Grid generation issues in the CFD modelling of two-phase flow in a pipe

Abstract

The grid generation issues found in the 3D simulation of two-phase flow in a pipe using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) are discussed in this paper. Special attention is given to the effect of the element type and structure of the mesh. The simulations were carried out using the commercial software package STAR-CCM+, which is designed for numerical simulation of continuum mechanics problems. The model consisted of a cylindrical vertical pipe. Different mesh structures were employed in the computational domain. The condition of two-phase flow was simulated with the Volume of Fluid (VOF) model, taking into consideration turbulence effects using the k-e model. The results showed that there is a strong dependency of the flow behaviour on the mesh employed. The best result was obtained with the grid known as butterfly grid, while the cylindrical mesh produced misleading results. The simulation was validated against experimental results.