Experimental and numerical study of a twin-fluid two-phase internal-mixing atomizer.

This paper presents a numerical, and experimental study on atomization characteristics and droplet distribution of a twin-fluid two-phase internal mixing atomizer. Using the discrete phase model and Eulerian–Lagrangian numerical study, internal and external flow fields are simulated to describe two-phase flow in mixing chamber. The exterior region near the exit nozzle in the combustion chamber is simulated by particle trajectory method. Internal-mixing atomizer is manufactured and tests are carried out to verify the numerical results by applying shadowgraph method visualizing flow near the exit nozzle of the atomizer and downstream in combustion chamber. In order to study atomization characteristics including droplet dimension and velocity distribution in different gas to liquid ratio, an advanced twin-fluid test stand for two-phase flow atomizers is designed and built. By changing operating parameters of gas phase pressure and liquid flow rate a reasonable agreement for spray cone angle, maximum penetration depth and droplet diameter and velocity distributions is found between numerical and experimental result. As result, turbulence modeling assists to estimate atomization characteristics of complicated twin-fluid two-phase atomizers precisely to avoid time-taking and costly experimental tests although an advanced test stand is developed and built to cover all types of atomizer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]