Research on the Characteristics of Solid–Liquid Two-Phase Flow in the Lifting Pipeline of Seabed Mining

Abstract

Vertical pipes are a significant component of deep-sea mining hydraulic lifting systems, frequently stretching up to thousands of meters. This article employs the coupling approach of computational fluid dynamics for the liquid phase and the Discrete Element Method for the particle phase (CFD-DEM) to simulate solid–liquid two-phase flow in a vertical pipeline, utilizing a scaled vertical lift pipeline model as the study object. By adjusting the conveying parameters and structural factors, the lifting performance of particles and the two-phase flow characteristics under various operating circumstances are examined, and the veracity of the simulation is validated by experimental techniques. The findings reveal that the lifting of particles is impacted by both the conveying parameters and the structural factors. The increase in flow rate can effectively improve the distribution of particles in the pipeline and enhance the followability of particles. The disturbance created by the collision and mixing of particles induced by the change in particle concentration has a tremendous impact on the velocity distribution of the two-phase flow in the pipeline and the pressure distribution of the pipe wall. In addition, there is an ideal lifting flow corresponding to various particle concentrations, which may improve the particle dispersion. The outcome of this research has a certain reference relevance for the selection of the parameters of deep-sea mining lifting systems in the future.