
results adjacent to the pressure side are as displayed in Fig. 5.20. The separation zone is small
and the distortion in the streamlines is only moderate. Near the mid-channel region, between
the splitter and the blade, the flow field is more complex as shown in Fig. 5.21. On the suction
side of the main blade, the flow becomes very complex with considerable secondary flow in
some regions with local recirculation displayed as revealed in Fig. 5.22. Within the
parameters available to influence this design, the condition could not be improved further.

Fig. 5.18 Liquid hydrogen rocket turbopump: streamlines and velocity

vectors at one surface away from the main blade pressure
surface. pbCFD results
4 CCAD is a trademark of Concepts ETI, Inc.

The Validation of Rapid CFD Modelling for Turbomachinery

87

Fig. 5.19 Liquid hydrogen rocket turbopump: streamlines and velocity vectors at one
computational surface away from the splitter suction surface. pbCFD results

Fig. 5.20 Liquid hydrogen rocket turbopump: streamlines and velocity vectors at one
computational surface away from the splitter pressure surface. pbCFD results.

Fig. 5.21 Liquid hydrogen rocket turbopump: streamlines and velocity vectors at midchannel. pbCFD results.

88

Fig. 5.22

5.6

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Liquid hydrogen rocket turbopump: streamlines and velocity vectors at one

surface away from the main blade suction surface. pbCFD results.

Summary

A variety of CFD evaluations has been reported covering four of the seven study cases. Data
for the other three cases is now added for completeness. While this study is still in its infancy,
some comparisons can be made which provide initial understanding of pbCFD and the
balance between coarse grid and fine grid CFD calculations. Figure 5.23 compares the
computed CFD efficiency versus the measured CFD efficiency for pbCFD (12 points) and
FINE/Turbo (10 points). Figure 5.24 compares the pressure rise experience. There are still
some questions about the best way to calculate both efficiency and pressure rise from
measured data and these are being worked separately (methods of averaging) and will be
reported further at a later date. We would estimate that the data uncertainty is about + 1 point,
perhaps a bit more. More data and CFD results are needed in Figs 5.23 and 5.24 and such
studies are ongoing.
Although the results of Figs 5.23 and 5.24 are broadly acceptable and useful in basic
engineering studies, they can still be criticized. It would be nice to have the computational
uncertainty reduced to approximately one point, or essentially to the level of experimental
error. This has not yet been achieved and leaves room for further improvement. Likewise, the
variation from either pbCFD or FINE/Turbo in Fig. 5.24 concerning pressure rise or head
is not yet acceptable. The uncertainty on this chart is somewhat larger and studies are still
being conducted as to find the best method of reporting an appropriate impeller exit average
pressure. Nonetheless, these figures do raise a much more basic question: given that a
reasonable and nominal level of accuracy has been demonstrated by the coarse grid CFD
results, why are not the fine grid results considerably more precise than shown? The question
is not about the degree of accuracy or inaccuracy of the coarse grid pbCFD results, but
rather why respected high-performance codes such as FINE/Turbo are not showing more
precision in the computed results. This topic needs thorough examination in the future and the
authors of this presentation are conducting such studies.

The Validation of Rapid CFD Modelling for Turbomachinery

Fig. 5.23 CFD-predicted efficiency versus

measured efficiency

89

Fig. 5.24 CFD-predicted pressure ratio

versus measured pressure ratio
(5 x head coefficient used for
some cases)

The entire debate about establishing numerical accuracy of CFD codes must be revisited.
There is enormous emphasis in the profession on establishing grid independence (a very
worthy goal) and hence, many groups concentrate on ever reduced grid sizes to establish this
(potentially desirable) objective. If the present study is carefully reviewed, it will be seen that
this issue is much more complicated. The results presented here for the pbCFD method are
not strictly grid independent, although most of the variance due to grid changing has been
reduced, eliminated, or controlled. Still, further numerical resolution could be conducted to
reduce this type of error. It will require, however, that a fixed condition for y+ near the wall is
implemented and that this value is maintained rigorously throughout the computational
process. A precise algorithm for doing this has not yet been established in the CFD fraternity.
Hence, all methods using a wall log function (pbCFD and frequently TASCflow and Fluent
products) may be nearly grid independent, but not strictly so at the present time when the wall
law is used. Based on the comparative results between a fine grid calculation and the coarse
grid calculations in Figs 5.23 and 5.24, it appears that a more important question is what are
the relative levels of significance between turbulence modeling, wall shear representation,
grid independence, numerical stability/convergence and damping issues within any CFD
code.

5.7

Conclusions and recommendations

On the basis of the work presented here, a set of preliminary conclusions has been established.
They are as follows:
1.

The comparison of computed versus measured efficiencies based on pbCFD is good.

Nearly all of the results agree within plus or minus two points of efficiency with respect
to the measured value. There is a good degree of consistency in the pbCFD
calculations through all cases.

90

2.
3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

5.8
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)

(5)

(6)
(7)

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Calculations of rotor total-to-total pressure ratio (or head coefficient for pumps) showed
more scatter; further study is needed.
Flow patterns computed with pbCFD and also with the FINE/Turbo program were
broadly similar between the two codes, with minor differences. FINE/Turbo gives
more exotic detail close to the wall, but the bulk of the characteristics are broadly the
same, at least so far as tested at the present time.
Several comparative design cases were made with pbCFD and FINE/Turbo to
determine what type of design would result; essentially the same results were obtained
with each code.
Professor John Denton's hypothesis is confirmed. Calculations with approximately
32 000 node points (using pbCFD) work well for early design optimization studies.
Calculations using a code specifically intended for fine grids (about 300,000 nodes) did
not give more accurate results.
Based on the successful results of pbCFD, it is evident that the logarithmic law of the
wall, as postulated by Prof. Dawes and others, competes very well with other
approaches, such as using a low Reynolds number turbulence model equation.
Conducting CFD calculations using the logarithmic wall function is quite successful if
y+ is set somewhere in the range of 70 to 100 for initial calculations. However, it would
be desirable to develop a standardized method that can hold a particular value
throughout a flow field calculation, or a specific distribution throughout said
calculations, in order to lead towards grid independence in the calculation methods.
More development work in this area would be appropriate.
An organization using the Dawes BTOB3D code remains on a solid basis but updating
to fix known errors is certainly needed. There is no evidence at the present time leading
to a substitution for this very fine CFD code.
This chapter establishes a comparison between coarse grid and fine grid computational
methodologies. Reasonable accuracy has been shown with each, with coarse grid results
being of good, basic, engineering accuracy. The question is not whether these
calculations will ultimately lead to truly high order precision (they have been
demonstrated for basic design iteration studies) but rather why are the fine grid studies
not showing greater precision at the present time?

References
Denton, J. D. (1994) Turbomachinery Design using CFD, AGARD Lecture Series 195.
Dawes, W. N. (1988) A Computer Program for the Analysis of Three-Dimensional Viscous
Compressible Flow in Turbomachinery Blade Rows, Whittle Laboratory, Cambridge, UK.
Dawes, W. N. (1991) The development of a solution adaptive three-dimensional NavierStokes solver for turbomachinery, AIAA 91-2469.
Japikse, D., Hinch, D., and Yoshinaka, T. (1996) The Performance of Low-Solidity
Airfoil Diffusers with Centrifugal Compressor Stages at Ns = 55 and Ns = 85, Advanced
Diffuser Consortium, Phase IV Final Report, Concepts ETI, Inc. TM 399, March.
Hinch, D., Japikse, D., and Yoshinaka, T. (1997) Range and Performance Enhancement
through Diffuser Optimization for the Ns = 85 Centrifugal Compressor Stage, Phase V
Final Report, Advanced Diffuser Consortium, Concepts ETI, Inc. TM-565, November.
Japikse, D. and Baines, N.C. (1997) Introduction to Turbomachinery, Concepts ETI,
Inc., Wilder, VT, and Oxford University Press, Oxford, England. See Section 8.2.
Japikse, D., Karon, D., and Yoshinaka, T. (1996) Evaluation of Rotating Stall at
Various Re Levels in a 1 1/2 Stage Process Compressor Rig with Several Vaneless
Diffusers, Final Report, Stability Consortium, Concepts ETI, Inc. TM 400, April.

6
Numerical Determination of Windage Losses
on High-speed Rotating Discs
S Romero-Hernandez, M R E Etemad, and K R Pullen

Synopsis
Determination of the aerodynamic drag, (windage) of rotating enclosed discs is important
when designing turbomachinery, motors, generators, and any other high-speed rotating
machines. There is limited information, both computational and experimental, for high-speed
rotating conditions (30 000 to 60 000 r/rnin) operating in air. This contribution presents the
computational study in this field performed in an effort to fill this gap. The overall results are
compared with experiments performed on a purpose-built rig and compare favourably in
terms of torque, pressure, and temperature measurements.
The simulation was performed by using a commercially available CFD code (STAR CD) to
generate the grid, verify grid independence, and the general set up of a reliable model that can
predict the windage loss on high-speed rotating discs. Using a second order differencing
scheme (MARS) and a standard k-e turbulence model to obtain a solution.
The balance achieved between experimental and computational work in order to obtain an
engineering solution is a good example of how a commercial CFD code can become a
common practical tool, accessible to all engineers.

6.1
a
b
Cm
h
Irot
Ko
m
Pw

Notation
Disc radius
Radial gap
Torque coefficient for both sides of the disc
Thickness of rotor
Moment of inertia
Fraction of disc speed at which the core rotates
Net mass flow rate through the rig
Power loss

m
m
m
kg/m2
m/s
kg/s
W

92

R
Re(
s
T
a

H
v
P
T

CO

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Radius
Rotational Reynolds number, Rem =a> a2/v
Axial gap
Torque
Angular acceleration
Viscosity
Kinematic viscosity , v = n/p
Density
Shear force on the rotating wall
Angular velocity

m
m
Nm
rad/s2
kg/m s
m2/s
kg/m3
N/m2
rad/s

6.2 Introduction
There is a growing requirement to evaluate the windage losses associated with discs and
drums rotating at high speed. Several engineering components such as turbochargers, gas
turbines or high-speed electrical machinery would benefit from an improved understanding of
the windage losses through increased efficiency and reduced heating. The origin of this
heating can be attributed to the drag forces on the rotating component due to viscous friction.
In some applications like high-speed electrical machinery, high levels of superposed flow are
necessary for cooling purposes. Hence, the determination of the effect of this flow on the
windage losses becomes of critical interest.
While the geometries of the inter-disc spacing in an engine are often complicated, the
idealized case of flow between plane discs with cylindrical casing forms a useful base for
their study. This case is often referred as the enclosed disc.
The pioneering work in this field was done by Von Karman (1921) who used momentum
integral equations for turbulent flow and for discs rotating in an infinite environment (the free
disc). Substantial research has been performed in the field, mostly concerning low-speed and
large-diameter discs; e.g. Daily et al. (1) and (2) carried out experiments using liquids and air.
It has emerged from this research that there are four basic regimes of flow (laminar and
turbulent with merged and separated boundary layers) for a totally enclosed rotating disc. This
has prompted the determination of empirical equations for the torque coefficient Cm as a
function of the rotational Reynolds number (Rew) and the axial gap ratio (s/a). Owen (3),
provided a review of the fluid flow for the free disc, rotor stator systems, and rotating cavities.
The experiments were performed on air with a disc of a=381 mm (15 inches) and at speeds of
up to 4000 r/min. Etemad et al. (4) reported the experimental results performed on discs with
radii of 50 and 46 mm and speeds up to 90 000 r/min.
The power loss on a disc can be computed from the familiar expression Pw = Tw and the
torque on the disc (both sides) can be calculated from a solution of the momentum equations
given in references (1) and (2), as T =1/ 2 C mpw2 a5. The torque coefficient for turbulent flow
and merged boundary layers from reference (1) is Cm = 0.0622/(s/a)0.25 Rew0.25, then by
combining the previous expressions the power loss for an enclosed disc can be defined as:

Numerical Determination of Windage Losses on High-speed Rotating Discs

93

Expression (6.1) applies only when there is no superposed mass flow between the rotor and
the stator. Ketola et al. (5) performed an analysis of the net mass flow between a partially
enclosed rotor and a stator. By considering the momentum of the fluid leaving the rim of the
disc after flowing in from the centre of the disc, reference (4) re-expressed the work of Ketola
(5) to obtain an expression for the power loss due to the superposed flow:

Where K0 is the ratio of the angular velocity of the fluid core (between the rotor and stator
boundary layers) to angular velocity of the disc (um=u> r). References (2) and (5) assumed a
value K0=0.5 for the turbulent merged boundary layers regime. The total value of the power
loss can be predicted by adding the contributions from expressions (6.1) and (6.2).
In the computational aspect, several attempts have been performed (6), (7). Chew (6)
concludes that the two equation k-E model of turbulence has shown to be effective in rotating
disc flows. In the numerical work reported in reference (6), conditions were such that
compressible effects would be small. This computational work was compared to the
experimental results reported in reference (2) and show a good agreement in terms of
velocities and torque coefficients. Wild et al. (7) used a QUICK discretization scheme to
solve the flow around an enclosed rotating cylindrical rotor of a desalination centrifuge. In
spite of investigating only low speeds (up to 4000 r/min) they included the effect of the end
section between disc and drum. They used a k-e model and time-averaged mass and
momentum conservation equations. However, most of the consulted research is confined to
custom-made codes, which can not be easily approached by users.

6.3

Experimental rig and procedure

A purpose-built experimental rig has been designed and commissioned to validate computed
work. In this investigation the geometry of study is a hydraulically smooth disc with a radius
of a = 47.5 mm and a thickness of h = 10 mm. The radial gap is set to be b = 5 mm and the
axial gap has a magnitude of s = 1 mm. There is a forced inflow of air from the inner radius of
the disc (bore) flowing radially outwards to the periphery (rim) where it exits the rig, is
collected in a manifold and measured by a mass flow meter. The range of superposed flow is
m = 2 to 13 g/s. A schematic of the rig is depicted in Fig. 6.1.
The testing methodology has been based on the inertia run-down technique to evaluate the
windage losses. This method relies on the determination of the torque, T, due to windage
acting on the rotor. After bringing the test rotor unit to the constant desired speed, the rotor
unit is then quickly moved away from the turbine drive so that the rotor unit starts to
decelerate without any external influence. The only restraining torque during the run-down is
the windage losses on the rotor and the small contributions from the windage losses of the
coupling and the mechanical losses on the bearings.

94

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Fig. 6.1 Cross-section of experimental rig

By using Newton's second law for a rotating body (T = Ira, a), the total torque acting on the
test rotor is determined, lrot is the moment of inertia of the rotating components and a is the
angular deceleration. Therefore, by recording the deceleration after the magnetic coupling is
decoupled, the torque exerted on the rotor is computed. The inertia run-down method
determines the total torque acting on the rotor, therefore the energy losses on the bearings and
coupling must be subtracted from the total through equation (6.3)

A full description of the methodology and experimental results can be consulted in reference
(8) and PhD work due for submission 1 May, 2001.

6.4

Computational model

For the study of the windage it was decided to model a sector of the gap between rotor and
stator. The flow is assumed to be steady, turbulent, and axi-symmetric and therefore, the
problem can be treated as two-dimensional in the sense that gradients in the angular direction
are neglected, but all three velocity components are taken into account. The turbulent kinetic
energy k, and its dissipation rate are determined using the standard k-e model. In this model
the high (turbulent) Reynolds number forms of the k and e equations are used in conjunction
with an algebraic wall function representation of flow within the boundary layers.
6.4.1
Boundary conditions
All the fluid cells are given a positive spin equal to the rotational speed of the rotor. The stator
walls have a negative spin of the same magnitude, consequently in a static frame of reference
the stator walls remain static and the rotor walls are rotating with the cells. In order to account

Numerical Determination of Windage Losses on High-speed Rotating Discs

95

for the angular component of speed a cyclic symmetry condition was applied on the upper and
lower faces of the domain. To reduce the computational time, only half of the rotor-stator
geometry was modelled, and a symmetry plane at the middle of the drum section was
specified. Since the flow enters radially to the system (at the bore), it was necessary to give it
also a negative spin so in the static frame of reference the radial condition would be achieved.
The value for the inlet velocity, (/,, is computed from the mass flow rate in study; the values
for the turbulence intensity and its dissipation rate can be obtained by using the expressions:

Where / is the turbulence intensity, typically between 1 and 5 per cent, Q is a dimensionless
constant, usually taken as 0.09 and l is the characteristic length scale taken as 10 per cent of
the inlet length (Versteeg, et al, (9). A pressure boundary condition was applied at the exit of
the domain, with no user conditions for temperature and turbulence intensity, hence the
boundary values for temperature, k and e are calculated by the code on the assumption of zero
flux gradient along the streamlines intersecting the boundary surface.
Figure 6.2 depicts the location of the aforementioned boundary conditions on the structured
meshed for the CFD domain.

Fig. 6.2 Mesh and boundary conditions

6.4.2 Mesh refinement and numerical solution
The numerical solution was performed using the finite volume program STAR CD. The
SIMPLE (Semi-Implicit Method for Pressure-Linked Equations) algorithm was used. It is an
iterative technique, which guesses a value for the pressure and then corrects it during the next
iteration. The multidimensional second-order differencing scheme MARS (Monotone
Advection and Reconstruction Scheme) was used. The present model was set to solve for

96

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

velocities, pressure, kinetic energy, viscous dissipation, temperature, density, and viscosity,
and therefore compressibility effects are taken into account.
Mesh refinement was conducted in three stages. First, computations were performed for a
non-uniform structured mesh composed by 2260 elements, great care was taken to ensure that
the aspect ratio from cell to cell never exceeded a value of 1:5 as recommended by Versteeg
et al. (9). Two successive refinements were performed first in the radial direction to produce a
4520 element mesh, and then in the axial direction resulting in a 9040 element mesh.
All three runs were compared in terms of pressure and temperature on the stator wall. Figure
6.3 shows the non-dimensional pressure and temperature against the non-dimensional radial
distance for the three meshes, note the axis scales.

Fig. 6.3 Effect of grid refinement on pressure and temperature

The maximum percentage difference between the initial mesh and the refined one was 0.1 per
cent for the pressure and 3 per cent for the temperature. Hence the original mesh of 2260
elements is considered to be mesh independent.
The total torque acting on the rotor wall (windage torque) can be calculated from the CFD
runs by taking the circumferential shear force acting on each of the cells on the rotor wall.
Then if the radial position of the centre of gravity of each cell is known the torque for each
cell can be computed (Tfell =tallrfdl). Finally, the addition of all cell torques will be the total
torque on the rotor.

6.5

Results and discussion

The windage losses computed are compared to the experimental data and results calculated
using equations (6.1) and (6.2). The values for the windage losses at 60 000 and 30 000 r/min
are presented in Fig. 6.4.
It can be seen that the numerical predictions of the windage losses are in good agreement with
the experimental results. The computed predictions show the same trend as the experiments
with a maximum percentage difference of 7 per cent at 60 000 r/min and 8 per cent at
30 000 r/min. In both cases, the maximum error occurs for the lower values of mass flow rate
suggesting that the k-e model is not suitable for cases where the boundary layer flow is
dominated by the drag exerted on the rotor.

Numerical Determination of Windage Losses on High-speed Rotating Discs

97

The calculated values from equations (6.1) and (6.2) are higher than the experimental results
by 8 to 30 per cent for 60 000 r/min and 25 to 67 per cent for 30 000 r/min. The
disagreements inferred to come from the fact that these equations were developed from
experimental data at low-rotational speeds and large discs. The assumption that the angular
velocity of the fluid core would be half the speed of the disc was based on the boundary layer
profiles derived for the case of non superposed flow, and show only to be valid for small
values of superposed flow. Furthermore, the angular velocity of the core is reduced by the
superposed flow.

Fig. 6.4

Comparison of computed, measured, and calculated windage losses

against mass flow rate

It can also be seen that the extra momentum caused by the superposed flow has a linear effect
on the windage losses, just as predicted by Ketola et al. (5) on equation (6.2).

6.6 Conclusions
A reliable CFD model for high-speed rotating discs with inflow has been developed using a
commercial code. A satisfactory agreement is achieved in terms of windage loss, pressure,
and temperature. The solution is based on the standard fe-e model of turbulence and a second
order differencing scheme (MARS). Future work will include a through analysis of the effect
of mass flow rate on windage losses. It is expected that a correction of the value of K0 will
improve the calculated predictions. The agreement achieved between experimental and
computational work in order to obtain an engineering solution is a good example of how a
commercial CFD code can become a common practical tool, accessible to all engineers.

6.7 Acknowledgements
The authors wish to thank the National Council for Science and Technology (CONACYT) for
the financial support to Mr. Romero-Hernandez during his studies.

6.8 References
(1)
(2)

Daily, J. W. and Nece, R. E. (1960) Chamber dimensions effects on induced flow and
frictional resistance of enclosed rotating disks, ASME J. Bas. Engng, March.
Daily, J. W., Erndst, W. D., and Asbedian, V. V. (1964) Enclosed rotating disks with
superposed throughflow, MIT Hydrodynamics Laboratory, Report No. 64, April.

98

(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)

(7)

(8)

(9)

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Owen J. M. (1984) Fluid flow and heat transfer in rotating disc systems, Proceedings of
the International Centre for Heat and Mass Transfer, 16, pp. 81-103.
Etemad, M. R., Pullen, K. R., Besant, C. B., and Baines, N. (1992) Evaluation of
windage losses for high-speed disc machinery, Proc. Inst. Mech. Engrs, 206.
Ketola, H. N. and McGrew, J. N. (1968) Pressure frictional resistance, and flow
characteristics of the partially wetted rotating disk, ASME J. Lubric. Technol, April.
Chew, J. W. and Vaughan, C. M. (1988) Numerical predictions for the flow induced
by an enclosed rotating disc, ASME Gas Turbine and Aeroengine Congress,
Amsterdam.
Wild, P. M., Djilali, N., and Vickers, G. W. (1996) Experimental and computational
assessment of windage losses in rotating machinery, ASME J. Fluid Engng, 118, 116122, March.
Romero-Hernandez, S. (1998) Determination of windage losses on high-speed
rotating discs with superposed flow, MPhil to PhD transfer report, Imperial College,
London.
Versteeg, H. K. and Malalakasera, W. (1995) An Introduction to Computational Fluid
Dynamics, Addison Wesley Longman.

7
Computational Fluid Dynamics for Gas Turbine
Combustion Systems - where are we now and
where are we going?
K Menzies

Synopsis
Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) is being used with increasing regularity in the design
and development of combustion systems for gas turbine engines. It offers the potential for
more rapid development of the combustion system with fewer experimental tests and lower
development costs. However, in order to realize this potential we must be able to reproduce
the physical processes with a level of accuracy sufficient to predict the parameters of interest
to the combustion engineer. In this chapter, we consider the current capabilities of CFD for
gas turbine combustion problems from the perspective of what a typical user working on an
engine project needs to be able to predict. Out of the various areas influencing solution
accuracy and reliability we concentrate on some issues in physical modelling and numerical
accuracy. In particular, we consider the minimum standard of turbulence and combustion
modelling required to achieve meaningful results and recommend numerical methods to
deliver a level of numerical accuracy that repays the use of sophisticated physical models. We
also look at current research in these areas to examine the potential improvements that can be
achieved to extend the use of CFD as a part of the combustion engineer's toolkit.

7.1

Introduction

The modern gas turbine engine is a highly complex feat of engineering as illustrated by the
cut-away of a typical large civil turbofan in Fig. 7.1. In the increasingly competitive global
aerospace and power generation markets, it is vital to be able to design and develop engines to
ever shorter timescales and lower cost, while meeting more stringent operating requirements.
In this environment CFD now plays an increasingly important role in allowing the engineer to
simulate any gas flows within the engine.

100

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Fig. 7.1 Typical modern aero gas turbine

In this chapter we shall survey the use of CFD in the design of combustion systems. We
clearly cannot cover all issues in the use of CFD and so are forced to omit some material,
in particular discussion on liquid fuel modelling and boundary conditions.

7.2

The gas turbine combustion system

A typical combustion system for an aero gas turbine is shown in Fig. 7.2. Air flows from the
compressor through the diffuser before entering the combustion chamber. Fuel is added
through the fuel injector; the fuel-air mixture reacts inside the combustion chamber. The
reacted mixture exits through the turbine downstream of the combustion system. The
combustion chamber walls contain holes to control the air admission into the chamber, to both
modify the temperature distribution within the chamber and provide cooling for the
combustor walls. The aero combustor shown is an example of a diffusion flame combustion
system where the fuel and air enter the chamber in distinct streams and combustion takes
place in the mixing layers. An alternative technology is to use premixed combustion systems
where the fuel and air is mixed as uniformly as possible before entry to the combustor; this
technology is extensively used for combustion systems for stationary power generation and
offers the potential for lower levels of pollutant emissions.
The combustion system must be designed to meet a number of goals, some of which are
conflicting. We will typically want to meet targets on at least the following criteria:
Combustion stability, to ensure that the flame is not extinguished during transient or
low-power operation;

Computational Fluid Dynamics for Gas Turbine Combustion Systems

101

Relight capability, ensuring that the flame can be re-ignited if it is extinguished to a

guaranteed altitude; this places limits on the minimum size of the primary zone of the
combustor;
Emissions performance, to reduce the production of combustion-generated pollutants
such as oxides of nitrogen, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, smoke, or unburned fuel.
These may have detrimental effects on the environment and some are the subject of
international legislation. Generally, we wish to have a smaller combustion chamber to
minimize production of oxides of nitrogen;
Reduce combustor length to directly minimize mass and to reduce the length of the
engine shafts;
Guaranteed combustor life before mechanical damage accumulates;
Exit gas temperature distribution which enters the turbine;
Overall pressure losses.

Fig. 7.2 Gas turbine combustion system

At its most arduous operating point the combustion system may be functioning with an inlet
air stream at a pressure of around 30 atmospheres and temperature of 800 K; peak flame
temperatures may reach 2600 K. Given these conditions we may see that taking experimental
measurements is extremely difficult. Combustor test rigs generally can operate only at
compromised conditions, giving limited data at lower pressures (perhaps 10 atmospheres) or
more detailed data at 1-5 atmospheres. In combustor development by experimental methods,
we would use high-pressure rig testing (10 atm) which allows us to measure the exhaust gas
temperatures and composition, along with measurements of the combustor wall temperatures.
Full conditions can, of course, be achieved by running engine tests but even less information
is available here, generally only metal temperatures, and this requires the existence of a
suitable engine which will not be the case in the early stages of the design. Both rig and
engine testing are also expensive and slow; if we wish to reduce development timescales and
costs we must employ alternative tools to aid our design process.

102

7.3

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

The role of CFD in the design of the combustion system

Traditionally, CFD has been used less extensively in combustion system design than in some
other areas of the engine, due to the complex nature of the flow. The combination of highly
three-dimensional flow, large-scale turbulence, and highly exothermic chemical reactions has
provided a severe test of our physical understanding in constructing tractable approximations
as well as placing great demands on computational resources to solve the resulting numerical
problem. However, advances in turbulence modelling, combustion modelling, and numerical
methods, coupled with the growth in computer power available in relatively modest desktop
machines, now makes CFD analysis of combustion systems viable as a routine part of the
design process. Despite the limiting assumptions built in to some of the physical models used
in the past, it has been possible to perform useful calculations for combustion problems as
illustrated by references (3), (8), and (22), but we are now in a position to significantly reduce
timescales and costs by the use of CFD.
The objective for the combustion engineer of using CFD must be to reduce design and
development timescales and costs. We can achieve this if we can predict the major parameters
of interest to the engineer reliably, consistently, and on time, thereby reducing the level of rig
and engine testing required to prove the design. We may wish to predict, among other
features,
The exit temperature distribution from the combustion chamber;
The pressure losses incurred in the system;
The levels of gaseous and particulate pollutants produced;
Thermal loads on the structure;
Stability and ignition characteristics.
With increased emphasis on component life, fuel efficiency (both affecting the total cost of
ownership of the engine) and emissions levels (resulting from international legislation) we
can clearly influence the design process by use of CFD if the methods are capable of
predicting parameters such as wall heat fluxes and pollutant formation. However, as we shall
see, this is not a trivial exercise!
We must also note that these CFD methods should be suitable for use by suitably-trained
engineers, not just 'CFD specialists'. We must ensure however, that the CFD-using
population is sufficiently well trained to assess their results in the light of the limitations of
the physical models and numerics employed.

7.4

Formulation of the problem

The conventional approach employed for CFD analysis of combustion systems is to write the
governing Navier-Stokes equations and chemical species transport equations in densityweighted (Favre) averaged form. We assume that the flow is at a sufficiently low Mach
number that the only density variations arise through combustion. We further assume that the
flow is steady, giving the following governing equations in Cartesian tensor form, where <t>"
is the Favre fluctuation and 0 represents a density weighted mean value:

Computational Fluid Dynamics for Gas Turbine Combustion Systems

103

Continuity:

Momentum:

Species transport:

We then obtain a number of unclosed terms: the Reynolds stresses - pu'u' , the scalar fluxes
- pu'u" , the mean chemical source term cbj, and the mean density p , as discussed in (12).
Each of these must be modelled and the assumptions employed in this modelling control
which of the aspects of combustor performance we can predict.

7.5

Turbulence modelling

The majority of combustor calculations reported in the literature employ the high Reynolds
number k- turbulence model (13), written in density weighted form; we assume that the
effects of the density fluctuations are accounted for in the averaging process. This allows us to
model the Reynolds stresses in terms of the mean rate of strain and a 'turbulent' viscosity; the
scalar fluxes are closed through a gradient transport hypothesis. This model is robust and can
produce good results; however, it is unable to predict features such as the modification of
mixing rates by strong mean swirl (as is found in the efflux of the fuel injector), or the shift in
mean velocity profile in the annuli resulting from stress relaxation. These are all effects
resulting from stress anisotropy or redistribution which cannot be captured when the stress
field is characterized by the (scalar) turbulence kinetic energy and interacts with the mean
flow through the turbulent viscosity. The current alternative method is to employ a secondmoment closure that formulates modelled transport equations for the individual stress
components. These Reynolds stress models have been used to good effect on some complex
flows (20) and are able to capture a wider range of physical phenomena.
Despite these concerns, the k-E model can produce results that agree well with experimental
data even for flows as complex as those in combustion chambers, as illustrated in Figs 7.3 and
7.4 for a research combustor; the experimental results are from (2). However the predictions
for diffuser systems are less good with the fc-e model: while the mean pressure loss may be
predicted reasonably correctly the velocity profiles may be severely in error. In particular the
standard fe-e model predicts a growth in turbulence energy (and corresponding increase in
turbulent viscosity) at the impingement point on the head of the chamber where the flow
decelerates. This is then transported around the head of the combustor, corrupting the velocity
profiles predicted in the annuli. In contrast a Reynolds stress model will correctly predict no
growth in turbulence energy through the deceleration of the flow (instead the energy is

104

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

redistributed among the stress components), leading to more realistic predictions of the flow
around the combustor head.

Fig. 7.3 Research combustor temperature measurements

Fig. 7.4 Calculation of research combustor

The use of Reynolds stress models in combusting flows is less well developed as a result of
the relatively smaller amount of effort put into developing second-moment closures suitable
for reacting flows, and the difficulty of taking measurements for model validation and

Computational Fluid Dynamics for Gas Turbine Combustion Systems

105

development. The stress transport equations are again written in density-weighted form but
now additional terms appear for combusting flows which require modelling. Of the available
models, that described in (11) appears to be one of the most reliable and has produced good
results for reacting flow. The scalar fluxes must again be modelled and this may be done using
the second-moment closure also described in (11). This level of closure allows us to capture
effects such as counter-gradient diffusion observed in premixed flames which cannot be
represented by lower order closures.
The Reynolds stress and scalar flux closures described represent the current best practice for
application to practical gas turbine combustor calculations, since they balance physical
realism with computational economy. However, we are still limited by the fundamental
assumptions of all Reynolds averaging methods whereby we have characterized the
turbulence field by a single length and time scale. This is likely to be a significant
compromise particularly in flows where the effects of solid walls are important, such as the
modelling of cooling films or diffuser performance. In such cases we may wish to move to a
more comprehensive treatment of the turbulence structure that captures at least some of the
range of eddy scales and so the energy cascade. The only method currently offering promise
in this area for engineering flows at high Reynolds number is the Large Eddy Simulation
(LES) approach. Here, we perform an unsteady calculation on a grid sufficiently fine to
resolve the large eddy structures and simulate only those that cannot be resolved on the grid
(which should be that part of the flow within the turbulence inertial subrange). This method is
attractive for a number of reasons for calculating the flows in combustion systems:
The inherently unsteady nature of the calculation and capture of multiple length and
time scales should allow the calculation of structures such as cooling films which are
poorly predicted by many Reynolds-averaged techniques. The decay of the cooling film
is controlled by the rate of mixing between the film and the hot mainstream; this mixing
process is governed by large-scale vortex motions in the interface leading to
entrainment of hot gas into the film. These processes should be more amenable to
prediction by LES than by Reynolds-averaged methods which should improve the data
that can be supplied to combustor life calculations.
LES allows us to directly simulate the larger turbulence scales which will be most
influenced by the geometry and boundary conditions. The smaller, modelled, scales are
assumed to be more universal and therefore may be more properly approximated by
simple 'universal' models. This should further improve diffuser predictions where small
changes in the geometry may lead to significant changes in performance and the flow
characteristics are dominated by the structure of the near-wall flow.
In attempting to reduce emissions from the combustion system, most approaches now
favour use of a fuel-lean flame. This introduces issues of flame stability and the possible
generation of destructive acoustic waves in the chamber. These can contain sufficient
energy to damage the combustion system. These instabilities take the form of largescale unsteady motions in the combustion chamber which should be better captured by
LES thus allowing investigation of potential acoustic problems at the design stage
instead of using expensive rig testing.
However, we should not underestimate the challenges involved in making LES a design tool.
Relatively little work has been performed on LES for combustion, some exceptions being for
example (1), (5), and (7) and so issues remain over the precise treatment of combustion in an
LES framework. While we assume that the unresolved subgrid turbulence scales are
represented by relatively simple universal models, there has been little comparative testing of
different subgrid scale models in complex engineering flows. We also need the calculations to

106

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

be rapid enough to provide timely information in a design environment which will place
demands on numerical methods and computer hardware.

7.6

Combustion modelling

We must also determine the values of the other unclosed terms, the mean density and mean
chemical source term, in order to model our combusting flow. The approximations that we
employ here significantly affect the range of operating conditions that we may calculate and
the parameters that we may confidently use from the prediction.
We must note that there are different regimes of turbulent flames; these have been
characterised by Borghi (4) into the types shown in Fig. 7.5. The discriminator is the
Damkohler number: the ratio of turbulent to chemical timescales. At high Damkohler
numbers the chemical reactions are fast compared to turbulent mixing times; at low
Damkohler numbers the chemical reaction times for the heat release reactions are comparable
to the turbulent mixing times.

Fig. 7.5 The regimes of turbulent diffusion flames (Borghi diagram)

7.6.1
Modelling combustion chemistry
Practical gas turbines employ complex hydrocarbon fuels, typically aviation kerosene, diesel,
or natural gas. While the chemical reaction mechanisms governing the combustion of natural
gas are now established there is less certainty about the combustion of kerosene. Moreover,
the detailed chemical reaction mechanisms that do exist are highly complex: a typical model
kerosene mechanism employs 92 chemical species and 460 reactions (18) giving a large
system of coupled stiff ordinary differential equations. This level of complexity is not
tractable for use within three-dimensional turbulent flow calculations.
For diffusion flames if we confine our attention to the high Damkohler number regime and
further assume that all species diffusivities are equal then we may characterize the combustion
process by the value of a single conserved scalar which eliminates the mean chemical source

Computational Fluid Dynamics for Gas Turbine Combustion Systems

107

term (12); this conserved scalar is often taken as the mixture fraction, . We are then left with
the calculation of the mean density from the mixture fraction. A similar approach can be used
for premixed flames where the conserved scalar is a measure of reaction progress.
The two most commonly used methods for characterizing the thermochemistry in high
Damkohler number diffusion flame calculations are to either assume chemical equilibrium or
to employ a laminar flamelet description in a pre-processing stage, taking the results into the
CFD code. The former method has been used extensively (e.g. (8), (22)) and is attractive
because it does not require knowledge of the chemical reaction mechanism. However,
although it is able to give reasonable predictions of density and temperature this method is not
suitable for predicting many combustor emissions since the measured values are far from the
equilibrium levels. An improvement is to employ the so-called laminar flamelet model. This
approach requires us to calculate the properties of a laminar flame at the conditions needed by
the combustor calculation which is only possible when we have a chemical reaction
mechanism available. The laminar flamelet approach does permit better predictions of species
such as CO than equilibrium, but is still limited by the decoupling of the chemistry and the
flow. It is, however, the method of choice for practical calculations at present with the
understanding that it is only applicable for high-power predictions. In the case of premixed
flame modelling the usual approaches are to employ either a premixed laminar flamelet
approach, a global one-step chemical reaction mechanism (which will be very crude) or a
global two-step mechanism.
While using a detailed chemical reaction mechanism is prohibitively expensive within the
CFD calculation, a promising approach is to employ a reduced chemical mechanism. This
describes the combustion process in terms of perhaps four key reactions involving five scalar
variables, which allow prediction of the major species and does not invoke the assumption of
high Damkohler numbers. This method has been demonstrated to be effective for laminar
flames (14) and is now being adopted for turbulent flame calculations although this
application is complicated by the turbulence-chemistry interaction treatment (see the next
section). This is the 'next-step' method for modelling the combustion process, although it
requires specification of a reduced mechanism. There is some potential for these to be
calculated automatically via a method such as the Intrinsic Low-Dimensional Manifold (19),
but given the level of reduction required this is a daunting task. An attractive alternative is the
In-Situ Adaptive Tabulation method of Pope (21), which is claimed to offer the ability of
treating more complex chemistry in turbulent flow calculations, although this is still to be
demonstrated for practical engineering calculations. Some form of chemical reaction scheme
coupled with the flow solution is essential for predicting low-power operation, particularly
emissions; at present the reduced mechanism approach appears most promising. This will also
permit a unified methodology for diffusion and premixed flames.
Prediction of soot emissions is especially problematic in the combustor. The kinetics of soot
formation and oxidation is not yet well understood for complex hydrocarbon fuels. However,
some progress has been made in understanding the kinetics (18); there has also been
application of a model based on a laminar flamelet description of combustion in (6). The
results are very encouraging but more development is needed before it becomes a routine tool;
this is an important research need.
7.6.2
Modelling turbulence-chemistry interaction
In a combusting flow, variables such as density and temperature are highly nonlinear
functions of the chemical state. We cannot simply calculate the mean value of the

108

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

thermochemical variables from the mean values of the solved scalars; we must account for the
distribution of the scalar fluctuations. This is accomplished by use of the probability density
function (pdf) of the scalars. In the case of a single conserved scalar we simply have

where ?() is the density-weighted pdf. A number of forms for P(,) have been used in the
literature; a common choice is to take P() to be a beta function defined from the mean
mixture fraction and the mixture fraction variance (8), (22). When using a laminar flamelet
combustion model the values of 0() are obtained from the flame calculation.
If we wish to employ chemistry more complex than simply a single parameter tabulation, then
we have the problem of defining a multi-dimensional pdf with integration limits that depend
on the species concentrations. One approach to multi-step chemistry in turbulent flows is the
eddy breakup model (24) which avoids this problem completely, allowing the use of singlestep or two-step chemistry. It simulates the effect of turbulence on the combustion process by
merely using the mean mixture temperature to calculate reaction rates which are then
modified by a turbulent mixing controlled step. This model is essentially intuitive and
contains a model constant that may be tuned to modify the results. It is still restricted to the
mixing-controlled (high Damkohler number) regime. A more rigorous approach which is
applicable beyond the high Damkohler number limit is to derive a transport equation for the
pdf and solve this as part of the flow calculation; this circumvents our problem of how to
specify the pdf a priori. This pdf transport equation contains terms which require modelling;
in some cases there are no ideal models. However, the chemical reaction mechanism appears
without approximation in this formalism which makes it ideally suited for the reduced
reaction schemes discussed above. Since turbulence and reaction are coupled here the method
is able to treat all operating conditions, limited only by the fidelity of the reaction mechanism.
This method is being actively developed and is undoubtedly set to become the method of
choice for reacting flow calculations allowing a wider range of calculations to be performed.
We must emphasise that in flows such as are found in combustion chambers, with high levels
of turbulence, the interaction between turbulence and reaction must be accounted for. Simply
using the mean flow properties to calculate the thermochemical data without modification can
lead to large errors (10). We should beware of codes that offer arbitrarily complex chemistry
without coupling reaction to turbulence!

7.7

Numerical methods

The accuracy and reliability of our CFD solution is also influenced by the numerical methods
employed. We can only repay the investment in complex turbulence and combustion models
if the numerics are sophisticated enough to discriminate between models; we cannot afford to
lose the beneficial effects of improved physics through poor numerics.
Historically, many practical engineering CFD calculations have used methods such as hybrid
differencing or similar discretizations (8), (22). These methods have the advantage of stability
but at the expense of unacceptably high levels of numerical diffusion on practical grids when
the flow is not aligned with the grid. The development of schemes such as QUICK (16)
allowed solutions with much lower levels of artificial diffusion but simultaneously with no

Computational Fluid Dynamics for Gas Turbine Combustion Systems

109

guarantee of boundedness; some examples of applications to combustor flows are given in

(20). The development of bounded second-order schemes such as (9), (26) for low Mach
number flow calculations has removed the need for any compromise between diffusion and
boundedness; these methods can also be implemented in a stable manner as illustrated by
(26). We can only repeat the sentiments of Leonard and Drummond's 'manifesto' on
differencing schemes (17) that there are far better alternatives to first-order schemes and all
practical calculations should be using these alternatives. In application to combustor flows we
are now able to employ accurate discretization on all variables including those that are
physically positive-definite such as the turbulence energy or mixture fraction. The
calculations shown in Fig. 7.4 employ the van Leer (25) scheme implemented in the manner
suggested by (11) and (26) for all variables and this method is in routine use on practical
calculations. For methods such as LES we may need to investigate more sophisticated
discretization schemes.
Conventionally, the CFD user sets up the computational grid for their problem before
performing the flow calculation. In order to reduce user workload and improve numerical
accuracy we have pursued the concept of solution-adaptive grids to allow the grid to
redistribute to resolve the underlying solution (15). This permits higher numerical accuracy
than can be achieved by manual definition of a similarly-sized grid and also delivers a faster
solution turn-around than a finer grid that may deliver similar accuracy. This faster turnaround allows CFD to become more responsive in a design environment. Solution-adaptive
grid redistribution had been applied to calculations of practical combustor geometries, such as
(15) and demonstrated their applicability, as shown in Fig. 7.6, using an adapted grid of the
same size as the results in Fig. 7.4.

Fig. 7.6 Research combustor calculations using adaptive grid redistribution

For the future we must routinely employ adaptive techniques for practical calculations,
perhaps combining adaptive redistribution and refinement, with the underlying flow solution
calculated using non-diffusive and bounded numerical methods. This will allow the best
utilisation of finite computer resources to produce numerically accurate solutions in
timescales relevant to the design process.

110

7.8

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Conclusions

In the preceding sections we have attempted to highlight some of the issues involved in
employing CFD in a practical design environment for gas turbine combustion systems. We
have seen how current methodologies based on either k-c or second-moment turbulence
models and laminar flamelet descriptions of combustion chemistry are able to deliver realistic
results for high-power operation. The next steps in combustor prediction are to employ the
transported pdf method with (simplified) multi-step chemical kinetics to allow prediction of
low power operation and kinetically-controlled emissions. We must also extend our
turbulence modelling methodology to encompass LES to allow better prediction of complex
wall-bounded flows and unsteady phenomena; the latter are particularly difficult to investigate
experimentally. Eventually the aim must be to completely couple these approaches for
practical investigations. At all stages we must continue to employ accurate discretisations and
adaptive grids to allow the best numerical solution of the modelled equations. This will allow
the use of CFD to be extended in the design process, allowing a shorter and less expensive
development cycle for combustion systems coupled with better understanding of their
operation.

7.9

Acknowledgements

The author would like to thank Rolls-Royce plc for permission to publish this chapter, as well
as colleagues at Rolls-Royce plc, Imperial College of Science, Technology, and Medicine and
Loughborough University for many stimulating discussions on modelling of combustion
systems.

7.10
(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)
(5)
(6)

(7)

References
Angelberger, C., Veynante, D., Egolfopoulos R, and Poinsot, T. (1998) Large eddy
simulations of combustion instabilities in premixed flames, Center for Turbulence
Research Proceedings of the Summer Program 1998, pp. 61-82.
Bicen, A, F., Tse, D. G. N., and Whitelaw, J. H. (1988) Combustion characteristics of
a model can-type combustor, Report FS/87/28 (Revised), Department of Mechanical
Engineering Fluids Section, Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine,
London, UK.
Bond, N. R., Le Vallois J. M., and Menzies, K. R. (1992) Modelling the vaporiser and
primary zone flows for a modem gas turbine combustion chamber, CFD for Propulsion
Applications, AGARD-CP-510 (AGARD Propulsion and Energetics Panel 77th
Symposium).
Borghi, R., (1988) Turbulent combustion modelling, Prog. Energy Combustion Sci., 14,
245-292.
Branley, N. and Jones, W. P. (1997) Large eddy simulation of a turbulent nonpremixed flame, Eleventh Symposium on Turbulent Shear Flows, Grenoble.
Brocklehurst, H. T., Priddin, C. H., and Moss, J. B. (1997) Soot predictions within an
aero gas turbine combustion chamber, ASME97-GT-148, International Gas Turbine
and Aeroengine Congress and Exhibition, Orlando.
Colucci, P. J., Jaberi, F. A., Givi, P., and Pope, S. B. (1998) Filtered density function
for large eddy simulation of turbulent reacting flows, Phys. Fluids, 10, 499-515.

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(8)

(9)

(10)

(11)

(12)

(13)
(14)
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(17)

(18)
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Coupland, J. and Priddin, C. H. (1985) Modelling the flow and combustion in a

production gas turbine combustor, Fifth Symposium on Turbulent Shear Flows, Cornell
University, pp. 10.1-10.6.
Gaskell, P. H. and Lau, A. C. K. (1988) Curvature compensated convective transport:
smart, a new boundedness-preserving transport algorithm, Int. J. Numer. Methods Fluids
8, 617-635.
Jones, W. P. (1980) Models for turbulent flows with variable density and combustion,
Prediction Methods for Turbulent Flows (Edited by W. Kollmann) Hemisphere, pp.
380-421.
Jones W. P. (1994) Turbulence modelling and numerical solution methods for variable
density and combusting flows, Chapter 6 of Turbulent Reactive Flows (Edited by
P. A. Libby and F. A. Williams), Academic Press, pp. 309-374.
Jones, W. P. and Kakhi, M. (1996) Mathematical modelling of turbulent flames,
Unsteady Combustion (Edited by F. Culick, M. V. Heitor, and J. H. Whitelaw), Kluwer,
pp. 411-491.
Jones, W. P. and Launder, B. E. (1972) The prediction of laminarisation with a twoequation model of turbulence, Int. J. Heat Mass Transfer, 15, 301-314.
Jones, W. P. and Lindstedt, R. P. (1988) Global reaction schemes for hydrocarbon
combustion, Combust. Flame, 73, 233-249.
Jones, W. P. and Menzies, K. R. (1997) Calculation of gas turbine combustor flows
using an adaptive grid redistribution method, Eleventh Symposium on Turbulent Shear
Flows, Grenoble.
Leonard, B. P. (1979) A stable and accurate convective modelling procedure based on
quadratic upstream interpolation, Comp. Methods Appl. Mech. Engng, 19, 59-98.
Leonard, B. P. and Drummond, J. E. (1995) Why you should not use 'Hybrid',
'Power-Law' or related exponential schemes for convection modelling - there are much
better alternatives, Int. J. Numer. Methods Fluids, 20, 421-442.
Leung, K. M. (1995) Kinetic modelling of hydrocarbon flames using detailed and
systematically reduced chemistry, PhD thesis, University of London.
Maas, U. and Pope, S. B. (1992) Simplifying chemical kinetics: intrinsic lowdimensional manifolds in composition space, Combust. Flame, 88, 239-264
Manners, A. P. (1988) The calculation of the flows in gas turbine combustion systems,
PhD thesis, University of London.
Pope, S. B. (1997) Computationally efficient implementation of combustion chemistry
using in-situ adaptive tabulation, Combust. Theory Modelling, 1, 41-63.
Priddin, C. H. and Coupland, J. (1986) Impact of numerical methods on gas turbine
combustor design and development, Calculation of Turbulent Reacting Flows (Edited
by R. M. C. So, J. H. Whitelaw, and H. C. Mongia), ASME, pp. 335-348.
Shyy, W., Braaten, M. E., and Burrus, D. L. (1989) Study of three-dimensional gas
turbine combustor flows, Int. J. Heat Mass Transfer 32, 1155-1164.
Spalding, D. B. (1971) Mixing and chemical reaction in steady confined turbulent
flames, 13th International Symposium on Combustion, The Combustion Institute, pp.
649-657.
van Leer, B. (1974) Towards the ultimate conservative differencing scheme IImonotonicity and conservation combined in a second-order scheme, J. Computational
Phys. 14, 361.
Zhu, J. (1991) A low diffusion and oscillation-free convection scheme,
Communications Appl. Numer. Methods, 7, 225-232.

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8
Using CFD to Investigate Combustion in a
Cement Manufacturing Process
D Giddings, S J Pickering, K Simmons, and C N Eastwick

Synopsis
This chapter presents research into combustion in a cement manufacturing process by The
University of Nottingham in association with Blue Circle Cement. CFD models of a cement
works precalciner have been developed in which limestone, held in suspension, is calcined to
calcium oxide and the endothermic reaction is supported by coal combustion. The work was
done using the commercial CFD code Fluent.
The following features of the code were utilized during the study:
Block structured and fully unstructured meshes;
Combustion using devolatilization and char combustion models;
Use of devolatilization models to mimic calcination;
Particle tracking in a Lagrangian frame of reference with high particle-to-gas mass ratio;
k-e turbulence modelling.
Solution difficulties were encountered and solved in the following areas:
Regions of high field variable gradients;
Injection of heavily concentrated reacting particles.
Limited validation measurements on the installation indicate fair agreement of the model. The
aim of the project was to develop an understanding of the processes within the precalciner to
aid in the optimization of the combustion process and the use of alternative fuels. It has been
successful in this and has highlighted previously unrecognized features and structures within
the precalciner that have implications for future operation.

8.1

Introduction

The aim of this chapter is to present the results of CFD modelling applied to a cement works
precalciner. The model includes a full representation of the reactions occurring in the real

114

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

vessel. More details of this aspect of the work are given in the IMechE Journal of Power and
Energy paper (1). This chapter describes further work in prediction of tyre chip aerodynamic
and combustion behaviour modelling. The precalciner vessel modelled in this work is located
at Blue Circle Cement Cauldon works.
8.1.1 The cement manufacturing process
The preheater tower is a counter current heat exchanger approximately 70 m high with
typically 4 to 6 cyclone separation vessels. The physical aspects of the preheater tower and
the precalciner at the cement works, which were the subject of this study, are illustrated in
Fig. 8.1. A large fan that drives the flow through the preheater tower draws hot gases rising
from the kiln toward the outlet. Raw meal descends the tower in the opposite direction to the
gases. Calcination of the raw meal occurs in the precalciner. Approximately two-thirds of the
fuel required for the whole process is delivered to the precalciner in order to support the
endothermic calcination reaction and the reaction proceeds in nearly isothermal conditions.
The remaining fuel is delivered to the far end of the kiln. Typical configurations of modern
plant and a more thorough description of the recent developments are described in the
comprehensive reviews by Garret (2) and Klotz (3).
8.1.2 CFD application
8.1.2.1 Solution settings
Fluent Unstructured (version 4.2.5) was used to develop the model described in the
subsequent sections. It was used to solve the steady state, three dimensional, fully viscous
Navier-Stokes equations. The k-e turbulence model of Launder and Spalding (4) was used
with the constants described in that paper. Reaction mechanisms were simulated using the
Magnussen-Hjertager (5) eddy mixing model and finite rate devolatilization models using the
standard Arrhenius-type rate equation (6). The discretization scheme used was PRESTO!
(PREssure STaggering Option, see (7)) for pressure, as the flow was considered to be subject
to high-pressure gradients and body forces. The SIMPLE pressure-velocity-coupling scheme
of Patankar (8) was used. Six chemical species were included in the model: CO2, CO, N2, O2,
H2O, and lv-vol (the volatile of the coal).
The energy equation was solved using the conservation form in order to improve stability of
the calculation in regions of high heat exchange (i.e. where the fastest rates of reactions
occur). Simply put in terms of the continuity equation, the forms of the conservation and nonconservation forms are respectively:

The reason for the effectiveness of this technique is given in the Von Karmen Institute lecture
notes (9).
8.1.2.2 Grid
For the model of the precalciner, a block structured body fitted grid was developed. The
outside surface of the grid is illustrated in Fig. 8.1. One coal inlet is not visible, but it is
located directly opposite the coal inlet that is visible on the conical section. It can be seen that
the grid in the region of the coal inlet has been refined. The grid refinement was done by the
hanging-node method, which divides each hexahedral cell in to eight new hexahedral cells.
The cells were refined in the region encompassed by three concentric spheres with coincident
centres at the centre of the coal inlet. Thus, three refinement regions can be seen on the

Fig. 8.1 The preheater tower and precalciner model

116

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

surface of the model. The outlet duct was added to allow the flow to develop before the exit.
The total number of computational cells was 45 000. The height of the model was 25.84 m
and the diameter of the main cylindrical section was 6.9 m.
8.1.2.3 Solid particle modelling
The three paniculate types were modelled using the Lagrangian frame of reference (7). They
represented coal, raw meal, and tyre chips. A coupled solution was used, in which interaction
of the discrete phase (the particles) with the continuous phase (the fluid) is considered.
The particles in the real precalciner are driven upwards against gravity by the gas velocity.
The mass injection rate of raw meal particles to the model was 55 kg/s, the coal injection rate
was 1.5 kg/s, and tyre chips 0.5 kg/s. The heavy raw meal load caused solution stability
problems. It was found that increasing the number of raw meal particle tracks, spreading the
initial injection, and employing stochastic effects helped stability. Stochastic dispersal of the
particles was employed (7). Each stochastic calculation makes random changes to the
turbulent component of the velocity vector, u', in each computational cell to alter the
trajectory of the particle track. The total mass for each injection is then divided equally
between the number of stochastic calculations, 20 in this case. The Rossin-Rammler size
distribution was applied to the coal and raw meal particles (Table 8.1).
Table S.I Rossin-Rammler size distribution of coal and raw meal particles
Minimum particle diameter
Mean particle diameter
Maximum particle diameter
Rosin-Rammler spread parameter
Number of stochastic attempts
Interval length of tracking steps
Number of tracking steps

20|xm
55um
100um
1.04
20
10 mm
15,000

The initial size of the tyre chips was determined from aerodynamic experimental work in a
wind tunnel. A swelling coefficient (7) was chosen to cause all tyre chips to have the same
aerodynamic characteristics as a 3 mm-diameter piece of char with density 70 kg/m3 when the
volatiles have completely yielded. This behaviour was inferred from experimental combustion
of tyre chips in an ashing furnace at 900 C. Tyre chips decomposed to char granules of this
size once the volatile component had been released. The tyre chip data is presented in the
following Table 8.2.
Table 8.2 Tyre chip injection data
Chip No.
1
2
3
4

5
6
7
8
9
10

% injection
4
4
15
15
16
16
8
8
7
7

Initial dia (cm)

8.8
6.1
8.9
6.5
8.1
6.1
9.3
6.3
13.7
6.7

Swelling coefft
2.38
3.43
3.73
5.08
4.81
6.26
4.56
6.7
3.92
8.03

Tyre chip mass (g)

8.2
8.2
20.6
20.6
28
28
34
34
54
54

Using CFD to Investigate Combustion in a Cement Manufacturing Process

117

The devolatililization model of the combusting particle type was used to simulate the
calcination reaction. The single rate model was used of the Arrhenius form,
k = Ae\p(-E / RT). The activation energy (E = 2.05xl08 J/kmol) and the pre-exponential
constant (A - 3.81xl08 s-1) were determined by reference to the work of Borgwardt (10).
Coal and tyre chip combustion was included in the model. The rate of devolatilization of coal
was set according to the model of Badzioch and Hawkesley (6). The devolatilization rate of
tyre material was set according to experimental data; a constant rate was used, which caused
all volatiles to yield in 30 seconds. Combustion of carbon (char) was considered as a two step
reaction (11), first to CO, then to CO2. The diffusion-limited rate was used, whereby the
diffusion rate of the gaseous oxidant to the surface of the particle determines the oxidation
rate (12). Data for the composition of a medium volatile coal was obtained from Smoot (13).
The coal simulated was based on Upper Freeport MVD. Tyre composition was determined
from other research work (14). The compositions are stated in Table 8.3. Proximate analysis
and ultimate analysis are defined by Borman and Ragland (11).
Table 8.3 Composition of model coal and tyre chip material

Proximate analysis (by mass, %)

Ultimate analysis (by mass, %)
Calorific value (kJ/kg)

8.2

volatiles
char
ash
carbon
hydrogen
oxygen

Model coal
18.6
74.4
7
87.5
4.8
7.7
30 985

Model tyre
62.1
26.1
11.8
85.3
11
0
36 924

Results

Figure 8.2 shows some features of the model precalciner operation. The outline shows the
edges of the precalciner vessel, with the exit duct directed away from the point of observation.
Velocity vectors are projected from lines across the centre of the vessel at 10 heights.
Temperature contours are plotted on two planes, at 11.4 m, and at 20.4 m from the base.
These are at the height of available access ports in the wall of the real precalciner, which will
be referred to in the validation section. The behaviour of the particles in the model are
represented by three coal particle trajectories from each of the coal inlets and six tyre chip
trajectories from the tyre inlet. Some qualitative aspects of the predicted behaviour will be
drawn from this figure in the following sections.
8.2.1
CFD results
The model shows that particles injected at the raw meal inlet (RMI), are strongly influenced
by the gases injected at the tertiary air duct (TAD). Of the mass of raw meal injected
approximately 85 per cent is driven across to the far side. The momentum of the gases from
the TAD is 27 kg/s at 30 m/s compared to 55 kg/s of raw meal particles at approximately
15 m/s. The effect of turbulence in the real installation tends to disperse the particles in
random patterns. CFD shows that the initial common trajectory is toward the right-hand side
of the precalciner in the conical section, despite turbulence effects. The effect of turbulence is
significant in dispersing the particles following their passage beyond the throat of the conical
section. There is then significant recirculation of some particles in the main cylindrical section
before exit. The time a particle will take to traverse from inlet to exit thus varies considerably;

118

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Fig. 8.2 Features of particle trajectories, velocity vectors, and temperature contours

Using CFD to Investigate Combustion in a Cement Manufacturing Process

119

an average of 10 seconds is apparent from the model, with some taking as little as 5 seconds.
The momentum of the gas mixture drives the particles. Therefore, the model flow field,
illustrated in Fig. 8.3 by velocity vectors, shows why the particles are observed to behave as
they do. Recirculation of the gas on this plane is strong. On the left-hand side of the
precalciner, the downward velocity reaches 11 m/s and on the right-hand side the upward
velocity reaches 20 m/s. An interesting feature shown in the velocity vectors is in the region
of the raw meal inlet where the high injection rate of raw meal causes such a depression in the
upward velocity that the flow is forced slightly downwards at one position.
The model suggests that in the order of 85 per cent of the injected raw meal has undergone the
calcination reaction fully before exit from the precalciner. No measurement on the real
installation has yet been performed that can verify this. The post-processing available shows
the discrete phase devolatilization rate per cell from the coal and the raw meal in one field
variable. This includes the volatiles (lv-vol) from the coal and the CO2 from the raw meal,
which is modelled as a volatile despite the true nature of the reaction. The model suggests that
calcination occurs mainly toward the wall at the right hand side of the precalciner, i.e. on the
side furthest from the TAD above the conical section. Since calcination is a highly
endothermic reaction, an associated region of relatively low temperature would be consistent
with a high rate of calcination. This is what is observed in the model; the region
corresponding to high calcination rate in the foregoing discussion shows a depression to the
range 900 C to 1000 C. Energy supplied by the coal combustion reactions maintains the
temperature until the calcination reaction is complete.
The behaviour of the coal in the model is consistent with the above discussion. Coal from the
inlet on the same side as the Tertiary Air Duct (left-hand side coal inlet) rises and exits
without recirculating. Coal from the other inlet (right-hand side coal inlet) rises to the ceiling
of the precalciner and recirculates in the full length of the main cylindrical section. Residence
times are 0.6 to 1.0 second for coal from the left-hand side and 5 to 18 seconds for coal
injected from the right-hand side. Volatiles are released very quickly due to the high
temperature of the gases into which the relatively cold (75 C) coal air stream enters, and the
conversion to CO is completed before the exit from the main body of the precalciner. Char
oxidation is completed before exit from the precalciner for Coal B; 20 per cent of the char
from Coal A is not oxidized before exit. Some CO is present at the exit from the precalciner at
0.46 ppm, confirming the presence of reacting char.
Tyre chips fall and then recirculate similar to the left-hand side injected coal. Residence time
in the precalciner is sustained by the recirculation.
8.2.2 Validation data from the vessel,
Six access ports are present on the cylindrical section of the precalciner. Three are equally
spaced on the circumference at two heights (Fig. 8.1); 0.6 m above the conical section
(elevation 11.4 m on the model) and 5 m below the top (elevation 20.4 m). The data from the
model at these two heights is presented in Fig. 8.3. Contours of velocity in the vertical, z
direction (m/s), temperature (C), and particle concentration (kg/m3) were related to
measurements made on the precalciner. Probes were inserted approximately 0.3 m into the
flow from the edge of the refractory lining through the access ports.
All temperature measurements show good correlation to within 60 C.

120

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Fig. 8.3 Comparison of site measurements and CFD results for temperature
and velocity with error bars applied to the velocity measurements

Using CFD to Investigate Combustion in a Cement Manufacturing Process

121

Accurate measurement of gas velocity inside the precalciner is very difficult on account of the
very high paniculate loading. However, for the purposes of initial validation, an S-type Pilot
probe was used to give and indication of flow direction in the precalciner.
Figure 8.3 shows that there is considerable uncertainty in the actual velocity measurements.
The relative magnitude and flow direction at each measurement port shows similarity to the
measurements. Error bars on the measured values are used to give an estimate of the
uncertainty. The probe blocked up with particles after a few seconds and had to be cleared by
intermittent purging with air. There was significant unsteadiness in the velocity measurements
of the probe. Nevertheless, it can be seen from Fig. 8.4 that there is generally good agreement
between the prediction of the flow velocity and the direction and relative magnitude of the
velocity indicated by the measurements.

8.3

Conclusions

The behaviour of particles within the precalciner is of interest to Blue Circle. The data
available from the model can be used to make decisions about best injection technique for
coal and tyre chips. The model shows that the points of injection give good combustion
features because of the recirculation characteristics leading to prolongued residence times.
The work-to-date has illustrated some important characteristics of the behaviour in the
precalciner vessel, which cannot be practically measured. The usefulness of the CFD tool for
this work has been proven in its ability to make clearer the behaviour of the vessel. Validation
of results can be done by making measurements at key positions through the precalciner wall
to verify the information produced by the model at those locations. Sensitivity analysis can
also be done on the model by changing some of the parameters.

8.4

Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial and practical support from Blue Circle
Cement (Cauldon Business Unit) given to undertake this research project. Support from
EPSRC is also gratefully acknowledged.

8.5 References
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)

Giddings, D., Eastwick, C. N., Pickering, S. J., and Simmons, K. Computational fluid
dynamics applied to a cement precalciner, IMechE J. Pwr Energy, Accepted for
publication 23/6/99.
Garret, H. M. (1985) Precalciners today - a review, Rock Products, July.
Klotz, B. (1997) New Developments in Precalciners and Preheaters. 1997 IEEE Cement
Industry Conference, Hershey, Pennsylvania, 21-24 April.
Launder, B. E. and Spalding, D. B. (1974) The Numerical Computation of Turbulent
Flows, Comp. Methods Appl. Mech. Engng, 3, 269-289.
Magnussen, B. F. and Hjerteger, B. H. (1976) On mathematical modelling of
turbulent combustion with special emphasis on soot formation and combustion,
Sixteenth International Symposium on Combustion, The Combustion Institute, pp. 719729.

122

(6)
(7)
(8)
(9)
(10)
(11)
(12)
(13)
(14)

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Badzioch, S. and Hawkesley, P. G. W. (1970) Kinetics of thermal decomposition of

pulverised coal particles, Ind. Engng Chem. Process Des. Develop, 9, 521-530.
Fluent Incorporated. User's Guide for FLUENT/UNS and RAMPANT, Release 4.0,
April 1996, Vol. 1, 2, and 4, Fluent Incorporated, Lebanon, NH 03766, USA.
Patankar, S. V. (1980) Numerical Heat Transfer and Fluid Flow, Hemisphere,
Washington, D.C.
Anderson, J. D. (1990) Introduction to Computational Fluid Dynamics, Chapter 2, Von
Karmen Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium.
Borgwardt, R. H. (1985) Calcination kinetics and surface area of dispersed limestone
particles, AIChE Journal, 31, 103-111.
Borman, G. L. and Ragland, K. W. (1998) Combustion Engineering, McGraw-Hill,
USA.
Baum, R. K. and Street, J. H. (1971) Predicting the combustion behaviour of coal
particles, Combust. Sci. Tech., 3, 231-243.
Smoot, L. D. (Editor) (1993) Fundamentals of Coal Combustion, Elsevier, Amsterdam,
London.
Conesa, J. A., Font, R., Fullana, A., and Caballero, J. A. (1998) Kinetic modelling
for the combustion of tyre wastes, Fuel, 77, 1469-1475.

9
Validation of the Coal Combustion Capability in
the Star-CD Code
A Ghobadian, F Lee, and P Stephenson

9.1

Introduction

When any major enhancement is made to a commercial CFD code, both the code developer
and the code user have to assure themselves that the code is performing correctly. In addition,
the user has to make sure that he or she correctly understands the code enhancement and how
to use it. This chapter illustrates this process by describing the validation of the coal
combustion capability to the established Star-CD program, developed by Computational
Dynamics (CD). The approaches used by the code developer and code user are described and
contrasted.
Coal combustion provides a challenging example of code validation for a number of reasons
(see, for example, references (1) and (2). The physical processes being modelled are not fully
understood and are very complex. The submodels used in CFD codes generally have to
simplify these processes and still require substantial computing resources. Also, these
submodels require values of coal-dependent properties which are difficult to obtain. Finally,
few measurements are available for full-scale utility furnaces as such measurements are both
technically difficult and very expensive.

9.2

Modelling coal combustion using a CFD code

9.2.1 Why model coal combustion?

Pulverized coal is the largest fuel source for electricity generation, and is likely to account for
70 per cent of new capacity. The successful application of CFD to coal combustion can assist
plant suppliers in the design of new plant or improvements to existing plant. It can also assist
plant operators to find safe, efficient ways of operating plant with minimum environmental
impact, and to assist in fuel selection.

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Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

9.2.2 The coal combustion model in Star-CD

For the work reported here, Star-CD has been used with non-orthogonal unstructured
hexahedral meshes. Turbulence is modelled using the k-e model and second order
differencing has been used in some predictions. Gaseous radiation is modelled using the
discrete transfer method (3). A Lagrangian method is used to track the particles.
Devolatilization is calculated using the single step model of Badzioch and Hawksley (4) and
char combustion is calculated using the model of Field, Gill, Morgan, and Hawksley (5). Gas
phase combustion is modelled by a variant of Spalding's conserved scalars approach. A single
step reaction is used; the code solves for mixture fractions for evolved volatiles and amount of
char consumed and the actual composition is found by using a mixed-is-burnt assumption.
The NOx modelling includes thermal, fuel, and prompt NOx. Thermal NOx is calculated from
an extended Zeldovich approach and fuel and prompt NOx are calculated from the method of
De Soete (6).

9.3

Validation by the code developer

CD's aim in the validation was to be able to demonstrate to potential users both that their
code gave predictions that were in reasonable agreement with measurements, and that it could
be successfully applied to what a user would want to model, namely a full-scale utility
furnace. As detailed measurements are rarely available for a utility furnace, CD's validation
was made in two parts. The first involved modelling a full-scale single burner test rig, for
which detailed measurements were available, and the second involved modelling a power
station furnace, for which only limited measurements were available. These two validation
exercises will now be outlined.
9.3.1 Modelling a full-scale single burner test rig
Testing of a single full-scale low NOX burner was undertaken on Mitsui Babcock's 40 MWt
large scale test facility, as part of the UK Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)
collaborative project on coal quality and NOX (1). The burner fires horizontally into a watercooled furnace of 4.2 by 4.2 m cross-section and 15 m length. The walls are partially covered
with refractory to reproduce the temperatures expected in a utility furnace. Tests were
conducted using South Brandon coal. The facility has recently been replaced by a new test rig
of up to 90 MWt capacity. A diagram of the 40 MWt rig is shown in Fig. 9.1.
Mitsui Babcock provided measurements of temperature and species concentrations on
horizontal traverses for a number of measurement ports, and velocity measurements were
obtained by BG plc. These detailed measurements provided a valuable check on the computer
predictions. A typical comparison is shown in Fig. 9.2.
It is not reasonable to expect very close agreement between prediction and measurement for
this situation, as the physical processes are complex and not fully understood and the
measurements themselves are made in a hostile environment. The code user has to decide the
level of agreement that it is reasonable to expect; in this case, that expectation was met.
Predicted exit values of NOX and unburned carbon loss are compared with the Mitsui Babcock
measurements in Table 9.1.

Validation of the Coal Combustion Capability in the Star-CD Code

125

Fig. 9.1 Diagram of Mitsui Babcock 40 MW rig, showing measurement ports

Fig. 9.2 Comparison of oxygen concentrations at port 2

Table 9.1 Comparison of predicted and measured NOX and unburned carbon loss
for Mitsui Babcock 40 MW rig, burning South Brandon

Measurement, Mitsui Babcock

Star-CD prediction

NOX, mg/Nm3, dry at 6% O2

559 (a), 625 (b)
636

Note: (a) value for modelled test, (b) value averaged over several tests

Unburned loss (% GCV)

0.5
3.2

126

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

The agreement between measured and predicted NOX values is reasonable; the predicted
unburnt loss is less satisfactory. This is in line with the overall conclusions from all the
predictions in this DTI project, namely that agreement with NOX was generally encouraging
but that burnout predictions were more difficult.
9.3.2
Modelling a power station furnace
Combustion testing was also undertaken on one of the furnaces at Innogy's Didcot power
station as part of the DTI collaborative project on coal quality and NOX. This furnace is frontwall fired. It has a total of 48 burners arranged in 4 tiers of 12 burners per row. Coal is
pulverised by 8 mills, and full load (500 MW electrical) can be maintained with 36 of the 48
burners firing. Tests were conducted using Pittsburgh#8 coal. Didcot is of Mitsui Babcock
design and has their Mk 3 low NOX burners installed. Further tests were conducted at
Powergen's Ratcliffe power station, which is of the same construction as Didcot. Mitsui
Babcock carried out a performance analysis to provide boundary conditions (eg coal and air
flows and heat to walls and superheaters) to provide boundary conditions for the CFD
predictions.
CD's computer model of a Didcot furnace assumed symmetry and, therefore, included half
the furnace, with 24 burners, of which 16 were firing. The only measurements were the exit
values of NOX and unburned carbon loss, and these are compared with predictions in
Table 9.2.
Table 9.2 Comparison of predicted and measured NOX and unburned
carbon loss for Innogy's Didcot furnace, burning Pittsburgh#8
Measurement, Innogy
Star-CD prediction

NOX, mg/Nm3, dry at 6% O2

627
691

Unburned loss (% GCV)

1.65
1.75

The agreement between measured and predicted NOX values is again good. The predicted
unburnt loss is also in good agreement with measurement, but this is partly because of
adjustments made to the char kinetic data.

9.4

Validation by the user

Innogy, as user, also wanted to validate the coal combustion capability within Star-CD, so
that it could have confidence in any predictions that it obtained. In addition, there was no
prior experience within Innogy of using CFD to model coal combustion. Innogy's validation
therefore, had also to include gaining familiarity with this type of modelling, both in general
terms and specifically in how to model it using Star-CD. They therefore started with a simpler
case, namely a Drop-Tube Furnace, and are currently modelling their own single burner
Combustion Test Facility.
9.4.1 Modelling a Drop-Tube furnace
A Drop-Tube Furnace (DTP) is an experimental facility used to measure coal devolatilization
and combustion rates (see Fig. 9.3).
The CRE DTP is a vertical furnace of length 2 m. Pulverized coal is fed (typically at 15 g/hr)
into the top of the furnace in a carrier gas. Most of the gas enters the furnace via an annular
region around the feeder tube. The gas consists of a mixture of nitrogen and oxygen, with

Validation of the Coal Combustion Capability in the Star-CD Code

127

varying amounts of oxygen. The coal mixes with the preheated gas and devolatilizes. Volatile
gases are released, leaving char and ash. If sufficient oxygen is present, combustion will
occur. Any residue is collected at a feeder tube at the bottom of the drop tube. The furnace is
surrounded by electrical heaters and thermal insulation to maintain the furnace walls at the
required temperature.

Fig. 9.3 Diagram of CRE's Drop-Tube furnace

CRE provided non-reacting gas tracer measurements and Innogy's CFD model was checked
against them, to ensure that the flow field was being correctly predicted. Predictions were
then made with coal combustion. One problem was that the predictions are very dependent on
char kinetic parameters and these, in turn, are often derived from the DTP tests. Therefore,
comparisons were made with CRE measurements for Thoresby that had been made as part of
the DTI NOX project, and the char kinetic data were taken from an independent analysis of
these measurements. A typical prediction between measured and predicted burnout (defined
as the per cent weight loss on a dry ash free basis) is given in Fig. 9.4.

Fig. 9.4 Typical comparison between predicted and measured burnout

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

128

This modelling provided Innogy with a very useful introduction to CFD and coal combustion,
and the agreement with measurement was satisfactory.
9.4.2 Modelling a single burner test furnace
Innogy is currently modelling its own single burner Combustion Test Facility (CTF). This has
a maximum thermal input of 0.5 MW and a combustion chamber 0.8 by 0.8 m in crosssection and 4 m long. As a first step, isothermal predictions were obtained for both a scaled
version of the Mitsui Babcock low-NOx burners (as in Section 9.3) and a scaled version of a
completely different type of burner, designed for semi-anthracite coal. In the latter case, some
velocity measurements were available and the predictions were in reasonable agreement both
with these measurements and a simplified semi-empirical model of the main burner flow.
This work has now been extended to include combustion and radiation for both burner types;
the Mitsui Babcock low NOX burner studies form part of Innogy's contribution to the DTI
collaborative project on coal blending. Much effort has been required to obtain predictions
that exhibit the main features of the flames (e.g., firmly attached to the burner and occupying
only the central portion of the furnace, in the case of the Mitsui Babcock low NOX burner).
This has now been achieved, and, in the process, Innogy has gained much useful experience
in applying CFD to coal combustion. A detailed comparison between measurements and
predictions is now in progress and will, hopefully, lead to further code validation. In addition,
the CFD model of coal combustion in the CTF has been used in a collaborative research effort
on the effects of coal blending on combustion performance (7).

9.5

Discussion

An ideal validation would involve comparing predictions with detailed measurements for
well-controlled tests on the plant that the user wishes to model. Unfortunately, it is very
difficult, if not impossible, to achieve this for coal combustion. Controlled tests on actual
utility furnaces are very expensive, the exact test conditions cannot always be determined, and
only limited measurements can be made. More detailed measurements can be obtained on test
rigs, but they still provide a challenging environment. The physical processes occurring in
coal combustion are complex and not fully understood, and the sub-models used in most CFD
codes have to simplify matters. These sub-models require values for coal-dependent
properties that can be derived only from specialist laboratory-scale tests. Also, the predictions
are often very sensitive to the detailed inlet conditions, but these are not always known in
sufficient detail.
As a result of these points, any validation has to make the best use of whatever data are
available, and allow for shortcomings in the data and in the physical sub-models. From this
viewpoint, the validation made by CD as code developer is acceptable; it gives the user
confidence to try using the coal combustion capability while, at the same, showing its
shortcomings (for example, in the prediction of carbon burnout). Innogy's validation, as code
user, has been very successful as a way of gaining experience in using the Star-CD code to
model coal combustion. Its first phase (modelling a drop tube furnace) has been successful
and encouraging progress has been made with the second stage (the single burner furnace).
All the validations have shown the advantages of collaborative projects, where suitable
experimental data sets can be obtained and knowledge shared with other CFD modellers.
They also show the need for further experimental data and for improved coal sub-models. In

Validation of the Coal Combustion Capability in the Star-CD Code

129

view of the computing requirements, parallel computing and improved accurate and flexible
meshes need to be investigated.

9.6

Conclusions

The process of validating a major new feature in a CFD code has been illustrated by using the
coal combustion model in Star-CD as an example. The different requirements of the code
developer and user have been described. The validation is inevitably limited by the
complexities of the physical processes being modelled and the shortage of detailed
measurements for actual plant. The advantages of collaborative projects, such as the DTI
projects on NOX and on coal blending, have been demonstrated.

9.7

Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully acknowledge the sources of the measurements used in this chapter. The
40 MWt single-burner test-rig results were obtained by Mitsui Babcock and BG plc. The
Drop-Tube Furnace results were obtained by CRE Group Plc, and the Didcot Power Station
measurements were provided by Innogy plc.
Some of the results reported here were obtained as part of the recent DTI collaborative project
on Coal Quality, NOX, and carbon burnout. The authors wish to acknowledge substantial UK
Government support for this work. The total cost of the project was approximately
2.1 million, with 742 000 being contributed by the Department of Trade and Industry's
Clean Coal Technology Programme and 668 000 by the Engineering and Physical Sciences
Research Council, the latter specifically for the university activities. Some of the other results
reported here were supported by a current collaboration on coal blending and combustion, and
this is also receiving funding via the DTI.

9.8
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
(7)

References
O'Connor, M. (1999) The effects of coal quality on NOx emissions and carbon burnout
in pulverised coal-fired utility burners, ETSU report COAL R153.
Eaton, A. M., Smoot, L. D., Hill, S. C, and Eatough, C. N. (1999) Components,
formulations, solutions evaluation and application of comprehensive combustion
models, Prog. Energy Comb. Sci., 25, p. 387.
Lockwood, F. C. and Shah, N. G. (1981) A new radiation solution method for
incorporation in general combustion prediction procedures, Eighteenth International
Symposium on Combustion, pp. 1405-1414.
Badzioch, S. and Hawksley, P. G. W. (1970) Kinetics of thermal decomposition of
pulverized coal particles, Ind. Engng Chem. Process Des. Develop., 9, 521-530.
Field, M. A., Gill, D. W., Morgan, B. B., and Hawksley, P. G. W. (1967) The
combustion of pulverised coal, BCURA.
De Soete, G. G. (1975) Overall reaction rates of NO and NO2 formation from fuel
nitrogen, Fifteenth International Symposium on Combustion, The Combustion Institute,
pp. 1093-1102.
Beeley, T., Cahill, P., Riley, G., Stephenson, P. L., Lewitt, M., and Whitehouse, M.
(2000) The effect of coal blending on combustion performance, Report no. Coal R 177,
DTI/Pub URN 001509, March.

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10
Blast Wave Simulation
M Docton, S Rees, and S Harrison

Synopsis
Frazer-Nash Consultancy has developed and validated a methodology to predict fluid
behaviour subsequent to a blast using CFD. Traditional analysis in this area relies on specific
testing or, more typically, scaling standard blast data. The use of CFD allows the transient
pressures developed on nearby structures to be readily predicted. Analysis of the subsequent
response and deformation of these structures, including human injury aspects, may then be
undertaken using these CFD predictions.
Typical blast scenarios include accidental pipe rupture, explosions within buildings, and
vehicles encountering mines. The use of CFD for blast simulation facilitates the design of
blast resistant structures/surfaces and the prediction and mitigation of human injury.
Examples of blast simulations are presented, including validation, together with typical
examples of subsequent structural analyses.

10.1

Introduction

The design of blast-resistant structures is typically undertaken by a combination of

engineering experience, design guidelines, and trials. Examples of typical blast simulation
applications are:
Vehicles encountering mines;
Rupture of pressurised piping;
Explosions near to buildings.
Where the structure being designed is similar to an existing system and the blast source is well
understood, experience and the use of design guidelines can be a very cost-effective design
methodology. However, where the blast source and/or structure is less well understood a 'rule
of thumb' design and trials process can prove to be very costly. The problems of the

132

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

traditional methods for design are compounded as requirements for human safety and
structural integrity become more stringent.
This chapter provides an outline to an alternative design process for blast mitigation, which
utilizes a combination of design experience, empirical data and computer modelling. The
methodology is based around three aspects:
Prediction of the blast and the developed pressures on nearby structures;
Subsequent kinematic response and deformation of the structure;
Response of any occupants associated with the structure.
This chapter concentrates on the primary aspect, namely the prediction of the blast, however,
typical examples of subsequent analyses are presented. The blast modelling methodology
developed and validated by Frazer-Nash Consultancy Limited (FNC) has been based on a
variety of simple test-cases, for example, normal and angled shock reflection. The predictions
have been compared to empirical and analytical results and subsequent blast simulations have
been undertaken on more complex structures.
The basis of the CFD modelling involves the conversion of the blast source into a transient
input within the model. This can be achieved in one of two ways; namely a pressure/
temperature source or a burn model. This transient input can be correlated to a known blast
magnitude. Once the blast has been enabled the developed pressures in the flow domain can
be monitored and the subsequent response of a given structure predicted.

10.2

Blast modelling

10.2.1 Overview
Before blast modelling can be undertaken it is important to understand the phenomena
associated with a typical blast. When an explosive detonates it rapidly burns and generates a
ball of explosive products at an extremely high pressure and temperature. This ball of high
pressure then expands and compresses the air immediately surrounding the explosion, which
in turn expands and compresses neighbouring regions. Thus a pressure wave begins to
propagate away from the explosion. The high pressure of the air in the pressure wave means
that its temperature and sonic velocity are increased. This pressure wave can, therefore, travel
at high speeds, for example Mach 8. As the pressure wave expands it will continue to
propagate at high speed and eventually detach itself from the expanding ball of explosion
products, whose expansion rapidly slows as it expands. In addition, the pressure wave will
quickly form into a shock wave as the gas high pressure 'catches up' with the lower pressure
gas in front of it.
One further effect should be mentioned before proceeding. The expanding explosion products
are at high temperature and can combust causing further energy to be released. However, this
combustion effect is only important in a limited number of explosive events.
In summary the result of an explosion is a blast which has two components: a blast wind and a
shock wave. The former comprises the slowly expanding ball of explosion products (which
may be combusting) and the air which is entrained/pushed in front of it. The latter is the
detached shock. Both these elements of the blast can be important in causing damage to
nearby structures. However, as the distance from the blast increases the shock wave becomes
more damaging, as it can maintain a high pressure over a greater distance.

Blast Wave Simulation

133

This study is primarily concerned with modelling the shock wave, which causes significant
damage over greater distances than the blast wind. However, the blast wind is implicitly
modelled using the methodology adopted.
10.2.2 Methodology validation
The validation exercise was divided into two areas: firstly an examination of the predicted
behaviour of shock wave reflection at various incidences and secondly an examination of the
decay of a shock wave in free space. The validation test cases included the following:
Two-dimensional shock wave wall reflection, at normal and 20 degrees incidence;
Three-dimensional shock wave propagation in free space.
10.2.2.1 Wall reflection
For the wall reflection validation the parameters examined were the overpressure received by
the wall from the incident shock wave and the predicted angle of the reflected blast. The
models used for this were unsteady, compressible, and inviscid using quadrilateral meshes. A
transient blast pulse was introduced at one side of the domain and allowed to propagate
towards a wall at the other side. This pressure pulse may be created by a variety of methods
within the CFD model. For example, a discrete fluid zone may be initialized with a high
pressure and temperature or alternatively a burn model may be used. In this instance, a time
dependent pressure and temperature boundary condition was utilized. In any approach it is
essential to relate the desired blast magnitude to an equivalent initial pressure and
temperature, and it is in this area that FNC have developed the necessary methodology.
The computational domain was bounded by symmetry planes. Figures 10.1 and 10.2 illustrate
the computational domain and pressure contours of an incoming shock wave respectively.
When a shock wave impacts on a surface the local particle velocity is reduced to zero, then
reflected at with an equal and opposite velocity. This initial reflected part of the wave then
moves back toward the source through the oncoming remainder of the shock wave. Thus
although the reflected and unreflected wave have equal and opposite particle velocities, their
characteristics are different as they have travelled through different (each other's) media. The
resulting reflected pressure can be up to eight times the incident pressure.
The pressures developed by the shock wave on the wall were recorded, along with the
pressure decay in the wake of the reflected wave. The predicted pressures in the domain are
shown by Figs 10.3(a) and 10.3(b), for before and after reflection respectively.

Fig. 10.1 Domain for two-dimensional normal reflection

134

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Fig. 10.2 Pressure contours for an incoming shock wave

Fig. 10.3(a) Pressure predictions across the domain before reflection

Fig. 10.3(b) Pressure predictions across the domain after reflection

A later test case demonstrates how the magnitude of the wave decays with distance, causing
the size of the shock wave as it strikes the wall to be considerably less than when it was first
introduced into the domain. Shock magnitudes of 1 bar (Case A) and 10 bar (Case B) were
used as test cases, but decayed to wall impingement overpressures of about 0.69 bar and
8.93 bar respectively. Figure 10.3(a) shows the profile of the shock as it approaches the wall.
The step rise in pressure across the shock front can be seen, along with the pressure decay in
the wake of the wave extending back towards the left side of the domain. Figure 10.3(b)

Blast Wave Simulation

135

shows the reflected shock wave propagating back towards its source. It should be noted that
the overpressure peak occurs in the immediate vicinity of the wall and, thus, the reflected
shock has a lower pressure than that experienced at the wall. Additional models with different
angles of incidence have been produced. In all models the overpressure value at the wall on
wave impact along with the wave reflection angle have been correlated to empirical results
from standard texts, and are shown below.
Table 10.1 Blast reflection validation

Initial pressure at source

Case A normal incidence
Case A 20 incidence
Case B normal incidence
Case B 20 incidence

Standard Text
Reflection
Over Pressure
Angle ()
(Pa)
1.72X105

Predicted
Over Pressure
Reflection
(Pa)
Angle ()
1.73X105

20.0
9.93X105

20.0
9.93X105

10.7

9.5

The accuracy of the reflection angle predictions were found to be relatively mesh independent,
whereas the overpressure predictions were not. Mesh adaption criteria, based on pressure
gradient, have been developed to mitigate this mesh sensitivity so as to optimize the results.
The Case A blast predictions all performed well against available data, whereas simulating
blasts at higher pressures typically, although not at 20 degrees, proved to be less accurate but
satisfactory. Triangular meshes were investigated and found to produce less accurate results,
although this type of mesh will probably be required for more complex domains and as such
investigations are currently being undertaken to develop a triangular mesh methodology.
10.2.2.2 Wave propagation
The next stage of the validation was to examine the decay of a shock wave propagating in free
space. For this a two-dimensional axisymmetric model was constructed so as to represent a
spherical domain. A blast was initiated, using a burn model, at the centre of the domain and
the developed pressures were recorded. Again, the model was created using a quadrilateral
mesh based on an unsteady, compressible, and inviscid solution. A pressure prediction
approximately halfway through the simulation is displayed by Fig. 10.4. Note the low pressure
region at the centre of the spherical domain. This is due to the outward movement of the air
surrounding the explosion.
The predictions correlated well against standard texts, which are shown below.
Table 10.2 Blast propagation validation
Radial distance
m
0.3727
0.7438
1.7617

Arrival Time
Peak Pressure
bar
ms
Predicted Empirical Predicted Empirical
10.924
0.180
10.670
0.186
2.283
0.675
0.680
2.020
0.347
2.983
2.920
0.315

Duration
Impulse
ms
bar.ms
Predicted Empirical Predicted Empirical
0.194
0.389
0.509
0.185
0.440
0.325
0.291
0.436
1.046
0.132
0.119
0.900

Figures 10.5 and 10.6 display the transient pressure predictions at radial distances of 0.37 m
and 0.74 m respectively. It may be observed that in both instances, the predicted peak pressure
is slightly lower than that given by standard texts. The predictions at a the 0.74 m radius, as
shown by Fig. 10.6, can be seen to be more accurate than those displayed at 0.37 m, as shown
by Fig. 10.5.

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Fig. 10.4 Three-dimensional blast pressure predictions

Fig. 10.5 Transient pressure at 0.37 m radius

Fig. 10.6 Transient pressure at 0.74 m radius

According to standard texts the radius at which the shock wave first forms is, in this instance,
0.37 m. What is clear from the results shown by Fig. 10.5 is that the shock wave has yet to

Blast Wave Simulation

137

fully form, as the shape of the pressure profile is not fully representative of an ideal wave,
even when ignoring the shift on the time axis. Contrast this with the predictions displayed by
Fig. 10.6 where the pressure profile matches closely to the desired shape.
This particular simulation, therefore, does not predict the exact position, and therefore time, of
the formation of the shock wave. However, the results are sufficiently accurate considering no
mesh refinement was attempted, especially for subsequent points after the shock wave
formation. The large error in impulse at the 0.37 m point, shown by Table 10.2, may be
attributed to the delayed prediction of the shock wave and therefore the additional effect of the
blast wind being incorporated in the impulse. At larger radii this blast wind is not present and
hence, the pressure profile and impulse correlate well with known results.
10.2.3 Application example
Having validated an approach to blast modelling more complex structures may be examined.
An assessment of blast resistance of a vehicle underbody (1) has been undertaken as a
demonstration. The aim was to quantify the kinematic response of the vehicle to a blast. Two
vehicle shapes were studied, one with a flat underbody and one with an angled underbody.
Identical blasts were released beneath either vehicle and the forces experience by each shape
were monitored. Figures 10.7(a) to (d) and 10.8(a) to (d) display the pressure contours
developed around the flat and angled vehicle underbody shapes respectively.

Figs 10.7(a) to (d) Blast pressure predictions for a flat vehicle underbody

Figures 10.8(a) to (d) Blast pressure predictions for an angled vehicle underbody

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Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

The corresponding force predictions are displayed by Fig. 10.9.

Fig. 10.9 Vertical force predictions for vehicle underbody shapes

It is interesting to observe that Fig. 10.8(a) displays both the shock wave, at the circular
extremity of the high-pressure region, and the blast wind continuing to emanate from the
source.
Figure 10.9 shows that the angled underbody experiences a lower peak force, approximately
37 per cent of that experienced by the flat underbody. The angled underbody reduces the
reflected component of the blast and therefore reduces the developed underbody pressures. In
addition, the duration of the angled body force is less than that of the flat underbody, as there
is less repeated reflection between the ground and the vehicle. The angled underbody therefore
receives a much lower momentum transfer from the blast, thereby potentially reducing the
structural damage and potential injury to the vehicle occupants.

10.3

Structural and human trauma analyses

10.3.1 Kinematic and structural response

Once the blast loads have been predicted the next step is the analysis of the kinematic and
structural responses. Kinematic response concerns the macro motion of a structure and has
two main consequences. First, if significant motion of the structure occurs there may be the
secondary effects associated with the subsequent impact on surrounding structures. Second,
the acceleration and motion of the structure may cause injury to any occupants or damage to
the structure itself. Figure 10.10 shows the predicted kinematic response of a vehicle to a
nearby blast. In this instance both the blast wind and the shock wave influence the vehicle.
The output from this kinematic response analysis would typically be the acceleration and
motion of the vehicle, along with the associated secondary impacts of the vehicle with the
ground. Such data would be used to assess occupant injury or damage to equipment and
vehicle systems. An example of a structural analysis, that of a contained explosion within a
building, is shown by Fig. 10.11. In this example the blast wind, combustion of explosive
products, and shock wave affect the building's response.
The modelling of structural response to blast is more established than the previous aspects
discussed. Finite element analysis (FEA) to blast response and crashworthiness problems may

Blast Wave Simulation

139

be undertaken using a variety of FEA codes. FNC uses a non-linear dynamic code which can
be configured to model structural fragmentation as well as deformation.

Fig. 10.10 Subsequent kinematics from a near vehicle blast

Fig. 10.11 Subsequent structural response from a contained explosion

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Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

10.3.2 Human injury

The final aspect of blast analysis is the determination of the level of human injury. Injury can
be caused by primary, secondary, or tertiary blast effects. Primary injury is caused by the
direct effects of the high shock pressures associated with blast on the structure. Typical
primary injuries are blast lung and eardrum rupture. Secondary injuries are those caused by
fragments from the structure, or more typically a weapon system. The final mechanism,
tertiary injury, is that caused by the kinematic response of the structure and human. All three
of these mechanisms have the potential to cause severe injury, and should be considered in the
blast assessment.
Primary injury may be assessed by comparing the predicted blast pressures, obtained from
CFD or hand calculations, to standard injury data. The development of injury criteria for blast,
particularly with respect to enclosed spaces which cause a complex blast patterns, is
particularly important and FNC has been working in this area for a number of years.
Secondary injury requires separate analysis methods to determine the trajectory of structural
fragments and their resulting impact. From this it is possible to determine the likelihood of a
fragment hit on personnel. The subsequent lethality can then be determined using empirical
based injury criteria.
Tertiary injury can be examined at two levels of complexity. First, the kinematic response data
can be reviewed and the likely injury levels deduced based on comparison with known injury
data. However, if a greater level of confidence in the predictions is required then it is
necessary to conduct a more comprehensive assessment. This more complex analysis requires
a human modelling technique to examine the motion of the individuals and their interaction
with local structures. FNC has developed a technique, which incorporates soft tissue
modelling, for simulating humans in such environments to provide an assessment of injury.
Figure 10.12 illustrates the effect of a nearby blast on an individual. The model would receive
an input from that predicted by the CFD blast modelling.

10.4

Conclusions

A methodology for shock-wave modelling has been validated by Frazer-Nash Consultancy.

The validation exercise examined both wall reflection and free space propagation of a shock
wave, and the following conclusions may be drawn:
Wall reflection
Predictions were good;
Angle predictions were mesh-independent, whereas wall pressure predictions were
not;
Triangular meshes produced less-accurate results than quadrilateral meshes in wall
reflection.
Shock wave propagation
Shock wave propagation has been successfully predicted;
The pressure and impulse levels delivered by the blast were predicted accurately,
especially those subsequent to the shock-wave formation.
Future validation work will examine the use of triangular meshes and adaption criteria for use
with more complex geometries.

Blast Wave Simulation

141

In the wider context of blast mitigation a comprehensive analysis is now possible. Simulation
of the actual blast provides accurate data for subsequent analyses of structural kinematic
response or deformation, together with any human injury aspects. These techniques may be
applied to a variety of scenarios, for example:
Inadvertent industrial blast prediction for structural safety cases;
Design of blast mitigating structures, for example buildings and vehicles;
Human injury prediction and mitigation.

Fig. 10.12 Model of a nearby blast on an individual

10.5

Acknowledgements

The studies relating to the demolition of the building and the secondary injury to a human
were carried out with the support of the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency.

10.6
(1)

References
Dorn, M. R. (1999) Improving vehicle resistance to blast, VIIIth European Attack and
Survivability of AFVs Symposium, UK, March.

Frazer-Nash Consultancy Limited.

The Copyright in this work is vested in Frazer-Nash Consultancy Limited. The document is issued in
confidence solely for the purpose for which it is supplied. Reproduction in whole or in part or use for
tendering or manufacturing purposes is prohibited except under an agreement with or with the written
consent of Frazer-Nash Consultancy Limited and then only on the condition that this notice is
included in any such reproduction.

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11
Built Environment Simulations Using CFD
D Woolf and G Davies

Synopsis
This chapter is intended to be an overview of a number of technical and design issues
encountered within built-environment simulations. Due to the diurnal and seasonal variation
of external conditions, a dynamic thermal model developed within Ove Arup and Partners is
primarily used to provide the surface boundary conditions for the CFD. The interaction
between the numerous supply and extract conditions, the surfaces and internal heat loads
(such as occupant and small power loads) often generate complex flow fields with air
temperatures close to the ambient condition. It is important to optimize the performance of the
ventilation systems, whether they are mechanical or natural. Issues, other than satisfying
occupant comfort criteria, may relate to health and safety (e.g. smoke generation and
movement from a fire) or other criteria such as moisture gradient in an art gallery and
acceptable temperature range for vegetation. The complex flow fields need to be visualized in
an easy, interactive way. The biggest challenge, however, is to ensure that the results are both
valid and can be explained to a varied audience.

11.1

Introduction

Engineering in the 21st century will encounter very different problems from those seen today.
In particular, it is apparent that concerns of sustainable development and pollution will
become increasingly central to our work. By finding scientific ways of addressing these issues
we can make a significant contribution to mankind. To this end, an understanding of our manmade and natural environment, particularly in terms of the interaction between the two, is
crucial. One field that impinges on this understanding, from pollution movement in a city
centre to the flow of avalanches, is fluid dynamics.
Computer-aided analysis techniques have revolutionalized engineering design in many fields.
Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) is one such technique which enables the analysis of
fluid flow phenomena including heat transfer, mass transfer and chemical reaction. This is
achieved by solving the mathematical equations which underlie the physical processes using a
mesh based iterative solution method. CFD is principally used to study the behaviour of air

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Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

and other gases in buildings. In parallel to this, experimental and theoretical methods can be
applied. An important example of this is the application of wind tunnel testing to assess wind
loads on structures.
The benefits include:
-

Rapid and economical evaluation of design performance;

Parametric and comparative studies to improve designs;
Identification of important but hidden flow features;
Simulation of experiments too hazardous to set up; and
Cost-effective alternative to full or reduced scale testing.

In the building industry CFD is used to assess thermal comfort, ventilation effectiveness,
occupant health, energy use, and also for specialist analyses (e.g. external flows, smoke
movement, gas dispersion). There are a large number of other principal design fields in which
CFD has proved a useful tool. These include automotive (e.g. aerodynamics, HVAC,
underbonnet flows), aerospace (e.g. gas turbines, cabin ventilation), industrial applications
(e.g. manufacturing, pharmaceutical, process), water and civil (reservoirs, spillways,
buoyancy driven flows), mechanical (e.g. pumps and heat exchangers), and the oil and nuclear
industries.
In order to examine some of the CFD issues relating to the building industry, the two
following sections detail different projects. The first section investigates the various balances
within an igloo environment and the second assesses the detailed air flow patterns and
temperature distributions in a large-scale 'greenhouse' project in Cornwall.

11.2

The igloo

In Arctic regions, igloos are constructed out of wind-packed dry snow with access gained
through a 'door' into a trench area (1). Figure 11.1 shows the CFD geometry representing a
typical igloo sized for two persons. At night the igloo is sealed except for a small ventilation
hole to allow fumes to escape and fresh ventilation air to enter. An oil lamp continuously
burns, providing heat input into the space and to act as a ventilation signal.
In a cold climate, the level of fabric insulation and the volume of infiltration and ventilation
air are major factors in determining internal conditions. The design aim is, therefore, to
maximize the thermal resistance of the fabric and to minimize air exchange with the outside.
In an igloo, these exchanges become critical to the survival of the occupants.
This study uses CFD to determine the heat, moisture, and concentration distributions as well
as the air movement within a two-person igloo with an outside air temperature of -30 C. The
igloo is 2.7 m in diameter and has one 400 W burner.
There are many characteristics of the igloo environment applicable to all built environments.
For instance, increased velocities and CO2 levels are evident in a warm plume above the
burner. This can also be observed for an occupancy-generated warm air plume. The burner
also acts as a large 02 sink, again analogous to an occupancy effect. CFD was used to
investigate these balances in spatial terms.

Built Environment Simulations using CFD

145

Fig. 11.1 CFD geometry

The extremely cold ventilation air drops into the trench and dilutes CO2 levels (see Figs 11.2
and 11.3). The sleeping area, on a shelf above the trench, is wanner but also dryer in most
locations (relative humidity is a function of the temperature and moisture content of the air).
The moisture content is affected by, for example, cooking and respiration.

Fig. 11.2 Particle traces showing air movement with temperatures

The benefits of having a trench are evident as it not only provides access through the door,
which is eventually 'sealed', but also bounds a cold sink of fresh air, the occupants sleeping
on a warm shelf above. The oil lamp is an important element in the thermal balance but it can
also act as a detector to see whether there is sufficient oxygen to breathe. Figure 11.4 shows
the energy, O2 and CO2 balances in an igloo environment. It should be noted that although

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Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

indigenous designers make use of local materials and methods, valuable lessons should be
learned from these designs. The shape of an igloo is no accident.

Fig. 11.3 Air relative humidity and CO2 concentration (horizontal and vertical sections)

Fig. 11.4 Energy, O2, and CO2 balances

11.3

The Eden Project, Cornwall

The Eden Project consists of a pair of large 'biomes', a collection of dome-shaped

greenhouses, which will house plants from all over the world in artificially controlled

Built Environment Simulations using CFD

147

climates. The biomes are located close to St Austell in Cornwall and are almost one kilometre
long and 60 metres high. They are split into two zones representative of a rainforest or the
'Tropics' and Mediterranean or Temperate' climatic regions.
The Tropics Biome (see Fig. 11.5) is made up of four partial domes enveloping a volume of
approximately 325 000 m3. These domes are set against a quarry face with the slope
increasing in angle to the rear edge of the space on the north side of the Biome. Internally, the
quarry walls are south-facing and so high solar gains are possible in the summer. This
'envelope' was split up into a large number of connecting 'finite volumes' or cells, forming a
computational mesh which is representative of the internal geometry within which the fluid
dynamics equations are solved. The model contained over 440 000 cells. The mesh strategy is
to apply the greatest number of cells in the regions where there is the largest velocity and
temperature gradients, such as close to the surfaces and discrete supply air nozzles. This
strategy enables the airflow to be simulated more accurately.

Fig. 11.5 Tropics Biome topography

The purpose of the study is to understand the 'performance' of the space having taken a
'snapshot' in time to simulate design internal and external conditions. The performance is
dependent on the effectiveness of the natural ventilation openings in summer and mechanical
systems in winter in achieving the design conditions. The main design criteria relate to the
maximum allowable air temperature in the vegetation or 'planting' zone and minimum
temperature in winter.
It is generally accepted in modelling the built environment, that the differences in the time
scale between convective airflow movement and surface temperature changes (typically in the
order of seconds to hours respectively), allows the superposition of steady surface
temperatures in a CFD model. These surface temperatures are obtained from a dynamic
thermal model that may also provide the 'time' of analysis depending upon the objectives of
the study. The thermal model, used in parallel to the CFD, assesses the macroscopic
performance of the biomes over a twelve-month period on an hour-by-hour basis.
The available input data for the model was in the form of two-dimensional contour levels for
the site topography and three-dimensional points and lines (hexagons) describing the roof

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Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

surface. The contour levels were used to create a series of 'splines' having different Zcomponents. These were used to create two-dimensional shells describing the ground. The
hexagons were split into smaller two-dimensional 4-sided shells to complete the surface
definition. Supplemental SAMM (Semi-Automatic Meshing Methodology) software was then
applied to create the finite volume mesh. The mesh consisted of a layer of prism cells from
the surface to a nearby sub-surface and then a Cartesian mesh within the volume bounded by
the sub-surface. The sub-surface 'cut' the Cartesian mesh creating a number of polyhedral
cells (from hexahedral) at the sub-surface interface. Some problems were experienced with
'unresolved' cells at this interface but recent improvements to this software should negate
these problems in the future.
One of the main challenges is to ensure that the results are both valid and can be explained to
a varied audience. Key design issues include items such as optimal grille and sensor locations,
moisture content gradient, as well as the more usual air temperature and velocity distributions.
In the biomes, very complex three-dimensional flows were generated in both the summer and
winter analyses. It is possible to show data, such as velocity vectors, on a two-dimensional
slice but this will often not tell the full story and could, in some instances, even be misleading
(see Fig. 11.6).

Fig. 11.6 Two-dimensional air velocity distribution

It is therefore, often quite important to get a three-dimensional feel for the airflow movement
and air temperature and pollutant distributions within a space. One useful post-processing
technique is to use particle tracks or 'ribbons', which can map the airflow movement whilst
being coloured by an environmental variable (see Fig. 11.7). Another useful technique is to
interrogate a data set using interactive tools. For presentation purposes, one of the most
valued techniques is to generate a number of images that can be linked together into an
animated sequence (see Fig. 11.8).
The results from this study provided confidence in the decisions that were being made in the
development of the design. For instance, site 'buildability' issues could be addressed with
adjustments made to the number and location of supply nozzles for the warm air system in
winter. This also led to large savings in the amount of mechanical plant required.

11.4

Reference

Cook, J. (1996) Architecture indigenous to extreme climates, Energy Buildings, 23, 277-291.

Built Environment Simulations using CFD

Fig. 11.7 Particle tracks for the summer analysis

Fig. 11.8 Part of an animated sequence with moving particles

1999, Ove Arup & Partners.

149

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12
Using CFD in the Design of Electric Motors and
Generators
S J Pickering, D Lampard, J Mugglestone, M Shanel, and D Birse

Synopsis
Convection heat transfer and ventilation in rotating electrical machines is poorly understood,
yet thermal constraints impose limitations on the power capability of many motors and
generators. CFD has the potential to provide understanding of the cooling process and aid in
the design of improved machines.
This chapter describes research done by The University of Nottingham in collaboration
with ALSTOM Electrical Machines Limited to investigate airflow and heat transfer in an
electric motor. The particular area of interest was the cooling of end windings in a large
induction motor. CFD modelling was developed, using the commercial CFD code Fluent, and
compared with results from an extensive programme of experimental measurements.
The chapter will describe the problems that were faced in applying CFD to electrical
machines in modelling:
-

The complex geometries of the end winding coils;

The interaction between the rotor and stator.

As a result of the work, confidence has been gained that has led to the more general use
of CFD in machine development at ALSTOM Electrical Machines Limited. The benefits that
CFD has brought will be described.

12.1

Introduction

One of the major limitations in the drive to improve the performance of rotating electrical
machines is the temperature limitation of the materials used in the construction. In the drive to
manufacture more competitive machines, effective design requires accurate computation of
local temperatures. This in turn, requires accurate modelling of the thermal performance of
the machine which requires detailed knowledge of the thermal boundary conditions, including

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Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

the convective heat transfer coefficients. Despite the importance of convective cooling in
electric motors and generators, detailed data on heat transfer coefficients are not generally
available and there are few published references (l)-(3).
In a recently completed research project at The University of Nottingham, detailed
experimental measurements of heat transfer on the end windings and internal frame surfaces
of a totally enclosed fan-cooled (TEFC) induction motor were obtained. As part of this study
the end region of the motor was also modelled computationally to ascertain the usefulness of
CFD as a possible design tool. This chapter describes the results obtained from the CFD
modelling and compares them with the experimental measurements. Following on from the
success of the modelling, CFD has since been implemented within an industrial design office
environment at ALSTOM Electrical Machines Limited and this will be described.

12.2. Motor configuration tested

The test motor was two-pole, high-voltage, TEFC induction motor of approximately 200 kW
rating with strip wound coils. A diagram of the end region is shown in Fig. 12.1. Figure 12.2,
taken from the CFD model, shows a more detailed picture of the end region configuration. A
test rig was constructed, described below, to simulate the end region of the motor in which air
circulates to transfer heat from the rotor and stator to the frame.

Fig. 12.1 Diagram of cross-section of end region of test motor

12.3

Capabilities of CFD

General-purpose CFD is now available to model fluid flow by solving, numerically, the
fundamental fluid flow equations (Navier-Stokes equations). However, there are two
particular features of the air flow in the end region of an electrical machine that make it
difficult to model.
1.

The motion of the wafters and rotor bar extensions generate an inherently unsteady air
flow due to interaction with the stationery end winding. This interaction between the
rotor and the stator, creates a complex flow pattern where the mean flow exhibits

Using CFD in the Design of Electric Motors and Generators

2.

153

periodic fluctuations as the wafters and rotor bar extensions sweep past the end winding
coils. This unsteady air flow has important influences on convective heat transfer.
The end winding has a complex open geometry with many small gaps in between the
coils. This detail must be modelled accurately in order to provide detailed and accurate
information on local heat transfer coefficients around the endwinding.

Fig. 12.2 End winding and rotor configuration (detail from CFD model)
12.3.1 Modelling rotor-stator interaction
The best method of modelling rotor stator interaction is to use the sliding mesh technique. In
this method, the rotor and stator are modelled using separate meshes. These slide relative to
one another and a time dependent solution is obtained to represent the interaction in full.
However, at the time that this study was undertaken the CFD software used (FluentUNS) did
not have the capability to use the sliding mesh technique and the rotating reference frames
method was used instead. In this method the rotor and stator are still modelled using two
meshes. But it is assumed that there is steady flow at the interface between the rotor and stator
and a time-averaged solution is adopted. This is much more economical in computing time,
but does not give a true representation of the unsteady nature of the rotor-stator interactions.
12.3.2 Modelling the geometry
It is only during the past few years or so that the widely used commercially available CFD
codes have had the capability to model complex geometries with unstructured terahedral cells.
Previously, regular hexahedral block type meshes had to be used with the constraint that rows
of cells had to be continuous through the computational domain. This meant that complex
geometries such as end windings could not practically be modelled. The use of FluentUNS, an
unstructured CFD code, greatly facilitated the modelling of the end winding geometry as
shown in Fig. 12.2.

12.4

CFD modelling of test motor

The motor test rig had eight wafter blades and, as a result of symmetry, only a 45 degree
sector of the end region had to be modelled. This was done using the commercial CFD code
FiuentUNS Version 4. The 45 degree sector was modelled using about 500 000 cells and
represented all of the main geometric features of the test motor. The rotor stator interaction
was modelled using the multiple reference frames approach which assumes a steady flow at
the interface between the rotor and stator.

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Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Several turbulence models were investigated including the k-e model and the k- RNG
model. It was found however, that the popular k-e model performed the best, despite its
acknowledged weakness in modelling highly swirling flows.

12.5

Experimental measurements

A model of the end region of the test motor was constructed as shown in Fig. 12.1. The end
windings from a real machine were used and mounted within a perspex cylinder to simulate
the motor frame. The end of the rotor, end ring, wafters and the shaft were simulated and
driven directly by a small motor mounted beneath the rig. For most of the tests the rotor was
driven at 1700 r/min.
Air flow measurements were made within the test rig using hot wire anemometry to give
measurements of velocity magnitude. This enabled air flow speed and direction to be
measured. One end winding coil was instrumented with 25 miniature thin film heat flux
gauges and thermocouples. A current was passed through the coil to provide a thermal input.
Local heat transfer coefficients Aiocai were then deduced from the local measurements of heat
flux q and surface temperature, Tsurface, and bulk air temperature, Tbulk, using the formula:

An overall heat transfer coefficient was also obtained for the whole end winding coil based on
the heat input, deduced from electrical power input, and average surface temperature, based
on measurement from thermocouples located at points on the coil surface. Figure 12.3 shows
the locations of the heat flux gauges on the end winding coil. Figure 12.1 shows the locations
of the heat flux gauges on the inside of the end shield and frame of the test rig that were used
to calculate the heat transfer coefficients on the inside of the motor frame.

Fig. 12.3 Location of heat flux gauges on end winding

12.6

Results

12.6.1 Air flow

Figure 12.4 shows a detailed comparison of the CFD predictions and measurements of air
velocity magnitude on an axial traverse taken between the wafters and the end winding. This

Using CFD in the Design of Electric Motors and Generators

155

clearly shows that the overall air flow is well predicted over a range of rotational speed and
that the velocity magnitudes in this strongly swirling flow are generally predicted to within
10 per cent of the measurements.

Fig. 12.4 Air velocity within the end region - (comparison of CFD and measurement)
In this study the main aim was to obtain a detailed understanding of heat transfer and so only
limited air flow measurements were made. However, in an earlier study of the effects of end
winding porosity on air flow, more detailed air flow measurements were made in the three
component directions (5). Again, it was found that the CFD predictions agreed well with
measurements in all three component directions.
12.6.2 Overall heat transfer coefficients
Figure 12.5 shows a comparison of CFD predictions and measurements of overall heat
transfer coefficients on the end winding coils and inside the motor frame in the end region. In
each case the CFD predictions are lower than the measurements and are within 20 per cent.
The comparison is made over a speed range from 600 to 1700 r/min. The variation of heat
transfer coefficient with speed is very well predicted, and the predictions of the exponent for
the variation of heat transfer coefficient with speed are almost identical to the measured
values.

Fig. 12.5

Overall heat transfer coefficients on the end winding and

inside frame (comparison of CFD and measurement)

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Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

12.6.3 End winding heat transfer coefficients

Figure 12.6 shows the variation of local heat transfer coefficient around an end winding coil.
The location is on the inner face of the end winding (positions 4, 5, 6, and 7 in Fig. 12.3)
opposite the wafter blades. In this position there is a strongly swirling flow on the inside
surface of the end winding. Some air passes down the gaps between the coils and separates
from the downstream side of the coil creating a region of recirculation. Consequently, it is
expected that the heat transfer coefficients would be higher on the side of the coil facing the
swirl direction of the air flow than on the downstream face. This can be seen from Fig. 12.6.
The region on the rear of the coil (position 6) has a low air flow and this has the lowest heat
transfer coefficient The CFD predictions of heat transfer coefficient are all within 30 per cent
of the measured values and the variations with position are very well matched.

Fig. 12.6 Variation of heat transfer coefficient around an end winding coil
(comparison of CFD and experiment)
It was also found that the CFD predictions of heat transfer coefficient variations along a coil
were within 30 per cent of the measured values at any location. Fuller details of these results
and also comparisons between CFD and experiment of the effect of various geometric
variations are given in other publications (6)-(8). Heat transfer coefficients on the frame of
the motor were also modelled and found to be within 30 per cent of experiment (8).
Comparisons of predicted windage loss were found to be within 20 per cent of experimental
measurement (8).

12.7

Comments on CFD predictions

In general, the agreement of the CFD predictions with experiment is surprisingly good. It
would not be expected that measured heat transfer coefficients would agree exactly with the
CFD predictions as there are a number of deficiencies in the modelling. Firstly, the end
winding coils were assumed to be rectangular in cross-section with sharp comers. In practice
they have rounded corners and the surface is somewhat uneven due to the winding of the
insulation around the coils. Rounded corners would, in general, give somewhat higher air
flow rates and the uneveness in the surface means that it is difficult to position the heat flux
gauges in truly representative positions. This, combined with manufacturing variations
between coils, means that there would be expected to be variations in measured heat transfer
coefficient between heat flux gauges mounted at the same position on different end winding
coils.

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157

However, perhaps the most important deficiency in the modelling is as a result of the use of
the rotating reference frames method for modelling the rotation of the rotor. This assumes a
steady flow at the interface between rotor and stator. In reality, the flow is unsteady and the
end winding coils would experience fluctuations in air flow as each wafter sweeps past a coil.
This unsteadiness would increase the heat transfer coefficient and so it is only to be expected
that the CFD predicted heat transfer coefficients are lower than the measured values.
Another factor is the CFD turbulence model. The k-epsilon model used in this study is known
to be inaccurate in strongly swirling flows as it assumes that the turbulence is isotropic. The
Reynolds Stress model is more appropriate for swirling flow but was not available in
FluentUNS with rotating reference frames at the time this study was undertaken. However, it
has the disadvantage of being more computationally intensive.
12.7.1 Potential for design
The results of this study have shown that, even with known inadequacies in the CFD
modelling, heat transfer coefficients within the end region of a TEFC induction motor on the
end windings, frame, and end shield can be predicted to within 30 per cent accuracy. The
predicted heat transfer coefficients are generally lower than those measured and so, for design
purposes would give results that would be in error on the safe side; i.e. they would predict
temperatures higher than would actually be achieved. CFD models of ventilation systems
would thus yield heat transfer coefficients that could be used as boundary conditions to
thermal models of complete machines. And these could be expected to give much more
accurate results than has hitherto been possible.
A particular advantage of CFD is that much more detailed information can be obtained than
would be available from experimental measurement, particularly in complex geometries such
as end windings where access for measurement is very restricted. The detailed understanding
of the flows and heat transfer that CFD can give should give insights to enable improvements
in machine design to be made to enhance thermal performance. CFD techniques are rapidly
becoming more cost-effective in the development of new machines than more traditional
methods of experimentation.
The CFD modelling carried out in this study was done on workstations that are typically used
in industrial design offices today and the computation of one model typically took hours.
Sliding mesh techniques are now commonly available and would be expected to give more
accurate results. However, as they require solutions that are time dependent they will
generally mean a substantial increase in computational effort required.

12.8

Application of CFD in design office

In common with many industries, electrical machine manufacturing is feeling the effects of
the environmental lobby. This, coupled with the ever-present need to reduce costs and
maintain competitiveness, has placed even greater design emphasis on the efficient use of
materials. Optimal management of the airflow within the machine to improve cooling is one
of the means by which this can be achieved.
The dominating factor, which limits the rating of an electrical machine, is the temperature rise
due to internal losses. The effects of high temperatures upon the winding insulation materials
determine the limits and the various international standards organizations have set maximum
operating temperatures for each grade of insulation. It is the designer's task to maximize the

158

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

output/volume ratio for a given machine while keeping the winding temperature within the
limit.
The heat loss generated within a machine is the combined effect of electrical and mechanical
losses. These losses must be transferred to the cooling medium via a two-stage process:
1.
2.

Conduction through copper, insulation, and iron to the cooling surfaces;

Convection from these surfaces to the cooling medium, which in most cases is air.

In the early days of machine design, particularly where generators were concerned, many
machines were slow speed and large in size. It was often the case that natural convection and
the fanning effect of the rotor were sufficient to provide cooling. As machines have
developed, higher ratings have been required from physically smaller packages. This
concentration of losses in a smaller volume has only been possible by greatly improving the
ventilation.
The mechanical power required to circulate the air around the cooling circuit is a significant
loss in an air-cooled machine and has a significant bearing upon the efficiency of such
machines. The designer must therefore make every effort to minimize the windage loss and to
maximize cooling circuit effectiveness. With ever decreasing tolerances required on all design
calculations and the high costs of getting it wrong, designers are venturing into areas where
traditional predictive capabilities on their own are inadequate.
The standard design approach to air circuit modelling has taken the form of resistance
network solutions for pressure drop and flow velocity. These techniques have their
foundations in manifold theory developed in the late 1950s. Over the years, this theory has
been augmented (4) at ALSTOM Electrical Machines Limited to include expressions for
rotational effects and the self-generated head loss. This improved formulation was derived
through an extensive process of experimentation and correlation. A major drawback with the
network approach is that it is inherently one-dimensional, does not have any form of detailed
air flow model (incorporating turbulence), and cannot therefore look at the localized cooling
effects.
Modern CFD codes, such as Fluent, offer an alternative, attractive, and efficient tool that can
be used to explore optimal solutions for given design requirements. Sliding meshes and
multiple frames of reference are just some of the advanced features of these packages which
make them highly applicable to the rotating electrical machine product.
The high level of discretization within a CFD solution gives detailed information on the
localized air flow patterns. Whereas previously the arrows drawn upon a diagram of the air
circuit could only indicate the intended path of the cooling air, it is now possible to address
the movement of air with greater confidence.
Using the advanced graphical features of CFD codes, hot spots and the mechanisms that give
rise to them can now be visualized. Thermal comparisons are an attractive means of
validating CFD results as thermal tests are performed on most production jobs as a matter of
course and increased detail can be obtained in the tests for minimal extra costs.
Time is at a premium on production work, with short lead times and high penalties for
lateness. Beyond that which is required by the specification, there is very little scope to
perform detailed air measurements on the majority of products shipped. Without this baseline
of detailed test information, CFD as a design office tool is generally used for relative studies.

Using CFD in the Design of Electric Motors and Generators

159

Within ALSTOM Electrical Machines Limited, CFD is finding a place right at the heart of the
development process. New and untested developments, components with particularly
complex geometry (strip on edge field winding) or which are located in areas of extreme
turbulence (field winding supports) have an obvious affinity with the CFD approach. Some
structures, such as end-windings have proved to be beyond any previous predictive capability
and yet are more suited to CFD methods.

Fig. 12.7 CFD mesh of rotor of large electrical machine

From simple wafters to more complex aerofoil section, fans are components that lend
themselves to shape optimization via CFD means. This is an area that has received
considerable attention and with significant gains on some of the larger products. Indeed on
certain products it has once again been possible to dispense with the use of fans altogether by
harnessing the geometry of the machine to assist cooling.
Other areas to which CFD has been applied include:
-

Cooler design, looking at the efficiency of the heat exchanger mechanism used to
dissipate the heat from the cooling medium;
Ventilation duct geometry, investigating the effect of change to the through paths within
the core components of the machine;
Envelope reduction, minimizing the space requirement of the channels used to transfer air
from the cooling surfaces to the heat exchanger.

As available hardware resource improves, it is now possible to consider a multidisciplinary

approach to analysis. Within ALSTOM Electrical Machines Limited, CFD grids are
transferred to Finite Element Analysis (FEA) packages on a regular basis, for additional
thermal and structural analysis. Thermal constraints are also transferred with negligible user
intervention. This provides a seamless airflow/thermal predictive capability.

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Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

What does the future hold for CFD at ALSTOM Electrical Machines Limited? The prospect
of coupled field analysis, parallel processing, and improvements in hardware suggest that
CFD will become an integral part of product development and design.

12.9

Conclusions

The research undertaken at The University of Nottingham has demonstrated that currently
available CFD software can be used to model ventilation flows within the end region of an
electric motor. The modelling gave air flow predictions to within 20 per cent and heat transfer
predictions to within 30 per cent of measurement. And valuable insights into the phenomena
taking place were gained. The confidence gained from this research has prompted the use of
CFD in the design office at ALSTOM Electrical Machines Limited the prospect is for CFD to
become a tool that is integrated into the design process.

12.10 Acknowledgement
The authors gratefully acknowledge the support of EPSRC and ALSTOM Electrical
Machines Limited in this research.

12.11 References
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)

(6)

(7)

(8)

Luke, G. E. (1923) The cooling of electric machines, Trans AIEE, 42, 636-652.
Schubert, E. (1968) Heat transfer coefficients at the end winding and bearing covers of
enclosed asynchronous machines, Elektrie, 22, 160-162.
Oslejsek, O. (1972) The cooling of the end windings of small enclosed electric
machines, Elektrotech Obzor, 61, 548-556.
Carew, N. J. (1969) Flow distribution and pressure drop in salient pole electrical
machines, Proc. Instn Mech. Engrs, 184, 62-69.
Mugglestone, J., Lampard, D., and Pickering, S. J. (1998) Effects of end winding
porosity upon the flow field and ventilation losses in the end region of TEFC induction
machines, lEEProc. Electr. PwrAppl., 145, 423-428, September.
Mugglestone, J., Pickering, S. J., and Lampard, D. (1999) Prediction of heat transfer
from the end winding of a TEFC strip-wound induction motor. Proceedings of
IEMDC'99, IEEE International, Electric Machines and Drives Conference, Seattle,
USA, pp. 484-86, May.
Mugglestone, J., Pickering, S. J., and Lampard, D. (1999) Effect of geometry
changes on the flow and heat transfer in the end region of a TEFC induction motor,
Proceedings of the Ninth IEE International Conference on Electrical Machines and
Drives, Canterbury, UK, pp. 40-44, September.
Pickering, S. J., Lampard, D., and Mugglestone, J. (2000) The use of computational
fluid dynamics in the thermal design of rotating electrical machines, Accepted for
publication in Acta Polytechnica, J. Advanced Engng, No.4.

13
CFD Modelling of Two-phase Mixing/separation
Flow
W M Dempster

13.1

Introduction

The modelling of general two-phase fluid systems and the subsequent predictions using
computational fluid dynamic techniques has advanced considerably in the last thirty years
primarily due to the research efforts of the nuclear safety community. This work has
established a sound basis from which a range of models has been developed depending on the
scale and detail of the phenomenon that is required. The most generally applicable is the Two
Fluid Model which consists of a set of multi-dimensional volume averaged transport
equations for each phase or component of the flow and a set of subgrid models or closure
equations to account for interaction at the phase interface.
An in-depth discussion on the modelling approaches to multiphase flows is delivered in the
short courses by Hestroni and Yadigaroglu (1), however, an overview is presented by Ishii
and Mishima (2). The development of the model has now reached a point where it has found
regular application in the nuclear and oil industries in specialized codes and is also found as
part of the standard capabilities of the commercial CFD codes. Unfortunately, even though
the two fluid model is applied on a regular basis the application to general problems is still
problematic, particularly when the liquid fraction lies in the range 0.15 to 0.9. At the extremes
of this range lie the spray regime at the lower end and the bubble regime at the higher end of
liquid fraction where a number of successful models have been developed. In this problematic
range of liquid fractions, in both horizontal and vertical flow conditions the flow can become
intermittent with large time scales and complex phase interactions for which only limited
understanding exists. This results in a wide range of practical fluid separation and mixing
problems that are currently difficult to predict for. It is this class of problem that is addressed
in this chapter and attempts to show what is possible with the standard multi-dimensional
two-fluid model applied to a combined mixing-separation air water process. Both an
experimental and computational exercise was conducted and it will be shown that successful
predictions are possible. However, it will also be stated that the successful outcome of
a prediction exercise is unlikely without prior knowledge of the flow regimes.

162

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

This chapter will describe the strategy to solve the problem, explain the model and closure
equations and indicate the predictive accuracy of the model.

13.2
A
Ai
Ad
C0
D
Dh
Dd
Fw
fw
g
J*g
J*LP
J*w
L
Mjk
Mwk
Mw
MLP
Mlin
Q
S
v*
u
v
Vim
W
x
y
Greek
OLk
pg
pk
pw
a
fig
Hi
Tk
T/f
8

Notation
Downcomer flow area
Interfacial area
Pipe area
Correction factor (equation 13.5)
Characteristic DIMENSION or pipe diameter
Hydraulic diameter of downcomer
Droplet diameter
Wall force
Wall friction coefficient
Gravitational acceleration
Non-dimensional air flowrate
Non-dimensional lower plenum liquid flowrate
Non-dimensional total liquid flowrate
Length of downcomer
Phase interfacial drag
Phase wall drag
Total liquid mass flowrate into downcomer
Total liquid mass flowrate into lower plenum
Liquid mass flowrate entering annulus from one connecting pipe
Volume Flowrate
Downcomer gap
Phase velocity
x-coordinate velocity
y-coordinate velocity
Liquid velocity entering annulus from connecting pipework
Downcomer circumference
Mass quality
Fraction of inlet liquid flowing to lower plenum
symbols
Void fraction
Density of air
Phase density
Density of water
Surface tension
Air absolute viscosity
Water absolute viscosity
Phase shear stress
Turbulent phase shear stress
Liquid film thickness

Subscripts
i
Phase interface
in
inlet

m2
m
m2
m
m
m
N
m/s/s

m
N/m
N/m
kg/s
kg/s
m3/s
m
m/s
m/s
m/s
m/s
m

kg/m3
kg/m
kg/m
N/m
Ns/m
Ns/m
N/m2
N/m2
m

CFD Modelling of a Two-phase Mixing/separation Flow

g
a
/
r
w

gas
air
liquid
relative
water or wall

13.3

Problem description

163

The mixing-separation problem that is discussed here has a practical application in the nuclear
industry and relates to its occurrence during a loss of coolant accident in pressurized water
reactors. It has therefore been studied extensively both experimentally and computationally.
However, the prediction of the general problem, involving large scale, three-dimensional
thermal hydraulic processes remain largely unresolved. Figure 13.1 shows the geometry of the
mixing vessel and indicates four pipe connections. Three of these pipes supply a liquid flow
to an annular space at the periphery of the vessel. The fourth pipe connection is an exit
pathway for the air and entrained liquid. Air flows into the top and flows down though a core
region and reverses in a lower plenum to flow into the annular space to mix with the
downward flowing liquid.
The result of the interaction of the upward-flowing air and downward-flowing liquid is a
complex two-phase flow regime distribution incorporating, wall based liquid film flows,
chum flows, and dispersed flows around the annulus. An indication of the type flow pattern
that result in the annulus is shown in Fig. 13.2. The type of flow regimes and the extent of the
interaction is largely decided by the magnitude of the airflow which also controls the
separation of liquid into a flow to the exit pipe connection and a flow to the lower plenum. If
the air flowrate is low then all the liquid will flow to the lower plenum and for the
experiments conducted flow out of a bottom exit. If the airflow is high enough then it is
possible to transfer all of the liquid entering into the annulus to the exit pipe therefore
bypassing the lower plenum. However, this latter process results in significant mixing of the
phases in the annulus region. Between these two extremes there are a range of conditions
where liquid will separate into a flow to the pipe exit and a flow to the lower plenum. The
problem therefore, is to predict the extent of liquid flow division between the pipe exit and the
lower plenum exit. This problem had previously been studied experimentally by the author
and a large database of experimental information was available for comparison with
predictions and as an aid in the development of a model.
Since the two fluid model equations have been produced by a volume averaging process it
does not know a priori what type of flow regimes are occurring. This then requires the
development of a flow regime model to identify the flow regime and the appropriate closure
relationships for interfacial transfers, (for this problem only momentum transfer occurs and
requires the identification of appropriate wall friction and interface drag laws). For this class
of problem the question of the extent of parallel experimental investigation and how it would
be implemented was not clear. Identification of the flow regimes for such multi-dimensional
flows has received little attention and no mechanistic drag models for the anticipated flow
regimes exist. Therefore, how the two fluid model can be applied to this class of problem
without prior experimentally derived knowledge was not obvious. It was therefore an
objective of this study to identify clearly what aspects of closure models could be obtained
from the available literature and what required to be obtained from model testing.
Approaching the problem in this manner allows the generality and applicability of the two
phase models available in commercial CFD codes to be determined.

164

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Fig. 13.1 Mixing vessel

13.4

Two fluid model - basic equations and closure relationships

13.4.1 Transport equations

The equations that are used in the computational exercise are set out below in full and consist
of the continuity equations and momentum equations for the gas and liquid phases in each
direction. The problem was modelled as a transient two-dimensional problem in the z-9
plane. The equations can therefore be presented in the Cartesian co-ordinate system.

CFD Modelling of a Two-phase Mixing/separation Flow

165

In the above equations, closure relationships have to be supplied for the interfacial drag terms,
Mig and M,/ and the wall shear terms MWI, MWS. These terms are critical in determining the
correct prediction of the flow processes. The amount of liquid that is bypassed out of the
break is dictated by the drag forces exerted by the air flow and will vary depending on the
local conditions in the annulus.

Fig. 13.2 Typical flow conditions in annular region

166

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

13.4.2 Model closure relationships

Flow Regime Map
To supply appropriate terms for Mm, MWg, Mu and Mig for the particular two phase conditions
that occur in the annulus, a flow regime map has been constructed from observations and
physical intuition gained from the experimental study. Previous work, as discussed by
Dempster and Abouhadra (3) has established that the exit flow characteristics are
predominately independent of the inlet liquid flowrate. This feature has also been observed
for the flow regimes, as indicated in the work of Abouhadra (4) and shown in Fig. 13.3. It can
be seen in this figure that the flow regimes have similar distributions for approximately the
same non-dimensional gas flowrate J*g and for different liquid flow rates, J*w- These results
suggest that it may be possible to create a flow regime map that is independent of the inlet
liquid flowrate. The independence of the liquid flowrate has only been established using the
gross features of the flow. To develop a model further it has been assumed that the local flow
regime at any point in the annulus can be completely described by local conditions
independent of the liquid flowrate.

Fig. 13.3 Flow regimes

This allows the local superficial gas velocity and a local void fraction be used to describe the
local flow pattern. The flow regime map is shown on Fig. 13.4 for these co-ordinates and has
been constructed from the main flow regimes that were observed during experimental tests,
(3). To model the conditions in the annulus, four flow regimes were believed to have a
dominant effect; mist flows, churn flows, thin film flows, and thick film flows. The regions in
which these regimes are believed to exist are shown on Fig. 13.4. Region A and B are parts of
the flow map that are not expected to be encountered. To ensure that the calculations will not
fail due to the lack of closure laws, Region A defaults to the mist regime and Region B
defaults to the chum regime if the solution falls in these regions.
The mist flow regime accounts for all the dispersed flows that might occur during the
flooding process and at this stage in the modelling process also accounts for regimes where
the liquid may be partly wall based, i.e. film-mist type flows. The modelled churn flow
regime describes a chaotic flow pattern observed in the annulus but only describes the
conditions where a co-current flow of liquid and gas is expected. The modelled film flow
regimes actually accounts for observed liquid film flows but also accounts for churn flows

CFD Modelling of a Two-phase Mixing/separation Flow

167

when the conditions lead to a downward flow of liquid. The film flow is further separated into
a thin film and a thick film regime. For most cases a film flow condition will consist of the
thin film regime. However, thick liquid films were observed local to the liquid injection
positions due to the build up of water as the liquid slowed down to change from an inlet radial
direction to a circumferential or axial direction. In addition, a stagnation point is likely to
exist which may account for the liquid completely filling the downcomer gap in these regions
at high inlet liquid flowrates. These conditions being related to entrance effects are not
normally investigated in two phase flows and therefore would not be described by any
constitutive drag relationship that represents thin films flow conditions. It was therefore
necessary to separately model the two observed film flow regimes.

Fig. 13.4 Flow regime map

The main difficulty in constructing the map was in the identification of regime transition
points. Two dominant transition points were the film/churn condition and the churn/mist
condition. Both the film/churn and the churn/mist condition have been determined by
identifying the transition superficial velocity from experimental observation for tests at
approximately atmospheric conditions. Both regime transition points are presented in
accordance with Hewitt and Roberts (5) flow regime map for vertically upwards air/water
flows.
The film/churn transition condition was found to be

and the churn/mist condition

The film/churn transition was based on the observation that at this condition an upward flow
of liquid was observed in the churn region. This identification is distinct from the initiation of
churn conditions in the annulus since at lower gas flowrate churn conditions were observed
with no noticeable change in the liquid downflow into the lower plenum. To account for this
observation the churn flow regime was split into two sub-regions depending on the observed
direction of the film flow, i.e. a chum regime in which the dominant liquid flow direction was

168

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

downwards and another when the air flow was sufficient to produce significant upward liquid
flow. The film/churn transition identified by equation 13.2 refers to a condition which
separates the downward and upward liquid flow conditions. The churn/mist transition point,
(equation 13.3) was found to be consistent with the Hewitt and Roberts (5) condition for
chum to annular transition in tubes even though the current application has an annular
geometry.
Closure relationships
The closure relationships that are required to produce a complete mathematical model of the
flow phenomena do not exist for the specific counter-current flow conditions and geometry
that are being investigated here. Therefore, this study has resorted to interfacial drag and wall
friction correlations available from the literature, but applied judiciously in the context of the
flow regime map. Table 13.1 shows the closure relationships. It should be noted that the terms
Mw, MU and Mis are the forces per unit volume. When the differential equations are
transformed by the Finite Volume Method to algebraic form the interfacial terms are
presented directly as forces (N). Table 13.1 presents closure equations for the Finite Volume
Form. For the interfacial momentum transfer, the model uses the Wallis (6) annular flow
model in the liquid film flow regime, the Ishii and Chawla (7) relationship for the churn flow
regime and droplet drag laws for the mist regime. (Clift et al, 1978).

13.5

Computational modelling

13.5.1 Geometric modelling

The numerical grid that was used for the majority of the calculations was created by
'unwrapping' the annular geometry of the downcomer into a slab geometry. The grid has
uniformly distributed cells and consists of a 32 x 30 distribution (960 cells) where each cell
size is approximately 4 x 4 cm. The boundary conditions therefore consist of inlet liquid cells
representing the connecting pipe junctions and air inlet cells representing the lower plenum
region whose connection with the core allows the inflow of air. In the experimental test
facility the lower plenum region is connected to an outlet pipe that allows the penetrated
liquid to flow to a measurement tank. However, in the numerical model this outlet flow
boundary condition was found difficult to implement. Alternatively, the lower plenum was
modelled as a large but closed volume allowing the liquid to build up as the transient
simulation proceeded. The volume was made so large that the lower plenum inlet flowrate
could not significantly affect the lower plenum liquid content during the calculation period.
As noted above, the geometric model represents the annular region and lower plenum as a two
dimensional Cartesian slab. This introduces a distortion of the lower plenum which may affect
the predictions. However, the assumption is that the flow in the annular space is insensitive to
the lower plenum conditions. This was consistent with observations during the experimental
tests, except when the lower plenum was nearly full of liquid. For this condition, the
entrainment of lower plenum liquid was apparent which seemed to have an influence on
the liquid content in the lower annulus regions. However, during all the experimental tests the
liquid level in the lower plenum was maintained at liquid levels that prevented such an
occurrence.
13.5.2 Boundary conditions
Four main boundary conditions require to be implemented to simulate the experimental tests:
(i)
(ii)

Cyclic boundary conditions at x = 0 and x = W;

Air inlet mass flow at the lower plenum region;

CFD Modelling of a Two-phase Mixing/separation Flow

169

(iii) Outlet pipe location;

(iv) Inlet water flowrate for the three connecting pipes.
Table 13.1 Interfacial drag and wall friction closure relationships
Flow Regime

Interfacial Drag

Wall Drag

Mist Flow

Chum Flow

Thin Film

Thick film

The cyclic boundary, the air inlet mass flow, and the exit pipe are specified in the normal
way. However, the inlet liquid flowrate condition is a particularly difficult boundary condition
to impose accurately. The connecting pipes are horizontal connections that do not run full
during injection conditions therefore the water approaches in a stratified flow condition.
Furthermore, the flow conditions that arise from liquid entry into the annulus and
redistribution around the downcomer is a complex multi-dimensional flow problem in itself.
The experimental tests suggested that the extent of liquid distribution around the annulus was
connected with the flow conditions at the pipe annulus connection. Unfortunately the model
in its present form could not address these issues. Therefore, a boundary condition was
required at the inlet to account for the inlet mass flow and the redistribution effect. This was

170

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

done by imposing an inlet mass flow corresponding to the measured inlet water flow and a
circumferential (horizontal directions) momentum source to provide the necessary distribution
effect. The inlet mass flow, Mlin for each cold leg was uniformly distributed over N inlet cells,
i.e.,

The circumferential momentum source term was modelled by the inlet velocity Vlin which
took account of the stratified nature of the inlet flow, i.e.

C0 is a correction factor and Vun is determined from

The void fraction at the inlet, a^ was determined experimentally by measuring the
circumference of the outside diameter of the injection pipe wetted by inlet flowing water. This
was converted to a void fraction. A linear regression established the following relationship
between void fraction at the inlet section to the downcomer as a function of the inlet mass
flowrate, i.e.

The correction factor C,, was found by comparison of calculated and experimental tests to
achieve a good correspondence between the observed liquid distribution at the bottom of the
annulus and the calculated distribution, for zero airflow conditions. It was found that a value
of C0=2 achieved the desired results.
13.5.3 Calculation procedures
Initial investigations were carried out on a relatively coarse mesh grid but modified to the
30x32 for all experimental test simulations. The numerical scheme is based on the Interphase
Slip Algorithm (IPSA) and is a modified procedure of the well known SIMPLE algorithm. A
hybrid differencing scheme is used for the convection terms and a fully implicit scheme is
used for the temporal discretization. A time step of 0.002 seconds was used and is slightly
above the Courant Friedrichs Lewy (CFL) stability limit for an explicit calculation that was
found to be approximately 0.0015 seconds. This value was found to be satisfactory for all
calculations carried out in this study. The convergence criteria was set at 1 per cent however,
no noticeable change in the mean results were found when tested at 0.1 per cent and at a time
step of 0.001 seconds. The calculations were performed on a Gateway 2000 Pentium P5-90
PC. The simulations were carried out for period from 3 to 8 seconds real-time and usually
started from the final time dump of a previous simulation. A calculation over a period of
8 seconds real-time required approximately 15 hours of cpu time.

CFD Modelling of a Two-phase Mixing/separation Flow

13.6

171

Computational results

13.6.1 Overall comparison

The simulations of each individual experiment allowed the liquid exit flow to be calculated
directly from the exit boundary cell. The predictions of the liquid flowrate are compared with
experimentally measured values and are shown graphically on Fig. 13.5. In this graph it can
be seen that the predictions are generally good for the high-exit liquid flowrate conditions and
clearly within a 25 per cent range.
For low exit flow conditions a poorer accuracy was noted. This is associated with the
difficulty in modelling the entrainment conditions local to the break.

Fig. 13.5 Comparison of experimental and predicted liquid exit flow

To indicate how the mathematical model performs at a detailed level a high liquid flow
bypass test was chosen where 70 per cent of the injected liquid was bypassed out of the exit.
The calculated exit flow over a period of the transient is compared with the experimental
values on Fig. 13.6. The predicted results fluctuate about an average value which slightly
underpredicts the experimental results. Figures 13.7, 13.8, and 13.9 shows the air velocity
vector, liquid velocity vector and liquid fraction distribution, respectively at the end of the
calculation period. The air velocity vectors, shown on Fig. 13.7, indicate that the distribution
is mainly uniform in the lower annular region. The liquid fraction distribution is predicted to
be more non-uniform with fluctuating regions of high liquid content. The liquid velocity
distribution is shown in Fig. 13.8 and indicates the flow paths of the injected liquid.
The liquid entering from injection pipe 1 flows directly to the break. The liquid entering from
injection pipes 2 and 3 distributes itself into the annulus with the majority flowing into high
regions of air velocity and subsequently being swept out of the break. The remaining liquid,
flows to the lower plenum in regions directly under the break.

172

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Fig. 13.6 Exit flow results

Fig. 13.7 Typical air flowrate

Fig. 13.8 Typical liquid flowrate

Fig. 13.9 Predicted flow regime distribution

CFD Modelling of a Two-phase Mixing/separation Flow

173

The prediction of the flow regime distribution is shown on Fig. 13.9 and can be compared to
experimentally similar conditions in Fig. 13.3(a). The predicted regime distribution is
satisfactory but must be interpreted in the context of the modelled regime definitions. The
modelled mist and churn regimes attempt to account for co-current liquid flow conditions,
while the modelled film regime attempts to account for downward flow of liquid which could
exist in the observed film and churn regimes. Accounting for these definitions, Fig. 13.9
indicates that predicted and observed flow regimes correspond reasonably well.

13.7

Discussion

From the computational results it is apparent that the model does a reasonable job of
predicting the separation of liquid mass flowrates. It has also been established that this
predictive capability continues for a range of different liquid injection flowrates and pressure
conditions, and provides some confidence in the model. However, the question originally
posed regarding the general applicability of the model requires still to be addressed. The
closure of the model was obtained by partly using generally available relationships and
information gained from model testing. Table 13.2 summarizes the extent of the model
closure relationships.
Table 13.2 Model closure conditions
Closure Condition
Interfacial Transfer law
Wall Shear laws
Flow Structure
Boundary Conditions

Source
Available from literature
Available from literature
Derived from experimental model testing
Derived from experimental model testing

The apparent success of the prediction relies heavily on the availability of interfacial
momentum transfer relationships. The relationships used in this study were initially developed
for pipe flows where one-dimensional approximations have found to be successful. The
general applicability of constitutive relationships to multi-dimensional flows was never
assured, however, the reasonable correspondence between predictions and experiments give
some confidence in the approach. Unfortunately, the correct application of the relationships
required prior knowledge of the flow structure (the flow regime map) and at present these
conditions could only be accurately obtained from experimental testing .

13.7

Conclusions

A mathematical model has been constructed from a two fluid representation of the two-phase
flows that occur during a mixing/separation process in an annular geometry. The model has
been based on the observed conditions that take place in an experimental air water facility and
tested against the experimental measurements. The following conclusions can be made from
the study:
(i)
(ii)

The model satisfactorily predicts the exit and lower plenum flowrates when compared
with the experimental data;
The generally applicability of such models for two phase flow problems is far from
guaranteed and still largely depends on experimentation.

174

13.9
(1)

(2)
(3)

(4)
(5)
(6)
(7)
(8)

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

References
Hestroni, G. and Yadigaroglu, G. (1992) Multiphase flow and heat transfer: bases,
modelling and applications in (A): The nuclear power industries, (B): The process
industries, Short Course Notes, Zurich, Switzerland, March.
Ishii, M. and Mishima, K. (1984) Two fluid model and hydrodynamic constitutive
relations, Nuclear Engng Des., 82, 107-126.
Dempster, W. and Abouhadra, D. (1994) Multi-dimensional two-phase flow regime
distribution in a PWR downcomer during an LBLOCA refill phase, Nuclear Engng
Des., 149, 153-166.
Abouhadra, D. (1992) Two phase flow regimes in a PWR vessel downcomer during the
refill phase of a large LOCA, MPhil thesis, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow.
Hewitt, G. and Roberts, D. N. (1969) Studies of two-phase gas-liquid flow patterns by
simultaneous X-ray and flash photography, AERE-M 2159, HMSO.
Wallis, G. B. (1969) One Dimensional Two-phase Flow, McGraw Hill Book Co., New
York.
Ishii, M. and Chawla, T. C. (1979) Local drag laws in dispersed two-phase flow,
NUREG/CR-1230.
Bharathan, D., Wallis, G. B., and Richter, H. J. (1979) Air water counter current
annular flow, EPRI Topical Report, NP-1165.

14
CFD Computation of Air-oil Separation in an
Engine Breather
I Care, C Eastwick, S Hibberd, K Simmons, and Y Wang

Synopsis
In high-performance engines an oil-air mixture is formed in transmission chambers by a
combination of air leakage flow past seals and oil injection. To maintain engine reliability and
reduce oil pollution to the environment the mixture must be separated before the oil can be
reused and excess air expelled. Typically a breather is used which comprises a rapidly rotating
cylindrical housing filled with a porous separator matrix. The breather is designed to exhaust
the air from the centre whilst the oil centrifuges outwards to be scavenged from the enclosing
stationary breather chamber.
CFD computations have been developed based on the commercial code CFX4. Initially, a
simplified model for the highly rotational breather flow was created, followed by a
geometrically accurate model of an industrial breather system. The turbulent airflow inside
the breather chamber was calculated and oil droplet motion was studied using Lagrangian
particle tracking. Droplets below a critical diameter are found to impinge on the porous
matrix; otherwise they impinge differentially on the stationary chamber walls. Performance of
the air-oil separation is predicted to vary significantly with shaft speed and breather
configuration.

14.1

Introduction

Within the transmission system of aero or other high-performance engines, breathers are used
as separation devices for weak oil/air mixtures. Oil is injected for lubrication and cooling and
airflow is also present from positive pressure sealing or leakage through bearings and seals.
Both the retention of oil within the transmission system and minimizing the environmental
impact of exhausted oil droplets are important factors. The aim of the separation device is to
maintain the internal pressure balance in the transmission chamber and recover oil from the
oil/air mixture that would otherwise be vented with the air to the atmosphere. It is, therefore,

176

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

important to understand and quantify the physical phenomena relating to the separation
process.
A common design for a breather consists of a housing, containing a porous metal (or plastic)
matrix, rigidly mounted on a rapidly rotating shaft within a stationary chamber. Figure 14.1
shows a schematic diagram of the key components of a typical breather configuration and
identifies a tangential air/oil inlet and separate oil scavenge from the outer chamber surface.
The rotating components generate a flow configuration within the chamber, and also provide
a vented outlet for flow (predominantly air-phase) passing radially inwards through the
porous material and exhausting through a duct in the centre of the shaft. In practise, the
breather may be a self-contained unit attached to the engine or located as part of a main shaft.
The speed of the shaft typically varies between 10 000 and 20 000 r/min and imparts
significant outward radial motion to oil collected within the separator matrix.

Fig. 14.1 Schematic diagram of a typical breather with rear face open
An example of a suitable breather matrix material is Retimet, a patented metal foam material
developed by Dunlop Equipment (1), (2). Figure 14.2 shows a micrograph of a sample of
Retimet that suggests it may act dynamically as a highly porous medium. In this study flow
through the separator matrix is taken to conform to a Darcy flow law (differential pressure
directly proportional to velocity).

Fig. 14.2 Micrograph showing the structure of Retimet

CFD Computation of Air-oil Separation in an Engine Breather

177

The separation of the oil/air mixture occurs by two main mechanisms. The first is a
centrifuging action where oil droplets are 'spun out' by the internal air flow onto the walls of
the chamber where they subsequently form a film that is collected and scavenged from the
breather chamber. The second is for a mixture of air and oil droplets to enter the separator
matrix of the breather. Inside the matrix most of the oil drops coalesce and are centrifuged to
the walls of the housing where it passes through a series of holes back to the chamber.
Simultaneously the air, with any residual oil is vented through the centre of the hollow shaft.
The related physical phenomena involving the oil/air separation process within a rapidlyrotating (annular) flow are complicated and relatively few studies have been reported due to
the difficulty of undertaking both experimental measurements and computations. Currently,
breather manufacturers use performance models derived from data compiled from in-house
testing but these provide no information about detailed behaviour within the chamber itself.
Wittig et al. (3), (4) and Glahn et al. (5)-(7) have reported work on aspects of the physical
phenomena occurring in aero-engine bearing chambers which involve the flow between an
outer stationary housing and a rotating shaft. Simple models for the oil film flow exist such as
that presented by Chew (8) for the oil film on the housing of a bearing chamber using an
integral approach, which gave good qualitative and quantitative agreement with
measurements existing within the literature. Although these studies have provided valuable
modelling information on the physical phenomena occurring inside aero-engine bearing
chambers, they are not able to provide quantitative information relevant to breathers, due to
the complex geometrical configurations and high speed of the rotating elements.
The aim of this study was to provide detailed insight into the behaviour of oil droplets
released into the induced turbulent airflow generated within a specific breather chamber
geometry (Techspace Aero, Fig. 14.3) for increasing shaft speed using the commercial CFD
package CFX4.

Fig. 14.3 Computational solid model of an aeroengine breather system

178

14.2

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Methodology

The solution methodology adopted was to complete the calculations in two stages. In the first
stage, a simplified axisymmetric model of the chamber was constructed with either the front
face of the breather housing open or the rear face (see Fig. 14.1, where the rear face is open).
Turbulent air phase computations were converged using CFX4 and oil droplets of specified
sizes were tracked through the domain using Lagrangian particle tracking as a post-process
(droplet momentum does not modify the flow field). This stage of the investigation
highlighted potential computational problem areas and suggested the way the flow inside the
more complex breather chamber would behave. The results from this preliminary stage were
found to be useful in identifying the flow features inside the breather chamber and enabled a
more informed implementation of the CFD model.
In the second stage, a geometrically accurate axisymmetric CFD model of the aeroengine
breather system was constructed. Using a computational solid model of the breather ensured
geometrical accuracy of the CFD model. Guided by results from the simplified model an
appropriate grid density was chosen and turbulent air phase calculations of the flow were
converged. Typically the droplet-laden airflow through the breather chamber is of sufficiently
low concentration for the motion to be simulated by the Eulerian-Lagrangian approach. Oil
droplets of a relevant size distribution were tracked through the computational domain using
Lagrangian particle tracking.

14.3

Simplified axisymmetric model

The geometry and boundary conditions for the simple axisymmetric model are shown in Fig.
14.4. Air enters the chamber through an azimuthal slot representing the outer race of the shaft
bearing. Physically air and oil enter the aeroengine breather chamber through this bearing. Air
leaves the chamber through the centre of the shaft, which is modelled as a mass flow
boundary. The shaft and the breather housing are rotated at an appropriate angular velocity
but the breather itself remaining stationary.

Fig. 14.4

Geometry and boundary conditions for simple,

axisymmetric model (rear face open)

CFD Computation of Air-oil Separation in an Engine Breather

179

Values for the flow parameters are set at typical operating conditions with the air flux entering
the breather chamber fixed at 0.05 kg/s and shaft speeds up to 13 000 r/min. The viscosity and
the density of air are set to be l.8 x 10-5 kg/m s and 1.2 kg/m3 respectively.
The turbulent airflow inside the breather chamber is assumed to be axisymmetric and the
standard k-E turbulence model, as proposed by Launder and Spalding (9) and implemented in
CFX, is used for the calculation. The Retimet inside the breather is modelled using a linear
Darcy's law with porosity and flow resistance (inverse of matrix permeability) parameters set
to be 0.95 and 6000 kg/m3s respectively. For computational purposes, the air outlet is
extended to include a sufficiently long outlet pipe, and conditions of fully-developed flow are
imposed to ensure that results are not affected by the local prescription of the outlet-boundary
condition. No allowance is made at this stage of the aircraft Mach number on the discharge of
the outlet pipe. For clarity, the outlet pipe is not shown in the figures. On the outer casing and
on the shaft it is assumed that any oil film is sufficiently thin not to affect the imposition of
standard no-slip conditions; scavenge is also not modelled. Computations were performed on
a grid with a total of 16 000 cells using a Silicon Graphics Origin 2000 workstation and
suitably checked for grid independence.
Calculation of droplet motion was carried out using a Lagrangian tracking method, on the
implicit simplifications that oil droplets can be modelled as hard spherical particles, collisions
between particles can be ignored and that turbulent dispersion is negligible. Details of the
Lagrangian method can be found in the CFX manual (10). Based on these assumptions and
the computed air flow field, a representative droplet in the diameter range 1-600 um is
released at the centre of the inlet with an initial velocity prescribed at the local mean air flow
velocity. The droplet trajectory calculation continues until the droplet either enters the open
face of the breather or collides with a wall (zero co-efficient of restitution).
Plotted in Fig. 14.5 are the velocity vectors for the case of a rear-open breather housing, on an
azimuthal plane for a shaft speed = 1 1 000 r/min. It can be seen that the main air stream is
directed towards the shaft, flows along the breather face and separates at the corner, moving
outwards after the breather. This is probably due to the high shear stress generated from the
rotating breather housing. Comparison with the airfield at lower shaft speed reveals that the
direction change of the air stream is greater at the higher shaft speed. In addition, the air
stream makes a further large change of direction having passed the breather housing, turning
to enter the open face of the breather.

Fig. 14.5

Velocity vectors for the simplified geometry, rear face open,

2 = 11 000 r/min

180

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

For comparison, Fig. 14.6 shows the velocity vectors for the case of a front-open breather
housing. As with the rear-open case the main air stream is directed towards the shaft and the
upstream flow pattern is very similar for both cases.

Fig. 14.6

Velocity vectors for the simplified geometry, front face open,

2 = 11 000 r/min

Shown in Fig. 14.7 is the projection of droplet trajectories onto an azimuthal plane for the
rear-open breather with a shaft speed Q,= 11 000 r/min. As can be expected, the smaller
droplets closely follow the air streamlines and enter the open face of the breather. As the size
of the droplet diameter is increased, this behaviour changes due to the increasing importance
of the inertia of droplets and, as a consequence, these droplets will no longer enter the open
face of the breather. It is noted that droplets will be affected by the rotational velocity of the
flow and will move outward towards the stationary outer casing. For very large droplets, the
influence of the airflow to affect their initial inertia is small and these droplets will travel with
their initial velocity until reaching the wall of the breather chamber.

Fig. 14.7 Droplet trajectories, front face open, Q = 5200 r/min

Figure 14.7 shows that larger droplets are centrifuged out to the walls of the chamber while
smaller droplets impinge on the Retimet. It is therefore informative to define a critical droplet
diameter, the maximum diameter for which droplets closely follow the airflow to reach the
open face of the breather. This is illustrated in Fig. 14.8(a), where the critical droplet diameter

CFD Computation of Air-oil Separation in an Engine Breather

181

is plotted as a function of shaft speed for both front-open and rear-open cases. It is seen that
the critical droplet diameter decreases as the shaft speed increases for both cases and that this
droplet diameter is significantly smaller in the rear-open case. This is consistent with the
conjecture that in the rear-open case there is more streamline curvature such that slight
deviation from the airflow will lead to non-impingement on the porous material. It is usual to
relate the ability of particles to follow curving streamlines to the appropriate Stokes number.
In this case there is no obvious appropriate Stokes number because the streamline curvature is
in the axial direction while the predominant flow is azimuthal. Further work will be required
to identify appropriate parameters. The results displayed in Fig. 14.8(a) suggest that at all
shaft speeds droplets impinge on the Retimet although at high speed fewer droplets will
impinge in the rear-open case compared with the front-open for the same approach droplet
size distribution.

Fig. 14.8(a) Critical droplet diameter as a

function of shaft speed for
front-open
and rear-open
cases

Fig. 14.8(b) Differential pressure between

inlet and outlet as a function
of shaft speed for front-open
and rear-open cases

These results suggest that to improve separation, the shaft speed of the breather should be
increased. This is not possible in the case of a direct shaft-mounted breather. For an auxiliarydriven breather rotation speed is restricted due to considerations of containment and burst
strength. Increasing the speed also increases the pressure drop across the Retimet as shown in
Fig. 14.8(b). If this pressure drop is too high, the bearing chamber sealing system will have a
high back pressure, which could lead to inadequate bearing chamber sealing performance.
Consequently, an optimal design will be a balance between the shaft speed and the
configuration of the separator and bearing housing.

14.4

Model of an industrial breather system

The aeroengine breather system is shown as a solid model in Fig. 14.3 and as a diagrammatic
cross-section in Fig. 14.9. Two bearings (front and rear) support an internal rotating shaft and
both bearings are lubricated by oil. The breather is mounted on the rotating shaft and in this
study the rear face was open. The inside of the breather housing has slots that interface with
holes in the shaft to allow the air/oil mixture to exhaust through the shaft. The housing
contains blocks of matrix material. Air enters the bearing chamber via the front bearing
housing (see Fig. 14.9). The air flow is divided into two parts, one part goes through the holes
on a deflection plate which is located before the front bearing and is designated as to Tnlet 1'
and the second part enters through the front bearing and is labelled as 'Inlet 2'. This latter

182

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

flow entrains oil droplets with the air as it enters the chamber. In a similar manner, oil
droplets may also be introduced into the bearing chamber with the air flow being blown from
the rear bearing. In addition, an oil film may be formed on the inner surface of the bearing
chamber due to overflow of oil from the bearings. Since the front bearing is the larger of the
two bearings, and the mass flow of oil and air associated with this bearing is an order of
magnitude larger than that from the rear bearing, the rear bearing has not been modelled in the
present work.

Fig. 14.9 Diagrammatic cross-section of the aeroengine

showing inlets and outlets

breather,

As with the simplified breather, the single-phase turbulent air flow in the bearing chamber and
breather system is calculated on the assumption that the droplet-laden air flow through the
bearing chamber is of sufficiently low concentration such that the existence of the oil phase
does not affect the air flow significantly. The air flux, which enters through the front bearing
housing through the two inlets to the bearing chamber, is varied within the calculations
between 0.025 kg/s during a normal flight state and 0.05 kg/s at take off state. The air flux
is divided into two parts through the two inlets with a ratio of 0.06 and the shaft rotates at
5200 r/min. A comparison of this shaft speed and higher shaft speeds is made.
Uniform inlet velocities at the two inlets to the bearing chamber were determined from the air
flux and the ratio of the air flux going through the front bearing. An outlet boundary condition
(mass flow boundary) was prescribed at the exit of the shaft, a stationary wall boundary
condition was given for the outer stationary casing and a rotating boundary condition was set
for the shaft and breather housing. The grid, illustrated in Fig. 14.10, is a compromise
between the capability of the computer and the size of the first cell required by using the wall
function in the standard k~ turbulence model. The total number of cells is 19 000.
As with the simplified breather, droplet trajectories were calculated using the Lagrangian
approach and based on the assumption that droplet concentration is sufficiently low that the
air flow field is not influenced by the droplet motion. Turbulent particle dispersion was also
not considered. Droplet trajectories were calculated for five shaft speeds: 1, 3000, 6000, 9000,
and 12 000 r/min and two air fluxes: 0.025 kg/s and 0.05 kg/s.

CFD Computation of Air-oil Separation in an Engine Breather

183

Fig. 14.10 Axisymmetric grid used to model the aeroengine breather (19 000 cells)
Figure 14.11 shows velocity vectors inside the breather chamber for an inlet air flux of
0.05 kg/s and a shaft speed of 6000 r/min. The large recirculation upstream of the breather
housing is the most notable flow feature although a weaker recirculation also exists between
the breather and the outer wall of the casing. Figure 14.12 shows velocity vectors for the same
inlet air flux and a rotational speed of 12 000 r/min. Comparison shows that with the higher
rotation speed the flow impinging on the breather housing is deflected outwards causing the
recirculation between breather and housing to move towards the inlet.

Fig. 14.11 Velocity vectors for an inlet air flux of 0.05 kg/s and a
shaft speed of 6000 r/min

Fig. 14.12 Velocity vectors for an inlet air flux of 0.05 kg/s and a
shaft speed of 12 000 r/min

184

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

In Fig. 14.13 droplet trajectories for droplets in the size range 0 to 600 um are shown for the
case where the inlet air flux is 0.025 kg/s and the shaft speed is 6000 r/min. Only droplets of
less than 100 u.m are not centrifuged directly to the stationary casing and only very small
droplets impinge on the Retimet.
As with the simplified breather, a critical diameter can be identified above which the droplets
will not impinge on the Retimet. A graph showing the variation of critical diameter with shaft
speed for the two inlet air fluxes is displayed in Fig. 14.14. The graph contains two regions,
0 to approximately 1500 r/min, where critical droplet diameter increases with increasing shaft
speed, and 1500 r/min to 12 000 r/min, where critical droplet diameter decreases with
increasing shaft speed. The momentum of the droplet and the amount of streamline curvature
are the two main factors affecting whether or not a droplet will follow the airflow. The fixed
air flux corresponds to a fixed droplet momentum and so Fig. 14.14 suggests that at low
rotation speed the amount of streamline curvature between inlet and the open face of the
Retimet actually decreases. At higher speeds, comparison of Figs 14.11 and 14.12 shows that
an increase of speed increases the angle at which the inlet jet is deflected from the breather
housing, increasing streamline curvature. Consequently only smaller droplets will be able to
follow the air to the Retimet.

Fig. 14.13 Projection of trajectories for droplets in the size range 0 to 600 um,
inlet air flux 0.025 kg/s and shaft rotation speed 6000 r/min

Fig. 14.14 Variation of critical droplet diameter with shaft speed and inlet air flux

CFD Computation of Air-oil Separation in an Engine Breather

14.5

185

Industrial application

The initial findings from the simplified axisymmetric model have led to a greater
understanding of the flow processes operating within a breather chamber. In particular the
results from this model indicated that the significance of the exit path of the air from the
Retimet had been overlooked. An immediate result is a set of redesigned breathers for testing.
Rig testing of the design improvements suggested by this simplified model have led to an
improvement that will be evaluated on a development test engine shortly.
It is expected that further CFD development of the model for the complex breather chamber
will lead to a revision of the design criteria for oil/air separators and their operating
conditions. It is anticipated that even more efficient separation will be required in future,
arising from environmental considerations. If this requires a higher rotational speed then this
will create larger pressure differentials and this in turn may have an impact on the type of
bearing chamber sealing systems that are employed. For applications where the shaft speed is
fixed by other factors it will be necessary to give careful consideration to the air and oil paths
into and through the Retimet.
Initial results from LDA/PIV measurements on an aeroengine are consistent with the CFD
model and confirm that the oil droplets that emerge from the Retimet are between 1 um and
14 urn.

14.6

Conclusion

In this study the operation of an industrial breather design was investigated using CFD. The
approach adopted was to perform preliminary work on a simplified model representing many
of the geometrical and physical features of the actual component. Further work on a
geometrically accurate model was then completed. This methodology was found to yield
useful information even during the early stages of the study and considerably reduced the
amount of effort required for the full model.
The results of the study indicate a number of issues relating to the design of breather systems.
It is particularly noted that systems that induce air streamline curvature will enhance the
separation process, encouraging most of the oil to be centrifuged to the walls of the chamber
and separated prior to the Retimet itself. A rear-open breather housing is therefore potentially
a better design than front open. It is also clear that in an efficient design only very small
droplets are likely to enter the Retimet, as these are the ones that can follow the airflow.
Increasing the rotation speed also appears to enhance separation for the breather investigated.
Ongoing work includes extensions to the study of the Techspace Aero breather and modelling
of breather configurations as developed and used by Dunlop Equipment Limited.

14.7

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to acknowledge the financial support of the Commission of the
European Communities under contract number BRPR-CT97-0597 and the assistance of the
other partners in this package: Dunlop Equipment Limited and Techspace Aero.

186

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

14.8 References
(1)
(2)

Dunlop, Retimet Data Sheet. Dunlop Equipment Limited, 1980.

Dunlop, (1997) Dunlop Equipment Retimet deoilers for aero-engines, Aircraft Eng.
Aerospace Tech., 69, 64-66.
(3) CFX User Guide, (1997) Release 4.2. AEA Technology, England.
(4) Wittig, S., Glahn, A., and Himmelsbach, J. (1993) Influence of high rotational speeds
on heat transfer and oil film thickness in aero engine bearing chambers, ASME paper
93-GT-209.
(5) Wittig, S., Glahn, A., and Himmelsbach, J. (1994) Influence of high rotational speeds
on heat transfer and oil film thickness in aero engine bearing chambers, J. Engng Gas
Turbines Pwr, Trans. ASME, 116, 395-401.
(6) Glahn, A., Kurreck, M., Willmann, M., and Wittig, S. (1995a) Feasibility study on
oil droplet flow investigations inside aero engine bearing chambers - PDPA techniques
in combination with numerical approaches, ASME Paper (Conference code 43400),
p. 9.
(7) Glahn, A. and Wittig, S. (1995b) Two-phase air/oil flow in aero engine bearing
chambers - characterization of oil film flows, ASME Paper (Conference code 43400),
p. 8.
(8) Glahn, A., Busam, S., and Wittig, S. (1997) Local and mean heat transfer coefficients
along the internal housing walls of aero engine bearing chambers, ASME Paper
(Conference code 47341), p. 9.
(9) Chew, J. W. (1996) Analysis of the oil film on the inside surface of an aero-engine
bearing chamber housing, ASME Paper (Conference code 45083), p. 8.
(10) Launder, B. E. and Spalding, D. B. (1974) The numerical computation of turbulent
flows, Comp. Meth Appl. Mech. Engng, 3, pp.269-289.

15
Cavitation in a Pressure-activated Ball Valve
F G Mendonga

Synopsis
A CFD study is undertaken to evaluate the dynamics of a pressure-activated ball valve,
including the balance between the fluid-structure force coupling and the predicted effects of
cavitation on the hydrodynamics. The fluid-structure moving-mesh coupling and cavitation
model are first evaluated in isolation, and then combined in a fully time-accurate and
conservative transient calculation with indeterminate valve motion. No experimental
validations of the predictions are reported. This study represents the first step towards
building confidence in the practical use of cavitation modelling for complex systems.

15.1

Introduction

Performance degradation and structural damage due to cavitation in components such as

valves, injectors, pumps, and propellers running under design conditions, is commonplace.
Designing against its occurrence usually requires a detailed knowledge of local flow
conditions. Predictive techniques, such as CFD, in general offer a cost-effective and timeefficient way of gaining such insight, and in practice contribute significantly to the design
cycle, when the inherent physical models have been validated against the application of
interest. Recent studies (1), (2) applied to flow control valves in non-cavitation situations are
good examples of such validation. Cavitation adds another and a more complex dimension to
CFD predictive requirements.
In flow control devices, one type of which is the focus of this chapter, attached cavitation
affects the discharge by reducing the minimum effective flow area. If the cavitation extends
across the entire flow cross-section, compressibility effects become important insofar as the
local sound speed can reduce between one and two orders of magnitude lower than the
equivalent liquid phase value causing the flow to choke (3).
A generally applicable, readily available, robust, validated physical model of cavitation for
industrial CFD methodologies has been conspicuous by its absence. Towards this target, a
recent implementation of a cavitation model (4) in STAR-CD (5) for incompressible flows

188

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

represents a significant step forward. In the present work, an attempt is made to undertake, in
a methodical way, the prediction of the flow processes in a pressure-actuated ball valve.
Transient indeterminate ball valve motion (its motion is governed by the balance between
fluid pressure forces and a spring) is combined with the prediction of cavitation. In Section
15.2, the physical processes are described. Section 15.3 contains further details of the CFD
methodology used, and in Section 15.4, results are presented and discussed.

15.2

Pressure-activated ball valve

The ball valve illustrated in Fig. 15.1, shown in its closed position, is used as a safety device
to relieve pressure build-up in a common-rail fuel injection system. At a critical pressure, the
fluid force on the face of the ball equals the spring back force and begins to lift the valve.
Discharge through the opening causes the flow to accelerate, and in combination with viscous
losses, results in a local reduction of fluid pressure which, if below the critical vapour
pressures, will cause the on-set of cavitation. Of particular interest to the designers are the
effects of cavitation on the dynamics of the valve, and its contribution to fluid generated noise
and component damage.

Fig. 15.1 Three-dimensional image of the valve geometry and close-ups showing
the valve in the closed position and mesh structure at 0.1 mm lift

Cavitation in a Pressure-activated Ball Valve

15.3

189

CFD methodology

Since the inherent nature of cavitation is transient, all the analyses in STAR-CD were run as
transient calculations. For stability, the time-step size is automatically adjusted based on the
minimum convection time in the flow field. The flow was assumed to be incompressible,
turbulent (using the standard k-e model (6)), and isothermal, with no-slip conditions applied at
surfaces. First-order practices were used for spatial and temporal discretization. Ideally,
second-order practices should be used, but this choice represents a reasonable compromise
between the need to integrate CFD into the designer's existing CAD environment and CFD
best practices (see Section 15.3.2 below). In the next sub-sections, the cavitation model, mesh
and valve motion, and cases studies are described.
15.3.1 Cavitation modelling
The particular method used (4) is generally referred to as the 'bubble two phase' (BTF)
model. It assumes that cavitation is a result of unstable growth of a spectrum of bubble sizes,
Ro formed through nucleation. Growth occurs when the local pressure falls below the
cavitation critical pressure, pcrit, defined as

where a is the liquid surface tension coefficient, and R is the actual bubble size. The bubble
pressure is determined by an isentropic relationship between the local pressure and pcrit, and
its size is calculated from bubble radial motion described by Rayleigh's equation (4).
The net bubble transport is solved using a volume-of-fluid (VOF) method (7) and a higherorder discretization practice (8) is used to capture sharp interfaces between the liquid and
bubble phases.
15.3.2 Geometry and mesh
The quarter geometry illustrated in Fig. 15.1 was meshed with tetrahedral cells using the
designer's existing meshing capability, ANSYS. The resulting mesh is not of optimum quality
for CFD calculations, especially in the region where the ball meets the seat (see Fig. 15.1
inset), necessitating the need for first-order discretization practices.
Starting from the meshed geometry with the valve in its closed position, the pre-processor
PROSTAR was used to break model at the point of contact between the ball and seat. Mesh
layers were extruded from the exposed ball and seat faces to represent the expanding and
contracting volume in the valve gap. The final mesh contains 81 597 cells, with 1672 cells on
one plane of symmetry, from which an axisymmetric sector was extruded to perform twodimensional axisymmetric computations. Figure 15.1, (inset) shows the valve with 0.1 mm
opening.
15.3.3 Valve and fluid coupled motion
The mechanics of the ball valve system are described by:
Ball diameter
Mass of ball and housing
Spring force

= 3mm
= 3g
= FO + F1 * lift

190

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

where FO is the spring force when the valve is closed, and F; is the differential force per unit
length.
At each time step, the integrated fluid-force on the ball and housing is calculated and balanced
against the spring force to determine the net force. Newton's second law is used to compute
the ball and housing differential velocity and displacement. The new velocity is applied as a
moving wall boundary condition to the surfaces of the ball and valve housing. The new valve
position is set by displacing the mesh in the extruded volume between the ball and seat
proportionately. STAR-CD then automatically conserves fluxes in the changing volume mesh.
15.3.4 Case studies
First, an equivalence is drawn between three-dimensionality and two-dimensional
axisymmetry. Most of the flow features around the region of interest are expected to be
axisymmetric. A test scenario was constructed to substantiate this expectation in which the
spring force and system inertia were modified to exaggerated valve lift and to allow the
system to respond quickly to changes in net force. This was followed by three case studies as
summarized below.
15.3.4.1 Mass-flow driven system, indeterminate valve motion, without cavitation to study
the mutual coupling between the valve motion and flow processes
A sinusoidally varying inlet mass flow is prescribed at the domain inlet, initially at the mean
value of 120 litre/hr with an amplitude of 60 litre/hr. Ambient pressure is set at the outlet, and
the transients calculation is run for one full cycle lasting 60 ms. The valve is initially held
open at 0.01 mm and it velocity set to zero. The flow field is initialized to the equivalent
steady-state solution at that lift and a flow rate of 120 litre/hr. The initial net force drives the
valve to open. The time steps are varied automatically during the calculation to be equivalent
to a flow field maximum Courant number, based on convection time, of 50.
15.3.4.2 Pressure driven system, fixed valve position with cavitation to study the dynamics
of cavitation prediction
Three valve positions are investigated; 0.1 mm, 0.075 mm, and 0.05 mm. Pressure boundaries
are prescribed upstream and downstream, at 500 bar and 1 bar, respectively. The calculations
were run for a fixed number of time steps, enough to allow cavitation to initiate and to be
established. For stability, the computational time steps are automatically adjusted by STARCD, based on the minimum convection time in the domain. In general, this represents a
Courant number of less than unity.
15.3.4.3
Pressure driven system, indeterminate valve motion, with cavitation
As with the previous study, pressures upstream and downstream are fixed. The initial valve
position is set to 0.1 mm and the flow field to static. Initially, the spring force causes the valve
to close.

15.4

Results and discussion

Figure 15.2 demonstrates that there is close similarity between the three-dimensional and twodimensional axisymmetric calculations. The differences in the three-dimensional and twodimensional force profiles are attributable to the difference in mesh structure in the
circumferential direction. This provides sufficient justification to proceed with axisymmetric

Cavitation in a Pressure-activated Ball Valve

191

analyses, since run times are substantially reduced. All subsequent calculations, reported
below, were performed on the axisymmetric model.

Fig. 15.2

Three-dimensional versus two-dimensional

comparison of lift versus time

initial study;

15.4.1 Case 1 - mass-flow driven system, indeterminate valve motion driven

without cavitation
The dynamic balance of the ball and fluid system are illustrated in Fig. 15.3, showing the
variation of ball lift, velocity, net force and upstream flow rate with time. From a lift of
0.01 mm, the initial force causes the valve to open further. The increasing spring back-force
then reduces the net lift-force, and its sign reverses, which causes the ball to decelerate, stop
and eventually the valve gap begins to close. At this instant, the closure force is at a
maximum; it reduces with reducing lift and flow area until, again, the sign of the net force
reverses, the ball decelerates to a minimum lift position before the valve begins to open again.
This open-close sequence repeats just over eighteen times through the cycle, corresponding to
noise at 300 Hz. The average lift and its amplitude increase and decrease according to the
mass flow profile.
It is reasonable to conclude that damping effects due to compressibility are negligible in this
simulation since the maximum valve velocity never exceeds 5 per cent of the fluid sound
speed. However, the fluid velocities are comparable with the local sound speed.
15.4.2 Case 2 - pressure driven system, fixed valve with cavitation
With an upstream-downstream boundary pressure ratio of 500, Fig. 15.4 illustrates the

192

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

evolution of fluid pressure force with time for three fixed valve lifts, 0.05 mm, 0.075 mm and
0.1 mm. The behaviour of all three lift-cases are very similar in early part of the simulation,
before 0.01 ms. Flow acceleration through the orifice causes a reduction in the fluid pressure
force. By this time, one observes the on-set of cavitation and the formation of a vortex
downstream of the minimum flow area. Both phenomena increase pressure losses in the
system and then reduce the fluid pressure forces which slowly asymptote towards a 'meansteady' value.

Fig. 15.3 Case 1 - profiles of ball lift, velocity, force, and valve flow rate with time
One notable difference between the profiles is that the 0.1 mm lift case produces sharp spikes
at intervals. It is not possible as present to say whether this effect is a 'correct' modelling
feature, representing catastrophic bubble destruction, or a problem with the numerics.
Indications are that it is the former for the following reasons:
-

the spikes do appear at the lower lifts;

the cavitation patterns are fundamentally different compared with the lower lift cases.

At 0.075 mm and 0.05 mm, the cavitation is not attached to the ball, see Fig. 15.5 (top and
middle) which shows the cavitation volume fraction and velocity field development at
incremental times of 0.01 ms from the start. Bubble growth initiates in the low pressure
orifice region, but the bubbles only increase to a significant volume fraction when they have
travelled further downstream. Part of the bubble breaks off and convects with the vortex as it

Cavitation in a Pressure-activated Ball Valve

193

moves downstream. This yields multiple cavitation structures which prevail as the simulations
progress.

Fig. 15.4

Fluid pressure force history for three steady valve lifts;

0.5 mm, 0.075 mm, and 0.1 mm

In contrast, at 0.1 mm lift depicted in Fig. 15.5 (bottom), one first observes attached cavitation
at the upstream edge of the seat which remains throughout the simulation. The developing
vortex entrains a cavitation cloud which impacts onto the ball, where bubble clusters continue
to convert downstream, detach, or collapse. These unsteady effects on the ball surface could
be a cause of the pressure force spikes. Many experimentalists, reported in (4), have observed
strong interaction between separation induced large-scale vortical structures and cavitation.
The low pressure region at the vortex centre provide an environment in which the bubbles
remain and grow. Such observations are bome-out in these simulations.
By comparison with Case 1, the time step increments needed to resolve the cavitation dynamics are
between one and two orders of magnitude smaller than that required for the fluid dynamics alone.
15.4.3 Case 3 - pressure driven system, indeterminate valve motion with
cavitation
The coupling between the valve dynamic movement and cavitation modelling is demonstrated
in a system with 100 bar pressure difference, with the valve placed open initially at 0.1 mm
and the field at rest; the net force acts to close the valve.
As stated earlier, the time step requirements for cavitation modelling are strict. Typical time
step sizes are in the order of 0.01 m. The simulation was run until the lift reduced to 0.05 mm,
corresponding to approximately 6ms duration. Figure 15.6 illustrates the lift, ball velocity,
and force histories.

194

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

As was seen in the fixed lift study, force spikes can be observed at lifts close to 0.1 mm, but
not as the lift reduces when the force profile becomes less noisy.
Figure 15.7 shows a sequence of cavitation volume fraction and flow velocities at lift
intervals of 0.0125 mm as the valve closes. The corresponding time interval is too long to
capture the development of cavitation clouds, but the location of cavitation relative to the ball
and seat can clearly be seen.
By comparing the predictions from case studies 2 and 3, it is reasonable to surmise that the
time scales for bubble and cavitation cloud dynamics are much shorter that those for the valve
movement. Therefore, fixed lift studies should be sufficient to give an insight into the effect
of cavitation for this ball valve system.
15.4.4 Future work
It is intended that the present work will be developed further as follows:
-

Acquisition of experimental data to validate the pressure driven simulations described in

case studies 2 and 3;
Use of higher order discretization techniques;
Modification of the mesh motion to allow removal of layers in the gap between the valve
and seat, which will enable indeterminate valve motion and full closure;
Introduction of compressibility effects;
Optimization of the temporal algorithm to allow larger time steps when using the
cavitation model.

15.5

Conclusions

These analyses demonstrate that CFD can be used as a practical design tool for predicting
flows affected by cavitation. Fluid-structure coupled moving mesh methodologies give a
useful insight into the valve dynamics, and inferences can be made on noise emissions.
Cavitation is shown to be strongly transient, in which cavitation clouds form, detach, entrain
into vortical flow structures and collapse.
Transient calculations at fixed lift positions may be sufficient to derive an understanding of
the cavitation flow structures. The cavitation time scales have been shown to be much smaller
than the valve dynamics.
The CFD predictions have proven to be robust. However, it is recommended that
compressibility effects should be included, and also that experimental validations are
performed before these methodologies, in isolation and in combination, can be used with
confidence.

15.6

Acknowledgements

The author gratefully acknowledges the contributions from his colleagues, Dr. Jianbo Huang
and Dr Radenko Drakulic, in bringing this work to publication, and Julien Mazallon, Eaton
SAM who provided the geometry and mesh.

Cavitation in a Pressure-activated Ball Valve

Fig 15.5

Cavitation VOF and velocities at lifts 0.05 mm (top),

0.075 mm (middle), and 0.1 mm (bottom).

195

196

Computational Fluid Dynamics in Practice

Fig. 15.6 Indeterminate valve motion; valve lift, velocity, and force histories

Fig. 15.7 Cavitation VOF and velocities as the valve closes from 0.1 mm to 0.05 mm

Cavitation in a Pressure-activated Ball Valve

197

15.7 References
(1)

(2)

(3)
(4)

(5)
(6)
(7)
(8)

ludicello, F. and Baseley, S. (1999) CFD modelling of the flow control valve in a
hydraulic valve, Bath Workshop on Power Transmission and Motion Control
(PTMC99).
Sorensen, H. L. (1999) Numerical and experimental analysis of flow and fluid force
characteristics for hydraulic seat valves with difference in shape, Bath Workshop on
Power Transmission and Motion Control (PTMC99).
Halworth, D. C., Maguire, J. M., Rhein, R., and El Tahry, S. H. (1996) Dynamic
fluid flow analysis of oil pumps, SAE/960422.
Kubota, A., Kato H., and Yamaguchi, H. (1992) A new modelling of cavitating flows:
a numerical study of unsteady cavitation on a hydrofoil section, J. Fluid Mech., 240,
59-96.
STAR-CD Version 3.10 Methodology and User Guide 1999, Computational Dynamics
Limited, London.
Launder, B. and Spalding, D. B. The numerical computation of turbulent flows, Comp.
Meth. Appl. Mech. Engng, 3, p. 269.
Hirt, C. W. and Nichols, B. D. (1981) Volume of fluid (VOF) method for the dynamics
of free boundaries, J. Comp. Mech., 39, 201-225.
Ubbink, O. (1996) Numerical Prediction of Two Fluid Systems with Sharp Interfaces,
PhD thesis, Imperial College of Science, Technology, and Medicine.

198

Authors' Index
M

B
Bardsley, M E A
Birse, D

57-66
151-160

c
Care, I

175-186

Mendonca, F G
Menzies, K
Mugglestone, J

187-198
99-112
151-160

o
Oliphant, K

67-90

D
Davies, G
Dempster, W M
Docton, M
Drikakis, D

143-150
161-174
131-142
1-22

Pickering, S J
Pullen, K R

113-122, 151-160
91-98

R
E

Eastwick, C N
Etemad, MRE

113-122, 175-186
91-98

23-2
131-142
91-98

G
Gaylard, A
Ghobadian, A
Giddings, D

Rao, H V
Rees, S
Romero-Hernandez, S

43-56
123-130
113-122

Sapsford, S M
Shanel, M
Simmons, K
Stephenson, P

131-142
175-186

57-66
151-160
113-122, 175-186
123-130

Harrison, S
Hibberd, S

67-90

K
Kendall, S R

23-42

L
Lampard, D
Lee, F

67-90

Japikse, D

Tsuei, H-H

151-160
123-130

Wang, Y
Woolf, D

175-186
143-150

199

Subject Index
Accuracy 2, 108
high-resolution of 1, 2
high-order of 1,2,9
Aerodynamic drag (windage) 91, 92
Airflow 154
Air movement 144, 145
Air-oil separation 175, 177
Axisymmetric grid 183
Axisymmetric model 178, 185, 191
Blast:
modelling 132
resistance 137
simulation 131
Blast-resistant structures 131
design of 131
Boundary conditions 94, 168, 178
Breather, see Engine Breathers
Built-environment simulation 143
benefits of 144
Cartesian co-ordinate system 164
Cavitation 187, 188
modelling 189
Cells 59
Cement manufacturing process 114
Closure relationships 164, 168
CO2 concentration 146
Coal combustion 123
modelling 123, 124
Combustion 113
design 102
modelling 106
systems 99-101
Compressible flow 1
Compressors:
PR18 76
PR45 69
Computational mesh 60, 62
Computational model 94
Concentration distributions 144
Damkohler numbers 106, 107
Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) 15
Discretization scheme 1
Drop-tube furnace 126
Eckardt' radial compressor 80, 81

sensitivity study for 81

Eden project 146
Electric motor 151
airflow in 151
heat transfer in 151
Enclosed disc 92
Engine breather 175, 176
Engines:
gasoline direct injection engines (G-DI)
63
gas turbine engines 99
systems 100
high-speed direct injection Diesel
engines (HSDI) 63
Experimental test-rig 29, 93,
FINE/Turbo 68, 69, 75, 84
results 73, 77, 85
Flow:
length of 34
parameters 28
steady fluid flow 29
structure 51
variation of 34
Flow visualization 53, 54
tool 51
Fluent CFD code 113
Fluid flow equations 152
Friction factor, f 33
Geometrical complexity 60
Godunov-type methods 4, 7
Grid development 114
Grid sensitivity 70
Heat:
distributions 144
loss 158
transfer co-efficient 155
High resolution schemes 4
Humidity 146
Human trauma analysis 138
Human injury 140
Igloo 144
construction of 144
geometry of 144
Incompressible flow 1

200

Inter-car gap (ICG) 51

k-e. turbulence model 91, 93, 97, 103, 154
Kinematic response 138
Large Eddy Simulation (LES) 15, 105
Lattice Gas Dynamics (LGD) 43, 44, 46
simulations 43
Mesh 189
generation 57, 58, 59, 65
motion 62
refinement 95
Micron-sized passages 27, 34
Mid-cell back substitution technique
(MCBST) 23, 25, 32, 39
principle of 27
Mixing/separation flow 161
problems 163
Model closure relationships 166
Moisture distributions 144
Multiphase flow 161
Navier-Stokes equations 2, 7, 24, 102,
114, 152
multiple solutions using 24
theory 24
Numerical methods 1, 108
efficiency of 12
robustness of 12
Numerical solution 95
Oil-air mixture 175
separation of 177
Particles 145, 149
PowerFLOW model 46
Power station furnace 126
Precalciner 113, 116, 119, 121
Pressure-activated ball valve 187, 188
Pressure transducers 28
Pulverized coal 123
Pushbutton CFD (pbCFD) 67-73,
84
default grid 72, 75
results 76
predictions 77
Rapid CFD modelling 67
RAPIDE Project 43,44, 53
Reliability 108
Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes

(RANS) 15, 16, 43, 45

Reynolds Number 33, 36, 103
Reynolds stress models 104
Rocket turbopump 84
Rotating discs 91
Scale model:
1/5* scale 48
1/8* scale 48
Separation device 175
Shock wave 133
two-dimensional 133
three-dimensional 133
propagation 140
Single burner test-rig 124
Single burner test furnace 128
Solid particle modelling 116
Solution settings 114
STAR CD CFD code 45, 91, 189, 190
program 123
Structural analysis 138
Structural response 138
Surface pressure 50
TASCflow 68
Test motor 152
modelling of 153
Tropics biome 147
Turbulent flows 15
Two-dimensional flow 25
model 27
Two-fluid model 164
Two-phase fluid system 161
Validation 124, 126, 128, 133, 135
Validation data 119
Valve geometry 189
VECTIS software 57, 58
Wall reflection 133, 140
Wave propagation 135, 140
Wind tunnel experiments 48
Windage 91, 92
losses 92, 96, 97
results of 96
y+ study 70, 71, 81